The controls seem deceptively simple: you could walk, you could run, and you could jump.
But this disguises a great deal of subtlety.
Despite the familiarity, the game never feels tired.
The levels have been designed meticulously and the learning curve is very smooth.
The art design manages to tread a difficult path between cartoony cuteness and gross-out comedy.
The gore is sufficiently abstracted to avoid being distasteful and keeps the humour to the fore.
Being skinless does have its downside.
If you manage to complete a level youre rewarded by a rerun of all your previous attempts played simultaneously.
Seeing several hundred Meat Boys lured to their doom by your impatient unskilled thumbs is a sobering sight.
Its not just the sprite that is borrowed but the control scheme too.
Play as Tim fromBraid, and you are able to rewind time and undo previous mistakes.
The action is complemented by a wonderfully reminiscent crunchy-8 bit inspired soundtrack.
It is probably the first time, however, that game makers have fought this misappropriation.
It introduces a roster of characters for you to play, and encourages exploration of the original games.
Rating:
5 out of 5
