Hard and frustrating, yet fun and highly addictive.
Thumbs Up:
+Brilliant Level Design
+Cute characters and graphical design
+Very simple and easy to understand controls
+The length and replay value of the game
+Fantastic music and sound effects
+Provides a fair challenge (for the most parts)
+The game is overall a very fun experience
Thumbs Down:
-Controls for the PC version don't work sometimes (specially the jump button)
-In some levels, the difficulty level is TOO high (leads to frustration and some annoyances).
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In-depth Review:
Thumbs Up:
+Super Meat Boy is basically a 2D Platformer game, and it plays like many other titles from the same genre. There is one minor difference tho; the gameplay is much faster than all the other platformers that I've recently played. Even if you just gently press the arrow key (you use the arrow keys tomove your character), meat boy runs too fast and for a fairly long distance (considering the fact that you've just GENTLY pressed the button). It's a plus for me that the game is fast paced, but it would have been better if the controls were a little bit less sensitive.
+There are different characters in this game that you can unlock. Each of these characters have different special abilities, and depending on what their ability is, they could come in handy in many different ways and situations during the game.
+There are two ways to unlock these characters: some of them you have to buy, and the other ones can be unlocked by finishing particular wrap zones.
+The currency in this game are bandages, therefore in order to buy half of the characters, you need to have enough bandages. Bandages can be found throughout different stages, and since they are usually hidden in some really hard-to-reach positions, collecting them can be very challenging.
+Wrap zones are really cool additions to the game and they definitely add to the replay value. What are wrap zones? Basically, they are like secret/hidden stages in the game. There are at least 2 wrap zones in each world; after completing some of these wrap zones, you'll be able to unlock some of the hidden characters, and these characters are actually the main characters from other popular videogames (for example, you can play as the main character from bit.runner).
Other wrap zones are basically in the game just for the sake of 100% completion, and bandages can be found in them as well. But besides these two reasons, they don't serve any other purpose in the game.
+The level design is excellent and very clever (specially the boss stages).
+You can try and go for getting A+ in each level (getting an A+ means beating the level in the time limit that the game gives you before you begin the stage). Getting an A+ is not only satisfying and adds to the replay value, but also it makes the same level available for you in the dark world. For example, if you get an A+ in a stage from World 1, you can press shift on the map. By pressing shift you basically enter the dark world. In this world, you can play the same levels again, but this time with higher difficulty. The music is also different in the dark world; it's way closer to metal/hard rock.
*NOTE: Remember, you can only play a level in the dark wold IF you get an A+ on the same stage in the light world.
+The music is fantastic. It's a combination of 8-bit tracks (8-bit tracks are more noticeable in the wrap zones since most of them are through backs to retro gaming) and hard rock/ metal.There are also some very catchy and somewhat memorable soundtracks in the game as well.
+Visuals are very good; nothing special, but good enough for a game from this genre. The really good thing about the visuals is the character design and very cute cutscenes.
Another interesting aspect is that once you go to into a wrap zone, the graphical style of the game changes into the old-school retro style, which in my opinion is a pretty cool touch.
There is really not much to say about the graphics in this game; they are simple, cute, and heart-warming. This is the best way I can describe it.
+The game is very long and the replay value is very high.
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Thumbs Down:
-Controls are simple of enough to learn (space is jump, you use the arrow keys to move, and you can hold left shift to sprint), but there are times in the game where these controls stop working properly . They become either too sensitive, or it gets to a point where you press the jump button, but meat boy doesn't jump. Apparently it's way easier to play this game with a gamepad, but still, the controls for the PC version needed a bit more polish.
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Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down?
? This game is very hard and requires A LOT of patience. So, if you are not a patient gamer and you can't stand dying over and over again, then forget about this game. I personally think this is the main reason that this game is getting very low reviews from users.
In my opinion, the difficulty level is one of the major factors that made this game so great. Yes, it can be very frustrating, but if you have patience, you'll be able to beat the levels, and the feeling that you get after finishing a level in this game is pure satisfaction. ?
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Conclusion:
Super Meat Boy is a superb 2D platformer IF you have the patience to sit through it. You will die a lot, period! So if you can't with it, then get away from this game!
But for old-school 2D platformer lovers and gamers who are looking for a very good challenge, Super Meat Boy is an excellent choice.
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Overall Score:
9.0/10
A+
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