![]() ![]() Of course, seeing as Super Meat Boy is now a decade old, the latest game expands on the lore slightly. These gameplay additions are especially frustrating when the game rarely takes the time to explain a new enemy or item to you, meaning you often have to guess, and the original’s simple sense of purpose is lost amongst a morass of needless ‘improvements’. Ever since the flash version of Meat Boy, it’s been clear that the series was never about hard-hitting or complex drama.The previous games have a simple plot where an evil villain kidnaps a love interest, so you save her. But there's no denying that this long-awaited sequel doesn't deliver the impact nor addictive magnetism of its predecessor. In Forever, the addition of melee attacks, new enemy types and power-ups distort that simplicity, and it fails to exceed what came before. Once players get over the shock of its mechanical departures, Super Meat Boy Forever offers a solid and relentless auto-running experience. You could jump and move, and that was about it. Super Meat Boy’s playability came from how simple it was to play. Upgrades aside, there’s one thing Forever seems to forego in favour of changing up the formula and that’s simplicity. It’s only when you go back to the original Super Meat Boy that you notice just how much it has aged in these past ten years, and how welcome these new visual upgrades are. The world around Super Meat Boy looks denser now as well, with lots of colour and depth bringing the world to life. The entire cast looks crisper and more detailed than ever before, breathing even more life into the varied character design. One of the biggest improvements in Forever is the visuals. I thought the auto-running might have made Forever more accessible than its predecessor, but this isn’t the case as I regularly found myself stuck. Those randomly generated levels can feel incredibly punishing, even when compared to the first title. It’s needed though, as Forever’s randomly generated levels can be incredibly challenging, with some of the toughest obstacles in the series to date. It’s impressive just how much range of movement there is with such a restricted control scheme, and I feel it’s one way Forever really shines. While you may not control the running anymore, you can jump, punch and slide your way around levels, using each action in a variety of ways. Forever is no different, with the likes of Super Meat Boy, Bandage Girl, and the entire cast of characters feeling like an extension of your input. ![]() If there’s one thing Super Meat Boy got right, it was how fluid and responsive the controls were. There isn’t the same level of care and attention in Forever and that’s a real shame because it’s part of what makes this sequel feel inferior. Where each level was hand-built in the original, the levels now feel like a simple collection of obstacles. Those 7200 levels are built from a bank of obstacles which are randomly stitched together to create levels. The auto-running can however be a source of frustration because of the way the levels are built. ![]()
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