Post by: NWR_Neal on December 02, 2009, 12:47:07 PM
I got my hands on a preview build of Team Meat's upcoming WiiWare game, Super Meat Boy. While I played it on a PC (the game is also coming out on Steam when it hits WiiWare), there are no large differences between the two versions.
For those of you unfamiliar with the game, I highly recommend you check out the flash version, simply titled Meat Boy. It takes you through the trials and tribulations of Meat Boy, an aptly titled walking slab of meat, as he tries to rescue his bandaged love, Bandage Girl, from the nefarious Dr. Fetus, who is literally a fetus in a jar wearing a suit and a top hat.
The Super version of the title is a remake, but in all honesty, it feels like a completely different game. I was able to play the first world, The Forest. It had 20 short levels in it, most of which you could breeze through in 10 seconds or less if you know what you're doing.
It's a game that is easy to pick up, but difficult to master. All you can really do is run and jump, but you can do the latter in a variety of different ways. Every jump is floaty, so you can move your character around in mid-air and guide him down. You can also wall jump, which is integral to avoid the array of saw blades that litter the locale.
There is a new move in the game where you run towards a wall and time a jump to shoot up the side of a wall. It's nothing game-changing (at least so far), but it's nice that Meat Boy's repertoire is getting expanded.
In my opinion, the game really struts its stuff when you can play as one of the hidden characters. For the purposes of the preview, the Bit.Trip series' Commander Video was unlocked from the start. He plays differently from Meat Boy as he is little bit slower than the beefy hero, but he can float after a jump. To work in a Super Mario Bros. 2 reference, Commander Video feels like the Peach to Meat Boy's Mario.
Each level has a par time that is representative of a quick run through the level. If you beat the par, then you unlock a dark world level, which is way harder than the other levels. There are also bandages hidden through the levels that will unlock stuff in the final version of the game, but didn't unlock anything in the preview build.
You can also find warp zones in levels that unlock secret areas where you can unlock other characters. This one has you control Commander Video as he journeys through a few Bit.Trip-inspired levels. In the finished product, there will be over 20 unlockable characters, including Braid's Tim and Alien Hominid.
To sum it up, Super Meat Boy has all the makings of a fantastic platformer. Personally, I can't wait to play through the whole game when it hits WiiWare in Q1 2010.
Post by: vudu on December 03, 2009, 02:03:09 PM
Post by: NWR_pap64 on December 03, 2009, 04:11:32 PM
Post by: Dasmos on December 03, 2009, 09:10:59 PM
I didn't know Commander Video was in Meat Boy! Weren't there more guest characters in Meat Boy, though?
You can also find warp zones in levels that unlock secret areas where you can unlock other characters. This one has you control Commander Video as he journeys through a few Bit.Trip-inspired levels. In the finished product, there will be over 20 unlockable characters, including Braid's Tim and Alien Hominid.
Anyway I'm definitely look forward to this, Meat Boy was my favourite flash game for a long time. I don't know if it's been confirmed or not for an Aussie release, hoepfully it does come out here.
Post by: KDR_11k on December 05, 2009, 03:53:46 AM
