One of my all time favorite games!

[Garouda]

As someone who got the game when it initially released on Epic and LOVED IT, I was sad to read all the bad press it got at the time. To an extent, I could understand people not knowing it was different from the original and dishing out a hasty review without giving the game its fair shake. So when it finally released on Steam a year later, with the game having been thoroughly play tested, I hoped it might get some educated love here. Low and behold, so many negative reviews from people with under 2hs played saying: bUt ItS a RunNeR iTs nO liKe the 1st OnE!!

Come ON people! Its been out for a year and you still don't know that?

This game is so deep, so fun and offers pretty much endless content. After getting the true completion achievement (golden god) and having played over a 100 hours I can say this is one of my all time favorite game and I keep coming back to it and suffering through yet another seed, time and time again.

Platformers have been my favorite genre since childhood going from Mario and DK to various indie gems like SMB1, Celeste and countless others, but I had yet to try a runner so I got SMB forever to give it a go. Yes, I did think the game looked a little weird and confusing at first with its big blocky design but I was happy to be back in the beloved Meat Boy universe. And not having to hold forward was just one less thing to worry about right?

Little did I know the runner concept would turn out so brilliant. From this one simple restriction so much creativity is unlocked. The game gains a truly unique puzzly nature as one tries to figure out a path in a world where, well, you just can't turn or stop. Timing your way though an array of saws suddenly isn't about dexterity anymore but becomes more like an interesting riddle, like looking for a needle in haystack. Its one of those rare few games that got me thinking and approaching matters in a different way, and that alone makes it worth playing. But there are so many more great things to say about it!

HUGE amount of content:
-5 worlds with 6 levels, each introducing a new unique mechanic that feels fresh.
-A light and dark version of each level to cater to different levels of skill and dedication.
-Unique seeds: levels are assembled from a gigantic pool of available chunks, I have completed about 1300 chunks out of 6000 having completed the game 5 times (NG++++). Content is pretty much endless.
And just to clear things up, NO the chunks aren't randomly generated (many negative reviews whine about their random levels being impossible), every chunk has obviously been hand made and play tested, only the patchwork of chunks is random and unique to your seed.

Getting good is hugely satisfying:
Yes, the Dark world can be frustratingly difficult at first but getting good at this game feels so rewarding. Unlocking characters and achievements relies heavily around getting "S rank" (beating a level without dying) which can seem like a daunting task when first clears require hundreds of meat bodies being sent to the grinder, but this is where the actual fun begins. Developing safe strategies through difficult segments, actually mastering a chunk instead of forcing your way through, flying across levels that initially seemed impossible, and then, that nerve wrecking final leap of faith... Oh how liberating getting that S can feel! There is no shortcut, this game will force you to Git Gud.

On top of that:
Great cut scenes
Great bosses
Awesome unlockable characters
An easter-egg minigame to find in each world, and a bonus wacky bonus world!

There is just so much stuff!

Also lets be fair there are also some negative:
-Mainly the game engine being a bid taxing (I do get some irritating stutters on my laptop if I don't play on Low)
-Wall jumping could be more lenient (how many runs died to dashing into the wall instead of jumping off even though I swear I had already made contact, OMG!)
-Frustrating (yes its hard and will make you shart blood on along the way)

All in all an amazing game that, for how amazingly cheap it is, you can't go wrong with. Enjoy!

Btw I put this review as a discussion because I don't own the game on steam so feel free to use this thread to ask for tips, I'll do my best to answer!

[Ghostly Goth]

Very nice review, glad you enjoy it. You mentioned the game stuttering and being taxing on your laptop? feel free to take a look at this guide and see if it helps you have a better experience.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2793566149

[∩∩4r|<]

Yeah, this serves as a neat review on an alternative place I won't further attempt to :provoke here, and ruin the party, but I could only conclude there were a lot of Pig(-headed) Boys who followed the mass/herd ... and to hide their own shortcomings like lack of patience (with this game), the result was scapegoating

> 80 hours, and I was satisfied enough at a certain moment and moved on; could pick it up again, and hope to do that as soon as the free DLC(?) launches ... If ever ... Made note of something in my SMBF Soundtrack review, and wonder

As for your negatives: even though I'm totally happy with my rig, I played this flawlessly with an old Intel Quad Core Q8400, GTX 750Ti (2GB VRAM), and I have 4GB DDR3 RAM only on my Win 10 Pro system 😇 I recorded several videos without problem, although YouTube was whining along the process(ing) sometimes ...

Cheers 🍻

[Heru]

Good game, worth the money, I had fun with it, still sad it is an autorunner is my take.

[mrrogers]

You would have a lot more fun with the first game since its an actual game not an autorunner

[Myst3ry X]

you should become an actor ngl