Everyone loves "Meat Boy," but sadly, our meaty friend has been freed from its creator, Edmund McMillen, as he graciously transferred the rights to "Super Meat Boy" co-creator Tommy Refenes, which was released in 2010. The platformer was a breakout hit, receiving almost universal acclaim, but a sequel, Super Meat Boy Forever, did not appear until 2020.

But if these games have taught us anything, it's that Meat Boy can take a beating (and get slashed and burned) and bounce right back. However, the new "Dr. Fetus' Mean Meat Machine" is a departure from platformers, basically parodying the Sonic spin-offs of the 90's. "Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine" is itself a reimagining of the classic "Puyo Puyo and this is basically like a modern version of that puzzle mechanic, with drills, saws, and various other implements jostling around in the play area.

The game's Steam page (which opens in a new tab) states that it combines "puzzle gameplay with the hardcore platforming elements that Super Meat Boy is known for," but the latter is conspicuously absent from the trailer. The only thing I can think of is that this could be a reference to the little slabs of meat "running" around the play area, but if so, it's quite misleading. There are over 100 levels in the game, and at the end of each world there is a boss battle that brings back Meat Boy environments like hospitals and salt factories.

Puyopuyo is a great game, but the twist here is going to be the traps and hazards that encroach on the play area. They ruin lovingly arranged combinations: the real fun of this kind of puzzle game is in planning and arranging the board to optimize the potential for mega-chains. If that keeps getting ruined by chainsaws, then neither is the case.

It also appears to be reusing and re-mixing elements of the platformer. Of course, this is a Meat Boy game, which is fine, but I am surprised that this is Meat Boy's next game. I don't like the name either; Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine is a feast of internal rhymes, but Dr. Fetus's Mean Meat Machine seems one-note by comparison. C'mon: Dr. Fetus' Meat Beating Bejeebus was right up there.

One thing that is confusing is that the developer is Headup Development, a studio that doesn't seem to have much of a track record, and that it is "developed in collaboration with Team Meat," not Team Meat. We contacted Thunderful to see if Tommy Rifenes still owns the rights to Meat Boy.

As for Edmund McMillen, the creator of Meat Boy, who has not been involved since Super Meat Boy, he politely reminded his followers that he is not making Super Meat Boy Forever (but "I still have my Love Baby Boy!"). ), and has stated that "No, he's not going to be involved in this one either: but he says it's a Team Meat joint."

I love Edmund, too. I just wonder what will happen to him these days.