This game was RADICAL. I feel so bad that I didn't end up having time to finish and review it before it went off Humble Bundle, but I will still recommend it because it's honestly everything I want in a 2D platformer. Appealing art style (I love the pixely style and the bright colors), rad music (loved how it synced with the movements of things within the stage), wide variety of obstacles and enemies without going overboard (I swear there was a new unique challenge every single stage so I was barely ever bored), high replay value (collectibles and medals for fulfilling certain criteria for each level), a balanced difficulty curve (stages steadily get more difficult as you go on for the most part) and a cool finale. The only thing it might be missing is a good plot but some games don't need a plot - no plot or a vague plot is better in my book than a jumbled nonsense plot that's trying too hard.

Overall this game was just so satisfying - even when I went through frustrating times of having to do the same part of a stage over and over again because it was so challenging, there was just such a good flow to the sequence of actions you need to move forward, it was easy to assign to muscle memory almost like playing a song on an instrument. This would be a great game to try to speed run, it would be so satisfying just watching someone get through a stage without any hitches like a skilled dancer performing choreography.

In addition to having to have good timing and reflexes you also have to strategize each part of each stage, as well as how to get some of the collectibles, which is how I think a good platformer should work - just jumping from place to place and pummeling through enemies doesn't make me feel like I accomplished anything. If you want to get all the collectibles you also have to do some extra thinking and exploring because some of them are in hidden areas or have more convoluted (but logical) ways of getting to them. The reason it probably took me so long to finish this game is because I was focused too much on collecting as much as I could instead of doing the bare minimum, but I can't really blame myself when that was such a fun part of the game.

If there's one negative thing I'll say it's that while the whole concept and design of the final stages were cool, they were kind of easy compared to the rest of the game and there were enough of them that it did feel like they were dragging a little rather than building up to the climax. It would be better if they were much more challenging and had more variety, or if there were at least less of them. But I feel that part is forgivable considering how much I adored the rest of the game.

If you're a fan of 2D platformers I recommend this one, but note there's a lot of bright flashing lights and a seizure warning every time you start the game so just be aware if that's something that affects you. I would probably put this in the cyber/techno/glitch aesthetic category and everything is basically bright fluctuating neon colors on a black background so if that's something you find obnoxious or an eyesore I might skip it too, but if you're into that kind of style (I personally love it) then this is the game for you!