RoyRed: Hey guys. Just here to tell you about one of my favorite platformers of all time. One of Gaijin's many jewels, BIT.TRIP RUNNER. If any of these things interest you, please continue on with my article:
CHIPTUNES/CHIPTUNE INSPIRED MUSIC
Fun colorful retro visuals
A 12 ft tall black man with a visor shaped eye that produces a rainbow trail behind him
BIT.TRIP RUNNER is a pretty simple game. In this 2D platformer, you control Commander Video as he constantly runs through various (+50) levels. Controls are 'Jump!' (hold to float), 'Kung-Fu Kick!', 'Slide!', 'Spring!', and 'Block!'. Sounds easy. Like all of the BIT.TRIP games, you are given simple controls, anyone could pick this up and play. When they start piling up the obstacles, speed, and visuals, however, this game begins to target a specific kind of player. One who wants a good challenge or is really freakin patient.
Please try not to get too discouraged when you miss a button, hit an on object, and are sent flying BACK TO THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE LEVEL YOU TRIED TO BEAT ABOUT 12 TIMES ALREADY. This games about perseverance that's for certain. And eyes, apparently.
Another perk about this game, considering you're a nerd, are the little game cookies that reside in it. When you start up RUNNER either on Wii or Steam (soon on the 3DS) and are brought to the main menu, you will hear a pretty catchy tune. Some may or may not know, but it's a song from the Chiptune band Anamanaguchi. How awesome is that?
Anamanaguchi - 1 - Blackout City by edflores1
And for fans of this kind of game, you may recognize a little boy of meat hanging out in ZONE 3. I 'O-faced' and had to deliberately make myself go BACK TO THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE LEVEL I TRIED TO BEAT ABOUT 12 TIMES ALREADY to verify that Meat Boy was flailing in the background. Awesome!
Sometimes a really good video game is just awesome!
One more thing I want to address goes out to anyone with any degree of obsessive compulsive disorder! Collect all golden bricks in a level and have a go at the BONUS GET level! (Another cookie? This looks an awful lot like Pitfall...)
If you have already played a BIT.TRIP game and most likely enjoyed it, you're pretty much obligated to get them all. BEAT, CORE, VOID, RUNNER, FATE and FLUX. If you haven't, I highly suggest you get yourself some RUNNER or BEAT. After you play it, you're hooked.
+10pts and and a score of AWESOME