Today, 2D Boy realizes the indie game developers dream and has their game show up on the Nintendo Wii. World of Goo is, in short, an amazing little game. I preordered it and got to enjoy a preview of the game before this weekend. Actually, I got the download code earlier last week, but I had to finish some of my own chores before I got the code.

When I finally downloaded it, I had to play through the first stages again. It wasn't a big deal, they added enough polish to the game that it was a joy to play. I love the puzzles since they required me to actually think. Some of them weren't obvious at first, but I managed to go through about 40 stages in just short of 7 hours. I even got two OCD (obsessive completion disorder or something like that, basically top score). Three of the stages were on my "swearing at the computer" list until I figured them out, but I managed to lose my entire Sunday simply playing this game.

There is something about those little goo balls. I love the little sounds they make when they wake up and when you toss them aside. Later, I'm suppose to get the profanity pack which will be adorable for me, but probably not for everyone. But, the attention to details, the sign painter's signs, and everything else made a really addictive game. It doesn't hurt that the game goes smoothly from simple mechanics to really challenging games, with enough things mixed in to really throw you a curve.

There were a few surprises that I really enjoyed. In the game, the play changes enough that you don't get bored, but 2D Boy decided to go without DRM on the game. No worrying about drivers breaking your machine or anything else. And... well, I was ecstatic. They have a sane idea of how to stop piracy (respect your users and ask them to just report it), but it was like a cherry on top of an excellent game.

The game is also coming out for the Mac and Linux in the coming months(?). Much of this is because they wrote using SDL, but they are also being nice and letting you buy one copy and get it for all the platforms. Again, these guys are doing all the right things and I desperately hope it works out for them. And, the small part of me that is a game programmer really hopes that I could write a game this amazing myself. From a technical point of view, these guys are definitely heroes in my book.

Its only $20, but definitely worth every nickle.