There’s nothing more useful in a video game than a good solid jump. With the right jump, you’ll be able to make it across the widest gaps around, and if you’re like some mildly evil mustached ex-plumbers, you might even be willing to sacrifice a trusty friend for that jump. I’m not judging by the way, I’m just calling it as I see it.
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There have been thousands of video game characters over the years, and as some people do, they tend to hop around. Could some characters put NBA stars to shame? Absolutely. Did I just come up with a fantastic idea for aSuper Smash Bros-stylebasketball game? I think I did.
10Pokemon Trainer
While the little hop the various Pokemon Trainers from thePokemonseries do as a form of a slight shortcut is cute, it’s not exactly incredible. The hilarious little hop is the kind of thing you’d expect from someone on their twentieth burpee, instead of someone traveling the world.
It’s possible that I’m completely forgetting about an instance in one of the games in which a trainer takes a major leap, but that wouldn’t be enough to convince me away from this ranking. It’s a teeny-tiny jump for a teeny-tiny little guy or gal.
9Sonic The Hedgehog
You’d think that a character who was basically created to go head-to-head with Mario would be better at jumping, but here we are. It should be said that Sonic deserves some style points for that cool spinning thing he does, but his jumps aren’t all that impressive.
Sonicis what I like to call perfectly average. He’s not changing the world with his jumping ability, but he can competently bash some baddies, especially with that homing dash. I’m looking forward to aNintendo Switch Olympic Games eventwhere he uses his speed to break the sound barrier with a single leap, setting a new all-time record.
8Link
You might be thinking thatLinkactually has some pretty solid jumping abilities, and you’re not wrong, but he loses a lot of points for his unwillingness to jump on command in most of his games.
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If you require a ledge to jump, you just can’t ever be an incredible jumper, I don’t make the rules (or do I?). He does have his moments where he shows off some promise, but jumping into a skydive just isn’t going to be able to change my mind. I know Link can do better.
7Mario
Mariois a pretty impressive jumper, there’s no denying it. I don’t know if you’ve tried to jump three times consecutively, getting higher with each jump, but it’s not easy, especially when you consider that Mario adds in some flips. As previously touched on, Mario is going to lose some points because of the attitude he has towardsthe always adventurous Yoshi.
Mario always uses his dinosaur friend to jump to further heights at the cost of his existence. I would steer clear of Mario, because it seems like he can continuously bounce on the heads of his enemies, meaning a simple waiting room would be his heaven and everyone else’s hell.
6Luigi
That’s right. Happy little player-twoLuigitakes the edge over his brother when it comes to jumping. In many of the outings where you can play as Luigi, he is able to jump significantly higher than his brother.
That would already be enough, but come on, have you seen that hilarious leg wiggle he does in midair? It’s a thing of pure beautythat practically acts as a double jump. Wiggling your legs mid-jump is the kind of move that only someone perfectly comfortable with who they are could pull off without anyone batting an eye, and that’s what makes Luigi an icon.
5Nathan Drake
Nathan Drakebeing placed so highly may seem strange, after all, he’s just a random guy. The thing is, he is capable of some incredible leaps while hanging off the sides of cliffs, buildings, and even trains.
It may be a different kind of jump, but it doesn’t make it any less impressive. I’ve tried leaping from place to place like him, and I can confirm that it makes your everything hurt in the worst way. Honestly, I’m just surprised he didn’t settle down sooner.
4Batman
The iconic DC hero may not spring to mind as an overly acrobatic person, butBatmanhas some stylish hops. First of all, anyone willing to jump off a building with the intent to land on the ground safely can be given some credit as a solid jumper.
Second, have you seenthe man spread his cape? Few things are anywhere near as epic as that image. Realistically, if the conditions are right, Batman is capable of maneuvering around all of Gotham in a single jump, and that’s gotta count for something.
3Faith Connors
I think the world would be a better place if we were all as cool as Faith fromMirror’s Edge. With zero fear, Faith is comfortable jumping from building to building at incredible speed. It’s possible that her jumps seem more impressive than others due to the first-person perspective, but we don’t care.
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Other characters are stuck with linear jumps and movement, but Faith jumps clean over them all and runs across a wall while she’s at it. She’s the equivalent of an American Ninja Warrior, just with a much cooler name, and instead of bumping into pads, she’s dodging bullets.
2Ezio Auditore da Firenze
There’s no way a list like this could be done without including one ofthe coolest assassins in the history of gaming.Assassin’s Creed’sEzio is the master of the jump. He’s also a master of totally murdering a ton of historical figures and all that jazz, but we’ll ignore that for now.
Being able to leap off a building to assassinate a target is already impressive (and one of my irrational fears. I always look over my shoulder near tall buildings, just in case), but he gets even better. Those huge leaps of faith he takes into hay bails literally should kill him, but his jumping prowess says, “No, today is not the day to die.”
1Samus Aran
Samus never gets enough credit in any kind of list, despite theMetroidheroine being one of the coolest around. She doesn’t just jump, she unleashes the almighty screw attack, at least, once she’s found the upgrade that will let her do it.
She can simultaneously jump, attack enemies, break walls, and bounce off walls to continue her leap all at the same time. That’s without mentioning that she can pull off a hilarious little jump while she’s in her morph ball form. It’s pretty clear to me that Samus is the queen of the video game jump.
