The game keeps track of your many attempts and then replays them all (or at least most) at the same time. It is flat out fascinating. A buzzing hoard of Meat Boys all jumping at the same time rush through the level with more and more dying the further it goes. Each Meat Boy, save one, dies a horrific death along the way until eventually only one remains. Every bad decision, missed jump, unfair spinning blade all happens at the same time.
Now, I know I'm a big ol' nerd. This is not news. Here's what this big ol' nerd immediately thought about: The Multiverse. Theories about multiple or alternate universes are often more compelling when telling them to people that are extremely high, but there are some interesting concepts in them even when not. Neal Stephanson did some good things with the concept in his most recent book Anathem. In it, decisions in one universe didn't go the same way in others. A universe in which you died in a freak accident is distinct from the one in which you didn't, and yet both happened. Not only did both happen across two universes, but every possible outcome of every possible decision has happened. Yes, even the one where you pre-ordered Too Human based on a video making fun of the smack talk surrounding the game you found on some website.
The level ending replay of all of your attempts illustrates this better than pretty much anything else I've seen. All possible Meat Boys in all possible universes attempted to get to Bandage Girl, but only one needed to survive. It makes me wonder about the alternate mes jumping around the room I'm in right now. Or the ones not in this room. Maybe the ones in Gemma Atkinson's room.
One thing consistent across all universes, though: Dr. Fetus is always a jerk.
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