THis is why I don't 100% any games if they are single player. I just beat them on normal and then I'm done. You get diminishing returns on your time investment after that.
I beat it, and in doing so I found the few flaws in this amazing game.
1) Dr. Fetus rocket launcher is a little broken. Even after the explosion graphic disappears, it can still kill you. Also, the radius of the explosion is larger than the graphic indicates.
2) There should be an option to have the run button default to being on all the time, and having a slow button instead. You're holding down the button 90% of the time. All that serves is to hurt your hand. In FPS with run/walk they found that most people were always running. As a result, most FPS have an always run mode and a walk button.
3) The game needs practice mode. Take for example world 6-5. It took me forever to beat it. At least an hour. I stopped to take a shower in the middle of my stream of attempts. The reason it took so long is because I had to keep repeating the early part that I had already mastered over and over, and got very little practice on the later parts. I'm not saying there should be checkpoints, or that you shouldn't have to beat the whole thing at once. I'm saying let there be a practice mode where I can examine the entire level. Also let me drop meat boy at any spot to practice any part of the level. If I could practice each part individually, then it would take a lot less time to win, but no less skill. Just like Rock Band and Guitar Hero let you practice any part of a song.
1) That may just be a bug with the PC version. I didn't have any problems with that on the Xbox. Maybe report it to them.
2) There are a LOT of levels where the only way to progress is to slow down. Most of these are the harder stages and the dark world stages. Just the fact that SMB give you a reason to walk or slow down while jumping I think is justification enough. It's better in that regard than Super Mario World in which I ALWAYS held the run button and never was given a reason not to.
1) You need to look closely. I also played on xbox, and you can clearly see that the Dr. Fetus rocket launcher has a pretty wide debris field that does linger for a little bit before losing its deadliness. That explosion is not to be treated the same as the the standard robot rocket launchers.
2) What Sail said.
3) The Rock Band analogy is a good one, but if you never got that much practice on the second half of the level, then you obviously didn't have the first half down as cold as you think you did. Even though you have figured out how to get through the specific portion, if you die 15 times every time you try to get through it, then you need some more practice. Having to get that first half down dead cold is the challenge of the lengthy level. For one of the last levels in a 100+ level game, I thought that was acceptable.
I like the platforming and blade-avoidance far more than I enjoy dodging projectiles and dealing with portals.
I just finished the Salt Factory light world, and I have to say that I really liked the change of pace that the missiles brought. The saw blade avoidance was starting to get a little too routine for my tastes. When there are static saw blades, you can take a deep breath and sort of figure out what you need to do. When you've got a missile headed right for your face, you've gotta get fucking moving right the fuck now. Press A and so forth. It forces you into this zen-like state of missile dodging and lightning-fast jumping.
So far, my goal of 100% before moving on to the next world is unimpeded. Once I finish the 3rd dark world (and the 3rd minus world), we'll see what Hell has to bring.
I have 48 bandages. I think I'm allowed to comment on saw blade avoidance. I watched the video for Omega, and so far, I can't see what the fuss was about.
I have 48 bandages. I think I'm allowed to comment on saw blade avoidance. I watched the video for Omega, and so far, I can't see what the fuss was about.
Also, the first two worlds are 100% (and A+, which I'm pretty sure matters for 100% completion) and I've completed the first two Minus Worlds (which don't count for level completion).
Beyond that, I'd see them on the map and say to myself "fuck that."
I usually see them and go, "Fuck you, Bandage. I'ma get you." Then I proceed to die 30 times while replaying the level non-stop until I get that little pink fucker.
I'm pissed off, though. You can't get all the bandages with Meat Boy. I just got one in the Salt Factory that required Josef's double jump.
Well, OK, I don't have him yet. I think Josef is 40 bandages. Or maybe it's 30. I forgot when I unlocked him.
EDIT: I've decided that, while difficult, Golden God is not the most impressive achievement. No, "Complete this world without dying" is the impressive stuff.
Having completed the light world, I honestly think that the final levels (The End) are my favorite in the game. They're just so... clean - less seemingly bullshit deaths of "WTF THAT ROCKET/MAGGOT/ZOMBIE/WHATEVER WASN'T THERE A SECOND AGO," and less juggling 500 million moving things on the screen at once. Those levels are pure, 100% unadulterated platforming skill, and kudos to anyone who clears them.
My favorite twist to static blade avoidance is when the series of blades require you to maintain some momentum. Knowing you are about to plunge yourself into the grinder, and that taking a breath will seal your fate, is quite an awesome gaming experience.
I don't think these bandages are as big a deal as people are making them out to be. I didn't join the "fuck it" camp until halfway through dark world. Other than that, the strategy for getting them is usually very obvious, it's just that it may take an extra 10-30 deaths to get it. I had a lot of fun pursuing them. As for beating an entire set of twenty levels without dying, I did to it for The Forest light world, but then decided it wasn't really testing my skill at anything. Yes, I know I could beat them all, so I'm bound to beat them all in a row at some point, so I don't really need to prove that.
I think not checking out the dark worlds, cotton alley, or the DLC levels is selling Super Meat Boy a bit short. I really love this game, and part of the reason is that these levels do not feel tacked on or like filler in any way. They are a natural extension of the game with a continued gradual increase in difficulty. More to love.
My most despised level element is hard to choose but I have to go with fans, particularly the diagonal facing ones. When moving elements pop up, even ones that you have to time perfectly like missile shots, you can still memorize the pattern. The trick to beating 90% of these levels is to start with the stick jammed to the right and just memorize the exact timing of your jumps, tweaking it a bit here or there every time you die, and then repeating. If there is a moving element off screen to the top or right, make sure you perform the first half of the stage precisely so that the moving element will always be in the same place when you reach it, and you can master it faster.
With fans, my whole timing scheme is fucked. It's harder to gauge your point of reference when jumping into the wind. What angle did you hit at? how fast where you going? How long did you wait to pull back on the stick? How far did you pull back on the stick? How... FUUUUCK YOUUUUUUUUUU!!!!
For some reason I didn't find the repulsor circles to be as difficult though. They're still tricky but for some reason easier to gauge. Favorite level that involves them: the Cotton Alley level where the repulsor is moving along a track and you need to ride it's wave, bobbing up and down at certain height to avoid static blades. There are breaks in the level w/ no danger where you have to push yourself away from the repulsor and bring yourself back in to reset your bobbing distance. Effectively, you're changing the amplitude of the sine wave path that Meat Boy will traverse while bobbing up and down on this orb, but it takes some fucking twisted maneuver to change this height on the fly.
I got my first SMB hand cramp yesterday. Also, one of my friends filmed me playing the game for a little while, and as soon as he posts it online I will post it here. It's rather amusing in that it's just me screaming either streams of obscenities or random sounds. Apparently, I could be heard down the hall.
I bought the game for the Xbox 360. I know what I will be doing this weekend. It controls WAY better than the flash game, there is really no comparison, and is generally awesome in every way. Also, five bandages.
Comments
1) Dr. Fetus rocket launcher is a little broken. Even after the explosion graphic disappears, it can still kill you. Also, the radius of the explosion is larger than the graphic indicates.
2) There should be an option to have the run button default to being on all the time, and having a slow button instead. You're holding down the button 90% of the time. All that serves is to hurt your hand. In FPS with run/walk they found that most people were always running. As a result, most FPS have an always run mode and a walk button.
3) The game needs practice mode. Take for example world 6-5. It took me forever to beat it. At least an hour. I stopped to take a shower in the middle of my stream of attempts. The reason it took so long is because I had to keep repeating the early part that I had already mastered over and over, and got very little practice on the later parts. I'm not saying there should be checkpoints, or that you shouldn't have to beat the whole thing at once. I'm saying let there be a practice mode where I can examine the entire level. Also let me drop meat boy at any spot to practice any part of the level. If I could practice each part individually, then it would take a lot less time to win, but no less skill. Just like Rock Band and Guitar Hero let you practice any part of a song.
2) There are a LOT of levels where the only way to progress is to slow down. Most of these are the harder stages and the dark world stages. Just the fact that SMB give you a reason to walk or slow down while jumping I think is justification enough. It's better in that regard than Super Mario World in which I ALWAYS held the run button and never was given a reason not to.
3) Meh.
2) What Sail said.
3) The Rock Band analogy is a good one, but if you never got that much practice on the second half of the level, then you obviously didn't have the first half down as cold as you think you did. Even though you have figured out how to get through the specific portion, if you die 15 times every time you try to get through it, then you need some more practice. Having to get that first half down dead cold is the challenge of the lengthy level. For one of the last levels in a 100+ level game, I thought that was acceptable.
So far, my goal of 100% before moving on to the next world is unimpeded. Once I finish the 3rd dark world (and the 3rd minus world), we'll see what Hell has to bring.
So, if that's what World 6 has to offer, meh.
/bows to the master
My hands hurt.
I'm pissed off, though. You can't get all the bandages with Meat Boy. I just got one in the Salt Factory that required Josef's double jump.
EDIT: I've decided that, while difficult, Golden God is not the most impressive achievement. No, "Complete this world without dying" is the impressive stuff.
EDIT 2: Make that 50 bandages now.
I don't think these bandages are as big a deal as people are making them out to be. I didn't join the "fuck it" camp until halfway through dark world. Other than that, the strategy for getting them is usually very obvious, it's just that it may take an extra 10-30 deaths to get it. I had a lot of fun pursuing them. As for beating an entire set of twenty levels without dying, I did to it for The Forest light world, but then decided it wasn't really testing my skill at anything. Yes, I know I could beat them all, so I'm bound to beat them all in a row at some point, so I don't really need to prove that.
I think not checking out the dark worlds, cotton alley, or the DLC levels is selling Super Meat Boy a bit short. I really love this game, and part of the reason is that these levels do not feel tacked on or like filler in any way. They are a natural extension of the game with a continued gradual increase in difficulty. More to love.
My most despised level element is hard to choose but I have to go with fans, particularly the diagonal facing ones. When moving elements pop up, even ones that you have to time perfectly like missile shots, you can still memorize the pattern. The trick to beating 90% of these levels is to start with the stick jammed to the right and just memorize the exact timing of your jumps, tweaking it a bit here or there every time you die, and then repeating. If there is a moving element off screen to the top or right, make sure you perform the first half of the stage precisely so that the moving element will always be in the same place when you reach it, and you can master it faster.
With fans, my whole timing scheme is fucked. It's harder to gauge your point of reference when jumping into the wind. What angle did you hit at? how fast where you going? How long did you wait to pull back on the stick? How far did you pull back on the stick? How... FUUUUCK YOUUUUUUUUUU!!!!
For some reason I didn't find the repulsor circles to be as difficult though. They're still tricky but for some reason easier to gauge. Favorite level that involves them: the Cotton Alley level where the repulsor is moving along a track and you need to ride it's wave, bobbing up and down at certain height to avoid static blades. There are breaks in the level w/ no danger where you have to push yourself away from the repulsor and bring yourself back in to reset your bobbing distance. Effectively, you're changing the amplitude of the sine wave path that Meat Boy will traverse while bobbing up and down on this orb, but it takes some fucking twisted maneuver to change this height on the fly.