We Love It's Guide to…
A troubled academy student battles nightmare creatures through deadly platforming, using stylish kills to earn checkpoints.
Released 29 Aug 2012
Kick Monsters Into Saws
Earn And Place Checkpoints
Dash Through Spike Traps
They Bleed Pixels is a fiendishly difficult action platformer inspired by H.P. Lovecraft and classic horror.
Developed by Spooky Squid Games Inc. · Published by Spooky Squid Games Inc.









You play as a young girl at the Lafcadio Academy for Troubled Young Ladies, whose nightmares draw her into otherworldly stages as her waking life begins to change. The story is told through pixel-art motion comics and centers on a mysterious blood-soaked book.
Fight shadowy creatures and cross trap-filled levels using precise jumps, dashes, double jumps, and wall movement. Combat uses one attack button for different moves, and you can kick enemies into hazards such as saws, pits, and spikes.
Stylish kills fill a meter that lets you carry and place a checkpoint, balancing saved progress against the points you can earn by holding onto it. The game includes 11 main levels, unlockable bonus levels, individual level rankings, achievements, and online score and speed leaderboards.
Some players enjoy the demanding platforming as a test of timing and skill, and appreciate the dark pixel-art style, nightmare atmosphere, and checkpoint mechanic. Others find the controls and level challenges frustrating, so the game's difficulty is not a draw for everyone.
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux |
|---|---|
| Achievements | 150 |
| Age ratings |
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| Controller support | Xbox |
| Controller required | No |
| DLC / extras | 1 listed on Steam |
| Metacritic | 74/100 View on Metacritic |
| Website | Official website |