TOKYO, Dec 19 — Side-scrolling platformer Mega Man helped popularise a non-linear approach to gameplay that’s informed everything from Grand Theft Auto V and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild to Minecraft.

Final Fantasy, Streets of Rage 2 and Gran Turismo also reach milestones this week.

On December 17, 2017, it was 30 years to the day since the Mega Man franchise made its debut on the Nintendo Entertainment System.

Released in Japan as Rockman, the game had players control a cyborg robot and chose the order in which to take down the game’s six big bosses, each of which left behind a unique weapon to be used against one of the remaining antagonists.

By presenting players with a level select choice as a pre-game option, it explored the concept of non-linear progression in an even more overt way than Metroid, released just the year before.

However, where fellow ‘80s franchises The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Super Mario and Final Fantasy have embraced 3D worlds, Mega Man retained its side-scrolling nature, and continues to do so for 2018’s Mega Man 11.

Speaking of Final Fantasy, the foundational Japanese role-playing franchise has been celebrating its 30th since January — closer to the 20th anniversary of Final Fantasy VII — even though the first game wasn’t released until December 18, 1987.

Despite its apparent simplicity in comparisons to today’s epics, the first Final Fantasy nevertheless succeeded in pushing boundaries in terms of characterisation, graphical detail, and scale, franchise hallmarks that in many respects continue to this day.

On December 20, 1992’s Streets of Rage 2 (Bare Knuckle 2) reaches a quarter of a century.

Though the franchise was relatively short-lived — Streets of Rage landed in 1991, and the trilogy closer arrived in 1994 — its impact was immense.

On Sega’s Genesis, it delivered a stiff roundhouse kick to prestige beat ‘em up rival Final Fight 2 on Super Nintendo, with four characters to choose from, a broad range of moves, challenging enemies, varied levels, and a remarkably well-composed soundtrack.

After subsequent re-releases on Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, GameCube, PS3 and Xbox 360 (and unofficial fan homages Beats of Rage and Streets of Rage Remake) it’s now part of the Sega Genesis & Mega Drive Classics compilation on Windows PC.

Finally, Gran Turismo first rolled onto PlayStation with a 1997 Japanese release in December 23.

The ambitious motorracing simulation franchise is still known for attention to detail — if not now an occasional overindulgence — and has gone so far as to launch the GT Academy, a driver recruitment initiative in collaboration with Nissan and its motorsport subdivision. — AFP