Super Meat Boy Forever
Super Meat Boy Forever is an indie platform video game developed by Team Meat for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, iOS, Android and Linux. Originally planned as a mobile-only version of "Super Meat Boy", "Super Meat Boy Forever" was gradually developed into a full-fledged sequel featuring its new auto-runner control scheme and randomly generated levels. Meat Boy's original creator, Edmund McMillen, was not involved in the game's development as he had left Team Meat years prior. The game was released on December  23, 2020 for the Switch and PC, and released on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X on April 16, 2021. It released on Steam on January 10, 2022, and is schedule to release on mobile devices the same year. It received mixed reviews from critics. Gameplay. "Super Meat Boy Forever" expands on "Super Meat Boy's" challenging gameplay, as well as the main villain Dr. Fetus. Meat Boy and Bandage Girl's child Nugget has been kidnapped by Dr. Fetus and the couple must work together to rescue her. Both characters can kick and punch enemies  and must avoid deadly obstacles to save Nugget. The control scheme uses two buttons. Levels are randomly generated based on the player's skill level by combining seamless premade level segments created by the designers. The biggest gameplay change introduced in "Super Meat Boy Forever" is that it is an auto-runner, with the player only having control of non-scrolling movement interactions like wall-jumping and regular jumping. Plot. The game takes place a few years after the original "Super Meat Boy" with Meat Boy and Bandage Girl enjoying life while having a picnic with their infant daughter Nugget . Suddenly, Dr. Fetus attacks them both and kidnaps Nugget. When Meat Boy and Bandage Girl came to and discover that Nugget is missing, they both go on a quest to save her. The first world, Chipper Grove has a similar appearance to the opening picnic scene mentioned before. In this world, basic game mechanics are introduced gradually. The boss fight of Chipper Grove is Big Slugger, a larger version of the Lil’ Slugger boss which was introduced in the original "Super Meat Boy". After the boss is defeated and Nugget triggers the ejection function of the tank’s cockpit, a  cutscene displays the destruction caused by Dr. Fetus and Big Slugger, as well as a rogue group of animals led by a battle-scarred squirrel. The animals follow in pursuit of Meat Boy and Bandage Girl. In the next area, the Clinic, an abandoned mental health clinic, the duo face off against Manic, a biologically engineered brain with telekinetic powers that created an entity composed of broken glass and syringes called the Manipulator, and defeat him by triggering the fan switches to expose his point of vulnerability (thanks to Nugget, though unintentionally as she was playing with the light switch  that also activated the fans). Meanwhile after the fight, the animal squad march forth to wage war against Dr. Fetus, using the Big Slugger against its inventor. At first pulled by a herd of deer, but then Manic is recruited to power the machine and take revenge against his creator for abandoning him in the second boss fight. Once Meat Boy and Bandage Girl arrive in the barren city of Tetanusville, Dr. Fetus uses a very special security system called the Lab Guardian to eliminate them, but they manage to destroy it. Dr. Fetus, in extreme anger, gives them both  the double middle finger, in which Nugget copies him, playfully mimicking his gestures to three butterflies; much to Bandage Girl’s amusement and Meat Boy’s disapproval of Dr. Fetus showing the middle finger in front of her. Dr. Fetus then takes Nugget to The Lab, Dr. Fetus’ hideout. After they defeat a bunch of his clones and the real him, Dr. Fetus (who was wounded along with an untied shoe) pushes a button to a chute, dropping several dead Meat Boy clones on the pair. Just before Dr. Fetus could rise triumphant, the animal squad along with Manic arrived , causing him to trip and send his untied shoe flying, which lands right beside Nugget (who was watching videos on his tablet during the boss battle) and she starts playing with it. After an intense stare down, the squad began to advance towards Dr. Fetus, only for him to activate the Big Slugger’s auto-destruct function which causes it to explode, leaving the whole squad including the squirrel on the verge of death, making Nugget cry as her pacifier dropped onto the ground at the sight of the destruction and casualties. Meat Boy and Bandage Girl were clearing their  way out of the pile of dead Meat Boy clones just when they heard Nugget crying, while Dr. Fetus attempts to calm her down. Meat Boy and Bandage advance towards Nugget, while the squirrel (who survived the explosion, but fatally injured) advance towards an encased button on the arm of Dr. Fetus’ throne. Just as Dr. Fetus is at a loss of how to get Nugget to stop crying and before Meat Boy and Bandage Girl could rescue her, the squirrel taunts Dr. Fetus of pushing the button (believing it’s the auto-destruct button of the laboratory), but the  succumbs to his injuries and falls on it. Upon triggering the throne button, time begins to fracture, causing Meat Boy and Bandage Girl to age, and transporting the entire planet to an alternate universe based on the fractured timeline called the Other Side. When the duo (known as Meat Ninja and Bandage Ripper in the Other Side) ventures through the Other Side, they find projections of Dr. Fetus reaching towards a crying Nugget and give pursuit. However, the projection of Nugget fades, in which Bandage Ripper strikes at the projection of Dr. Fetus, causing it to dematerialize into small light  particles, where they are forced to fight against an angry god called Omega Alpha. After they defeat Omega Alpha, Nugget (who was still crying) rematerializes and returns. After Nugget calms down, Meat Ninja and Bandage Ripper approach their now smiling, giggling baby girl, and reunite with her as family. The reunion was abruptly interrupted when Omega Alpha returns, just as Nugget (now in her mother’s arms) was about to cry again, Bandage Ripper calms her down with a spare pacifier. The angry god sends a piece of rocky platform hurdling towards the family, only for Meat Ninja and Bandage  Ripper to hold it to protect Nugget with all their strength, but the weight of the platform becomes heavier as they hold on. Just as they were about to be crushed under Omega Alpha’s wrath, Nugget gets an idea after sucking on her pacifier for comfort. Nugget crawls to Omega Alpha, takes out her pacifier and offers it to Omega Alpha. Once the god was placated, Dr. Fetus rematerializes, and Nugget gives him her pacifier as an offering of friendship. Dr. Fetus accepts the pacifier and tearfully smiles, as he finally found a living being who can love him . Just as he was about to thank Nugget for her gift, Meat Ninja and Bandage Ripper both punch Dr. Fetus in the face, thus rewinding time to the end of the battle with him, repairing the fracture, and reverting the pair back to their original ages. Back at the lab after the fight with Dr. Fetus, Meat Boy and Bandage Girl find Nugget missing again, but only to find her playing with a piece of glass from Dr. Fetus’ jar suit; in which Bandage Girl picks her up away from the seemingly lifeless Dr. Fetus. The animal squad and Manic  arrive, only to see Dr. Fetus defeated for good and declare their war against him a victory. After giving a salute to the family, the squirrel and the army leave the lab as the family waves goodbye (as the squirrel looks on in happiness). After Meat Boy gives Nugget another pacifier (in which she giggles), Meat Boy and Bandage Girl then leave the lab with her. Dr. Fetus (who regained consciousness) stops them in their tracks by throwing shards of broken glass at them and showing the middle finger, which Meat Boy disapproves. After Meat Boy gives Nugget a kiss , he (now carrying her) and Bandage Girl leave the lab in happiness. Dr. Fetus continues being angry until he opens the closed hand of his suit and sees the pacifier Nugget gave to him; upon seeing her waving at him from her father’s shoulder, he calmly waves goodbye back at her, thanking her for their newfound friendship. During the credits, a montage shows Meat Boy, Bandage Girl, and Nugget spending time together on their way back to where they started, and the animal squad and Manic rebuilding the forest. In two after-credits scenes, it shows Meat Boy, Bandage  Girl, and Nugget enjoying life again; finishing their picnic, and Nugget playing with a butterfly with her parents watching her. After the heroes pack up their picnic, Meat Boy reminds Nugget that it’s time to go home, and Nugget gives her new butterfly friend the middle finger as it flies away. The scene ends with Meat Boy, Bandage Girl, and Nugget (who’s holding their hands) walking happily into the sunset on their way home. Meanwhile, Dr. Fetus (who still keeps Nugget’s pacifier she gave to him) makes many Meat Boy clones and arms himself with a plasma  shotgun. The screen then turns black, saying "Dr. Fetus Will Return." Development and release. Development for "Super Meat Boy Forever" was announced in 2014 as a mobile-only spinoff to the original "Super Meat Boy". Team Meat founders Edmund McMillen and Tommy Refenes originally teased the project as a "live-action stealth game" called "A Voyeur for September", but this was later revealed to be an anagram for "Super Meat Boy Forever". After a few years of little to no public updates, Edmund McMillen left Team Meat and began focusing on other projects such as "The Binding of Isaac" and  The End Is Nigh. Refenes said to not "hold your breath" expecting McMillen to come back after "Super Meat Boy Forever" is released. In 2017, Refenes restarted the project as a full-fledged sequel. In the following year several new team members joined Team Meat to help with development. Among the new team members were Kyle Pulver (Lead level designer) ("Offspring Fling", "Snapshot"), Lala Fuchs (Lead Artist) and Paul ter Voorde (Animation director). Ridiculon, consisting of musicians Matthias Bossi and Jon Evans, who composed the music for the PlayStation 4 version of "Super Meat Boy", returned to compose the sequel 's soundtrack. Refenes explains that even though the game is still coming to mobile, the game was developed primarily as a console game. The new version of the game was revealed at PAX Prime 2017 and was showcased by Nintendo during their Nindies Summer 2017 Showcase, and the PAX demo of the game was well received by the media. The game was scheduled for an April 2019 release, but was pushed back to December 2020. The game was released on December 23, 2020 as a timed exclusive for the Nintendo Switch and Epic Games Store, with console and Steam versions  following in 2021 and 2022. PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions were released on April 16, 2021. Reception. On the review aggregation website Metacritic, the Nintendo Switch version holds a score of 66/100 based on 35 critic reviews with an average user score of 4.9 indicating mixed or average reviews, while the PC version holds a score of 70/100 based on 19 critic reviews with an average user score of 4.1.