Also known as freerunning, parkour is a non-competitive sport that is growing in popularity. The basic tenet of parkour is fast, free form movement in any environment. This tenet produces a sport that is renowned for impressive leaps, feats of balance, and acrobatics. People watching parkour for the first time often comment that it almost looks like a video game, due to the seemingly impossible feats these athletes perform. Such comments are particularly insightful due to the number of recent video games that incorporate parkour-like movements in game play. The following video games are some of the best examples of parkour in the media.
Batman: Arkham Asylum (PC, PS3, Xbox 360) ‘” Between swinging around on grapple lines and gliding through the air, the majority of movement in this game actually doesn’t quite fit the description of parkour. Wall bounce jumps and balancing fit a lot better, but are not particularly common. The one place where Batman: Arkham Asylum particularly fits the bill for parkour is the free form combat. Batman doesn’t just punch and kick. He jumps over enemies, does acrobatic rolls, and uses the walls and enemies as springboards. It is practically combat freerunning and it quite awesome to behold.
Assassin’s Creed (PC, PS3, Xbox 360) ‘” The movement of the assassin Altair is undeniably based on the common moves of parkour athletes. He scales walls and balances like a chipmunk. The best one shot kills in this game are all acrobatic moves that highlight his skills. Compared to a real freerunner, Altair is a bit restricted in his movement and a touch slow at times, but impressive combination of parkour moves and assassin blows makes up that that.
Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (PC, GBA, GC, PS2, PS3, Xbox) ‘” Arguably the original parkour game, Sands of Time is still one of the best on the market. In this game parkour is mostly used to bypass obstacles and is rarely entirely free form. Instead, it is often time sensitive or paced to environmental hazards. Still, the jumping, flipping, and wall running is impressive to watch and the game lives on as one of the best of its genre.
Mirror’s Edge (PC, PS3, Xbox 360) ‘”Mirror’s Edge is unique from the other parkour games in two ways. First, it is a first person game which gives a very different feel to the action. Second, it is possible, though incredibly difficult, to defeat Mirror’s Edge without ever attacking at all. For gamers that truly only want to enjoy parkour and nothing else, no other game compares.
Infamous (PS3) ‘” When it comes to sandbox style, free form, no limitations parkour, Infamous is the game that sets the standard. Practically everything in the game can be climbed, bounced off of, jumped on, or balanced on. The catlike speed and grace of the main character, Cole, is only enhanced by his invulnerability to high falls. This means that unlike in other parkour games, Cole can run full speed along thin balance points and bounce like a monkey up the side of buildings without falling death interfering with the exhilaration of the action. Infamous truly is the game to play for any fan of parkour.
