I Wanna Be the Guy (IWBTG)
New
- Genre Arcade games
- Players 1
- Session 10 min
- Price Free
- Updated
The game that established the trap platformer as a genre, and it remains the purest example. Nothing in it behaves as platform-game convention says it should: fruit falls upward, harmless-looking scenery kills, and a safe-looking ledge is frequently the most dangerous object on the screen. Knowledge is the only defence. That sounds unfair and is not, because the traps are fixed. Every death teaches you one specific thing, checkpoints are frequent enough that the learning is not wasted, and a section you have learned becomes trivial rather than merely survivable. Progress is measured in screens you no longer fear. It is extremely difficult, it is openly hostile, and its influence on everything from trap platformers to modern precision games is difficult to overstate. Approach it as a memorisation exercise and it is fair; approach it as a platformer and it is impossible.
| Arrows | Move |
|---|---|
| Shift | Jump, press twice to double jump |
| Z | Shoot |
| R | Restart at the last checkpoint |
How to play I Wanna Be the Guy (IWBTG)
- Expect every object to be a trap until you have seen it behave.
- Advance slowly into new screens; walking into the unknown is how sections take an hour.
- Learn one screen at a time rather than trying to reach a new area each attempt.
- Use the double jump for correction rather than for distance.
- Treat deaths as information; they are the only way the game communicates.
Tips
- A screen that looks empty is the most dangerous kind.
- The traps are fixed, so the difficulty is entirely front-loaded per screen.
- Frequent checkpoints mean the learning is preserved, which is what keeps it fair.
Questions about I Wanna Be the Guy (IWBTG)
Is it unfair?
Hostile but fair — the traps are fixed and learnable.
Are there checkpoints?
Yes, frequently enough that progress is preserved.
Is it very hard?
Yes, it is one of the standard references for difficulty.
Does knowledge carry?
Yes, it is the only thing that does.
Does it need a keyboard?
Yes.
Does it need installing?
No, it runs in the browser.
Why is it famous?
It defined the trap platformer and influenced a great deal after it.
