As everyone who follows me on Twitter or Facebook already knows, I’m in love with Super Meat Boy. Since it hit XBLA in late October, I’ve logged some 50 hours in my quest to beat every level, grab every bandage, and unlock every character. Sure, I may have developed an ulcer (which I’m calling Dr. Fetus), but it was a ton of fun and constantly left me wanting more… even after I decided to call it quits.

But when I placed my preorder for the PC version on Steam, instead of jumping back into the XBLA version to pass the time, I decided to look up the games from which SMB's unlockable characters are actually from and play the hell out of them until November 30th finally gets here. Each day I picked a game, read up on it some, played and recorded a 5 minutes clip, and did a short post about it. And, since it's almost the 30th, and the countdown is thus over, I decided to share them with you wonderful people at Dtoid.

Day 1: Mighty Jill Off



So, Mighty Jill Off… what a fantastic game. I’m sure some of my indie friends tried to share a link with me at some point or another and I put it off until I completely forgot, but damn do I wish I’d have played it before now.

If you didn’t watch the video, it’s a massacre platformer where you take control of Jill, a perverted fiend of a hero, who is kicked out of the Queen’s castle for licking her boots and must race back to the top to… well… probably lick her boots again. She seems like the kinda person that pushes that border, just begging for punishment; and I’m not just saying that because she’s in S&M gear either! (yes I am)

Day 2: Jumper!



If you haven’t played something by Matt Thorson, you’re probably just confused. Everyone has played something by Matt… maybe you just didn’t know it at the time. But that’s alright, because you can click on his name and see all the wonderful games he’s made (which you can play for free!) and then you’ll not only be informed, but you’ll be a better person too.

Today, I’m playing Jumper! because Ogmo, the main character, is featured in Super Meat Boy and just happens to be one of my favorite unlockable characters. Watch the video for more info, and definitely check out all the Jumper! games (there are 3 of them, a redux of the first game, and a fourth one on the way) over on his site. You won’t be disappointed.

Day 3: Flywrench



The games that SMB borrowed characters from aren’t easy… but Flywrench can be downright evil. You play as a mechanical bird-ship-thing that has encountered a malfunction and must be piloted through space manually. Sounds easy enough, right? Wrong.

You can’t touch the walls/floors/ceilings unless you are holding the down button to bounce or roll or whatever it is doing. To stay in the air and gain momentum, you must press up, which turns you red and flaps the wings. And to go through the forcefields, you have to match their color (red is up, green is down, white is… the rest). At times, I really thought that the developer, Messhof, just hated the world and this is his “fuck you” letter.

But it’s fun, addicting, and the simple mechanics help you get through the challenging gameplay. Definitely check it out… it’ll help to prepare you for the rage/frustration that SMB will smash you with on the 30th.

Day 4: VVVVVV



When the guys at Team Meat announced that Captain Veridian would be an unlockable character for the SMB PC release, I about pee’d my pants… not only because VVVVVV is one of my favorite games of 2010, but because I can’t wait to see how he plays in the SMB levels. However, knowing that he's only unlocked after you collect all 100 bandages might mean I'll have to wait a while to find out myself.

As for VVVVVV itself, it’s a must play. The music, the atmosphere, the simplicity of the gameplay coupled with the awesome level design… it comes together to make something truly amazing. Something that really has to be experienced. So go play it.

Day 5: Machinarium



Although I like the idea of games focusing on adventures (I’m a Flapjack fan, after all), I haven’t had the chance to play many. However, [url=http://machinarium.net]Machinarium[/iurl] is one that a friend showed me soon after it’s launch last year and in an attempt to stay cool, I bought it and let it devour my life for quite a while.

In it, you take control of a funny little robot named Josef who has just been dropped off at a trash pile. After putting him back together you head back towards the city to make your way back in, do some uncovering of mysteries, solving of puzzles/problems, and eventually you save your cute little robo-girlfriend. D'awwwwww!

Day 6: Runman



In RunMan: Race Around The World, pretty much all you do is run, jump, blast through enemies, and escape from bosses. It’s simple. It’s beautiful. And the old timey folk music only adds to the awesomeness of the game… and this is coming from a dude who hates most folk music.

If you haven’t already clicked the link, do so now. Download this game and play it until you win everything forever. It’s fun to play with a keyboard, but I find it more fitting to make fullscreen,lean back in my chair, plug in a 360 controller, and then jam on it like I would Super Meat Boy. But, to each his/her own…

Day 7: SUPER MEAT BOY!!!

A few hours after posting this, the game will be out and PC gamers everywhere will be yelling at their screens and wanting to throw keyboards at the closest wall. And since I obviously I didn't get through all of the unlockable characters games in just 6 days, the following list links to the other games which weren't played in this countdown...

The Kid (I Wanna Be The Guy)
Headcrab (Half-Life series)
Goo Ball (World of Goo)
Naija (Aquaria)

Thanks for joining me on this meaty journey and hopefully you'll take some time to check out these awesome indie games for yourselves sometime. Just remember, if you like them and have the cash, click the donate button on their pages to help them out. They gave you awesome game love without any strings attatched, so why not toss them some awesome money love in return.