A Girl and her Eldritch Horrors

See cute and gruesome are not mutually exclusive.

So for the last couple months I've been trying to tell everyone I know who is into video gaming to check out one particular game.

They Bleed Pixels.

It's hard to explain this game though. At the same times it's gruesome and cute, frustrating and fun, colorful and dark (both in story and art).

This game is the story of an unnamed girl who while at a Victorian home for troubled girls picks up a bleeding book that slowly changes her into a clawed and purple skinned monstrosity little girl.

She's then plunged into dreams where she has to battle creatures and survive traps and terrain of blades and spikes.

Every review says this game is like Super Meat Boy but with a fighting element, which is fair. However I never enjoyed Super Meat Boy the way I have They Bleed Pixels. I know I'm speaking blasphemy. Bear with me.

You got to admit she seems to be taking it well.

The art while simple is perfectly suited to this game nothing distracts from where your focus should be. ON SURVIVAL. The music is catchy and the backgrounds really do look like they are not of Earth, yet none of these elements distracts your focus.

The one-button combat takes a while to get used to, but really is all you need for any situation. Figuring out how is the fun part.

Be warned however because this game is quite the taskmaster. I can't recall how many times I thought well that's as far as I'm going to be able to make it, so I'd focus on achievements in the first couple stages and come back to my problems spot later. Low and behold suddenly I was better and could get to the next area. I could advance! Even if it was at a snail's pace.

Every time I thought I was stuck this pattern would happen. Currently I have beaten the game, and the bonus levels and have 111 of the 126 achievements.

One review said "They Bleed Pixels will make you feel like a magician with a gamepad." Factual statement, rarely have felt more accomplishment about a video game.

While the difficulty is fiendish, the save system keeps you from losing all your sanity. Being able to plop down a save point (after killing a couple enemies or collecting enough blood droplets) means that one only needs to get a little bit further to advance. This system reduces, (but doesn't eliminate) getting stuck and killed at the same area over and over again. Plus the game teaches you which areas make for better save points when you revisit a stage later.

I picked up this game for $3.39 after Christmas, it usually is $10. If you like crazy platformers don't wait pick this game up. You can wait for a sale but I've put 60 hours on this game since Christmas. I'm not sure if I'll get those last 15 achievements but we'll see...how long my patience holds out. If your not sure, then wait for the sale, or put it on your wishlist. This game is not for everyone but it something everyone should try at least once.

This room will haunt your dreams.   

Also one piece of spoiler-y advice. DON'T show your significant other the last stage's cinematic. *SPOILER* My wife saw all the other little monster girls and has been bothering me that I need to save them. So if your reading this Spooky Squid Games, I need a DLC to save the other girls my wife demands it, and honestly I just want some more levels.

Update: I'm now up to 122/126 on achievements.