Top-down view
One of the types of camera in video games is top-down view. It is very similar to isometric view but differs slightly. In top-down view, developers do not strive to make the world three-dimensional and deep. Everything is depicted either in two-dimensional space or they create a pseudo "volume" from several rows of two-dimensional spaces. For example, a character can go behind a "flat" house. Sometimes the camera is completely vertical, and the player looks at the flat world from above, as in the first game of the GTA series. Scaling in such games is used very rarely. This method can be used in quests, role-playing games, hack and slash, beat 'em up, strategy games, and many others.
Years
Platforms
PlayStation 2XboxPSPNintendo DSGame Boy AdvanceVideopac+ G7400Windows 3.xBREWGameCubeExEnAtari 8-bitWonderSwan ColorN-GageJ2MEAtari 5200ColecoVisionPalm OSWindows MobileAtari 2600
Statuses
Best Games in the Top-down view genre of 2004 (Game released)
Game released: Android, iPad, iPhone, Mac, PlayStation 2, PC, Xbox, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 → 14 December 2011
Players:
7.2/10
Steam:
66/100
Metacritic:
95/100
Grand Theft Auto 3 is a continuation of the dynamic action game with a third-person view in the open world. Working for the mafia sooner or later ends in trouble...
Role-playing game, Strategy, In real time, Third-person view, Isometric, Top-down view, Futurism (Future), Turn-based
Game released: PC → 3 February 2011
Players:
8.5/10
Space Rangers 2: Dominators — real-time strategy with an isometric view. The main events of the second part of the game take place 250 years after the end of...
Role-playing game, Top-down view, Anime / Manga, Fantasy / Medieval, Turn-based, Japanese role-playing game, Exploration
Game released: NES, WonderSwan Color, PlayStation, Game Boy Advance, PSP, Wii, PlayStation 3, Windows Phone, iOS, Android, PC → 12 July 1990
Players:
9.5/10
Steam:
95/100
Metacritic:
71/100
Final Fantasy is a Japanese-style top-down fantasy RPG with turn-based combat. The game's story focuses on four heroes whose parents were killed during the invasion...
Game released: Android, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Apple II, Atari 8-bit, BlackBerry, Commodore 64, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Game Gear, Intellivision, iPhone, MSX, Neo Geo Pocket Color, NES, PC-88, PC-98, PC Booter, TI-99/4A, VIC-20, Wii, Windows Phone, Xbox 360, ZX Spectrum, PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One → 27 October 2009
Players:
8.3/10
Steam:
90/100
Metacritic:
58/100
Pac-Man is a top-down arcade action game. You have to guide Pac-Man through the maze and eat all the dots without being caught by the ghosts. You will find exciting...
Game released: PlayStation 2, Xbox, PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Mac, Linux → 6 February 2004
Players:
6/10
Steam:
79/100
Metacritic:
74/100
Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance 2 is a top-down fantasy action RPG that will take gamers into the fantasy world of Forgotten Realms from the Dungeons & Dragons board...
Role-playing game, Third-person view, Top-down view, Anime / Manga, Fantasy / Medieval, Turn-based, Japanese role-playing game, Text quest
Game released: Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, PC → 22 February 2001
Steam:
97/100
Rhapsody of Zephyr is a third-person role-playing game with an anime/manga/fantasy twist from Softmax Co., Ltd.. The game is published by Softmax Co. , Ltd...
Simulation, Action, Strategy, In real time, Third-person view, Top-down view, Futurism (Future), Space, Science fiction
Game released: PC → 24 January 2008
Players:
8.6/10
Steam:
66/100
Metacritic:
77/100
This real-time tactical space simulator follows a conflict between megacorporations at the dawn of the 22nd century. A discovery on the edge of the Solar System...
Role-playing game, Top-down view, Anime / Manga, Fantasy / Medieval, Turn-based, Japanese role-playing game
Game released: NES, WonderSwan Color, PlayStation, Game Boy Advance, PSP, Wii, PlayStation 3, iOS, Android → 17 December 1988
Players:
8/10
Metacritic:
68/100
A turn-based role-playing game set in a fantasy world where an emperor summons monsters from a demonic realm to seize control. After the attacks leave them...
Simulation, Action, Business / Management, First-person view, Third-person view, Top-down view, Casual game
Game released: PC → 25 November 2005
Players:
7.6/10
Steam:
94/100
18 Wheels of Steel: Pedal to the Metal is a realistic truck driver simulator with first and third person views. The game invites you to go to conquer America, where...
Game released: GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC, iOS, Android → 25 April 2003
Players:
8/10
Steam:
82/100
Metacritic:
81/100
Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance is a fast-paced top-down action RPG set in the fantasy universe of Baldur's Gate. The combat system is based on the rules of Dungeons...
Game released: Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 7800, Atari ST, Commodore 64, FM-7, Game Boy Advance, NES, Nintendo 3DS, PC-88, PC-98, SEGA Master System, Wii, Xbox 360, ZX Spectrum → 1986
Players:
7/10
Metacritic:
56/100
Xevious is a third-person action game with shooter elements from developers from Namco Limited and Namco Bandai Games. The game is published by Mindscape, Inc. and...
Action, Strategy, In real time, Third-person view, Top-down view, Futurism (Future), Sandbox, Tanks, Post-apocalyptic
Game released: PC → 21 October 2005
Metacritic:
86/100
Ground Control — The main goal of the game is to destroy enemy troops and buildings using the terrain features and the strengths of your own army. Combat...
Game released: Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Apple IIgs, Atari 8-bit, Atari ST, Commodore 64, DOS, J2ME, Mac, MSX, SEGA Master System, Xbox 360, ZX Spectrum → 1986
Metacritic:
65/100
This fantasy arcade game with role-playing elements lets four adventurers explore mazes together, fight monsters, and collect gold. Players choose a warrior...
Role-playing game, Strategy, Top-down view, Fantasy / Medieval, The Lord of the Rings, Japanese role-playing game
Game released: Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube → 5 November 2004
Players:
8.9/10
Metacritic:
74/100
Set in Middle-earth, this role-playing game follows a party of new characters whose journey intersects with the events of the film trilogy. They meet its heroes and...
Arcade, Action, Shooter, Flight Simulator, Third-person view, Top-down view, Futurism (Future), Anime / Manga
Game released: Game Boy Advance, MSX, NES, Nintendo 3DS, Sharp X68000, Wii → 21 May 2004
Metacritic:
68/100
An arcade shooter in which the player guides TwinBee through the clouds while shooting enemies. The game combines aerial combat viewed from above with 3D...
Action, Shooter, Top-down view, Futurism (Future), Anime / Manga, Adult game, Combat robots, Visual novel, Cyberpunk
Game released: Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, PC → 28 October 2004
Baldr Force EXE is a top-down action game with elements of a shooter, an anime or manga game, a game for adults, a robot simulator and a visual novel from the...
