They Bleed Pixels Review

They Bleed Pixels
Developed By: Spooky Squid Games
Date of Release: August 29, 2012
Price: $9.99

I am generally a calm person. I approach life's challenges with poise and restraint, taking time to casually find my way through each moment. However sometimes I come across a game that just makes me lose my f*****g s**t. In the past, it was the many iterations of Ninja Gaiden that brought about the doom of many a controller. And then there was Super Meat Boy, an exercise in frustration that I still have not fully conquered to this day. And now in the summer of 2012 I have met my new nemesis, They Bleed Pixels. And oh, what an adorable harbinger of destruction she is.



So imagine if you will a gloriously challenging platformer that demands exact finesse in the vein of the Nintendo-hard games of yore, complete with retro graphics, tight controls, and a rockin chiptune-inspired soundtrack (by DJ Finish Him no less!). That is They Bleed Pixels in a grotesquely Lovecraftian nutshell. When the young heroine is sent to a reform school she uncovers a necronomicon-esque book that fills her dreams with nightmarish horror as she is transformed into an eldritch crab-clawed zombie warrior who must cleanse the world of the undead.



All that side, what really sets They Bleed Pixels out from the crowd is the well thought out control system. Using a standard Xbox360 controller is the best way to experience the carnage, with it's tightly tuned context-sensitive actions that will keep the combos (and the blood) flying. Another nice touch is the way the save system works. By building up your combo chains and collection blood orbs, you gain energy to leave behind a "save sigil". As long as you find a safe spot with no traps or monsters nearby, you can place one almost anywhere, and whenever you die you will continue from it.



All in all the only downside to They Bleed Pixels it is that once the game is over, there's really no way to extend the fun. Hopefully Spooky Squid will someday release a level editor, as I'm sure that fans would enjoy trying their hand-- err claw, at making their own masterpieces of mayhem. Don't get me wrong though, They Bleed Pixels is still a complete experience, and very well polished at that. Fans of the genre should definitely pick it up ASAP.