Super Meat Boy is the definition of a traditional 2D platformer. Gameplay boils down to nothing but running and jumping, this might seem like very little but when you think of games like Mario and Sonic you begin to realise anything is possible with these building blocks. Meat Boy's goal is always the same, make it from point A to point B in order to rescue his love (Bandage Girl) who has been captured by the evil Dr Fetus (crazy Baby in a jar). This of course is no easy task, and can be very challenging when faced with the numerous obstacles in your way, like a Buzzsaw, Spike, or a Monsters Jaw, each of which will splatter Meat Boy into a thousand bloody pixels if he comes into the slightest of contact with any of them. The reminder of your previous failed attempts will be noticed as you try again to manoeuvre the obstacles, this time while looking at the blood you have already spilled.
With a game like Super Meat Boy the biggest and most important aspect of the game is the controls. Meat Boy feels great to control, he is the perfect weight and speed and the developers managed to make him feel just as he should. Beginners won't take too long before mastering Meat Boy's movements and being able to judge his movement with precision.
Super Meat Boy is an incredibly difficult platformer, there are no checkpoints and if you die you will have to restart the level again from the beginning. You might die a hundred times before reaching your goal (Bandage Girl) but the game keeps track of every death in the statistics menu which can always be fun to view. As well as that the game also rewards you with a replay of all your efforts at the same time in one replay after you have reached Bandage Girl, this was very amusing and a great touch. It's extremely funny and rewarding to see all your failed attempts in one bloody reply to see just how hard you had to work. You have unlimited attempts at reaching your goal and some levels will only take a minute while others may take three or four to complete.
Meat Boy sadly doesn't have any multiplayer, i would have loved some sort of racing game. Me and a friend racing through a level adding to the intensity of the game but nothing like this is available. It is still fun to pass a controller around with friends while you all have fun watching a buddy loose his mind in attempt to clear a stage.
Your first run through the game will likely be focused solely on reaching the end of each level. You will likely miss out any of the hidden secrets the game offers like warp zones that lead to secret areas where you might find new playable characters such as Commander Video from the recent indie game "Bit Trip". You can also play as the kid from Braid which is quite fun as each character has their own behaviours that might help you in a tight spot. The great thing is you can usually switch between characters when you are not dealing with a boss. Commander Video can float for a bit in mid air which can be helpful in certain areas so it's great to have different techniques to use when the situation calls for it. There are also bandages to collect which will give you credit towards buying other new characters.
The developers influence is obvious when watching any of the hilarious cut scenes which reference anything from Ninja Gaiden to Mega Man 2. A Donkey Kong-themed level is named "Weibe" after Donkey Kong champion Steve Wiebe. The music is superb and provides a very nostalgic feeling to the game. When you enter a Warp Zone the game will shift it's visuals to a more pixelated, 8-bit style much like the old NES, Game Boy, or Atari 2600. Super Meat Boy seems like a tribute to all the old classic platformers we love when we were growing up but it also does a fantastic job at securing it's own place in history as a true gem when it comes to 2D platformers.
At the end of the day when you are playing a game with a hero made out of meat, chasing a Bandage he loves, while being attacked by a Fetus which apparently went to medical school, how can you not have fun. The game is a delightful dish of entertaining and challenging old-school style gaming and provides some of the best platforming we have seen in recent years. There seems to be a trend as i have previously mentioned in other reviews with 2D platformers making a return, we have had Limbo, Sonic 4, Kirby's Epic Yarn, Mega Man, and now Super Meat Boy joins the new classics and re-imaginings of old franchises brought back to life. I love this return to the old days and i hope to see much more 2D platformers returning soon, as well as new fresh unique takes on the traditional games we all loved as kids.
Super Meat Boy is a game which will tease your amusement with delightful and hilarious cut scenes, it offers great platforming and a nostalgic feel which has been lost in modern gaming for a long time. The game is great and for a downloadable Arcade game it's a must buy.
Super Meat Boy is a fantastic side-scrolling platformer 8.0
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