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Does Mercury take the award as the best PSP puzzle game?
April 21, 2005 | 9:48 PM PSTby: Sud Koushik
When walking down the PSP section of your local game retailer you see sport games, racing games, adventure games, RPGs, and then there are the puzzle games. Puzzle games are the types of games that generally prove to be entertaining, but are overlooked because of games with more hype or games with a strong brand name backing it up. Archer Maclean and his team, Awesome Studios, venture into the portable gaming market with their Super Monkey Ball style puzzle game exclusively for the PSP. Mercury certainly stands out in the bunch of PSP titles currently available with its unique look and playing style, but it is in no way inferior to the other alternatives in the PSP library.
Gameplay
When you first look at Mercury, you see a silver gooey blob that looks like it escaped from a thermometer, and with that observation you also wonder what you are supposed to do. Mercury has a very simple base on which the gameplay builds on. You are in control of a blob of mercury, and often times multiple blobs of mercury. To move the mercury you just change the direction of the PSP’s analog nub and guide it to the end “beam”. Sounds simple enough, right? Well to be clear, Mercury starts off easy but gets increasingly more difficult. The Tutorial World is the first world you will encounter. This will help you learn the basics of the game. Before each level begins, a brief description of what you have to accomplish will scroll near the bottom of the screen. Once that is done you are put in control of the mercury and have a certain time limit to complete the task. However what would a game be without some obstacles? Each Mercury level is filled with conveyor belts, launch pads, and even small monsters that chase your mercury blob and eats it.
Each level has its own objective, or a mixture of all of them. Sometimes you have to take your mercury from the beginning of the level to the end, without loosing too much of it. This is indicated by a percentage bar that tells you precisely how much mercury you have and when you are loosing too much. Another objective could be to change the color of your mercury blob by moving into “Paintshops”. This is necessary in order to get through to the next part of the level. However easy as this may seem, it gets tough. In some cases you have to split your mercury into two distinct parts, control both of them simultaneously, and take them to separate paintshops to change them into different colors. Once that is done you mix the blobs together to get a new color blob to progress to either the end of the level or to the next section of the level. If that doesn’t have you sweating in exhaustion let me add the fact that you only have a limited time limit to do all of this.
The camera angle is completely maneuverable but still never seems to provide the accurate view you need. Before the level begins you get a brief birds eye view of the level, which is a nice touch, but you don’t have enough time to see all the obstacles you are about to come up against. This gives the game a trail and error feel. You may have to try a few times before you end up completing the level, this is in no way a bad thing, and actually is the complete opposite. You can find a lot of fun in trying to figure out the best possible route to get through the level in the least amount of time. With the absence of any sort of “Lives”, you can retry the level as many times as you like. Although you may get frustrated due to some complex stages later on in the game.
Mercury also includes Wi-Fi multiplayer. This feature has two gamers competing head to head to see who can finish the level first. You won’t actually be able to harm, or make obstacles for your opponent, since all you are essentially doing is racing a “ghost” of him. I only imagine the real fans of Mercury to utilize this feature, but if you find a buddy with Mercury, then try it out for yourself, and you will be pleasantly surprised at how fun it can be.
The game comes packed with six worlds, and an unlockable bonus world, which gives a total of 72 levels to go through. That being said, Mercury offers an abundance of levels to slide your mercury blob through, numerous times. The first couple of worlds are on the easy side, especially considering the first world is really just a tutorial. After these initial simple worlds, Mercury rapidly becomes difficult. The amount of Paintshops, sharp edges, and enemies makes the game require skill and patience. Don’t let this sharp increase in difficulty scare you off. After you begin to master the controls, and obstacles, the game is definitely rewarding. Its to your advantage to stick through it all enjoy what Mercury has to offer.
Graphics and Audio
Don’t judge a Mercury by its boxart. That may be a bad pun on an old saying, but it makes a point. Mercury isn’t spectacular in visuals, but then again most puzzle games aren’t. The real star in graphics terms would be the mercury itself. The animation of the silver blob along with the reflection it makes during movement is truly the pinnacle of handheld gaming graphics. The levels and worlds aren’t any major eye candy, but they get the job done. Awesome Studios did a good job on making each level elaborate and simple to view. The audio is nothing much more then the mercury oozing along the level floor, along with some catchy beats. Like the visuals, the audio serves its purpose, and that is perfectly fine.
Overall
What it all boils down to, is that Mercury is a great puzzle game worthy of its place in any PSP’s owners library. The addictive gameplay will keep you hooked and the new levels will have you coming back for more. Although there are some faults, there isn’t anything too major that makes Mercury not deserve a purchase. After Ubisoft’s hit puzzler “Lumines”, comes Mercury, which will satisfy any craving for a puzzle game for quite some time.
Gameplay
When you first look at Mercury, you see a silver gooey blob that looks like it escaped from a thermometer, and with that observation you also wonder what you are supposed to do. Mercury has a very simple base on which the gameplay builds on. You are in control of a blob of mercury, and often times multiple blobs of mercury. To move the mercury you just change the direction of the PSP’s analog nub and guide it to the end “beam”. Sounds simple enough, right? Well to be clear, Mercury starts off easy but gets increasingly more difficult. The Tutorial World is the first world you will encounter. This will help you learn the basics of the game. Before each level begins, a brief description of what you have to accomplish will scroll near the bottom of the screen. Once that is done you are put in control of the mercury and have a certain time limit to complete the task. However what would a game be without some obstacles? Each Mercury level is filled with conveyor belts, launch pads, and even small monsters that chase your mercury blob and eats it.
Each level has its own objective, or a mixture of all of them. Sometimes you have to take your mercury from the beginning of the level to the end, without loosing too much of it. This is indicated by a percentage bar that tells you precisely how much mercury you have and when you are loosing too much. Another objective could be to change the color of your mercury blob by moving into “Paintshops”. This is necessary in order to get through to the next part of the level. However easy as this may seem, it gets tough. In some cases you have to split your mercury into two distinct parts, control both of them simultaneously, and take them to separate paintshops to change them into different colors. Once that is done you mix the blobs together to get a new color blob to progress to either the end of the level or to the next section of the level. If that doesn’t have you sweating in exhaustion let me add the fact that you only have a limited time limit to do all of this.
The camera angle is completely maneuverable but still never seems to provide the accurate view you need. Before the level begins you get a brief birds eye view of the level, which is a nice touch, but you don’t have enough time to see all the obstacles you are about to come up against. This gives the game a trail and error feel. You may have to try a few times before you end up completing the level, this is in no way a bad thing, and actually is the complete opposite. You can find a lot of fun in trying to figure out the best possible route to get through the level in the least amount of time. With the absence of any sort of “Lives”, you can retry the level as many times as you like. Although you may get frustrated due to some complex stages later on in the game.
Mercury also includes Wi-Fi multiplayer. This feature has two gamers competing head to head to see who can finish the level first. You won’t actually be able to harm, or make obstacles for your opponent, since all you are essentially doing is racing a “ghost” of him. I only imagine the real fans of Mercury to utilize this feature, but if you find a buddy with Mercury, then try it out for yourself, and you will be pleasantly surprised at how fun it can be.
The game comes packed with six worlds, and an unlockable bonus world, which gives a total of 72 levels to go through. That being said, Mercury offers an abundance of levels to slide your mercury blob through, numerous times. The first couple of worlds are on the easy side, especially considering the first world is really just a tutorial. After these initial simple worlds, Mercury rapidly becomes difficult. The amount of Paintshops, sharp edges, and enemies makes the game require skill and patience. Don’t let this sharp increase in difficulty scare you off. After you begin to master the controls, and obstacles, the game is definitely rewarding. Its to your advantage to stick through it all enjoy what Mercury has to offer.
Graphics and Audio
Don’t judge a Mercury by its boxart. That may be a bad pun on an old saying, but it makes a point. Mercury isn’t spectacular in visuals, but then again most puzzle games aren’t. The real star in graphics terms would be the mercury itself. The animation of the silver blob along with the reflection it makes during movement is truly the pinnacle of handheld gaming graphics. The levels and worlds aren’t any major eye candy, but they get the job done. Awesome Studios did a good job on making each level elaborate and simple to view. The audio is nothing much more then the mercury oozing along the level floor, along with some catchy beats. Like the visuals, the audio serves its purpose, and that is perfectly fine.
Overall
What it all boils down to, is that Mercury is a great puzzle game worthy of its place in any PSP’s owners library. The addictive gameplay will keep you hooked and the new levels will have you coming back for more. Although there are some faults, there isn’t anything too major that makes Mercury not deserve a purchase. After Ubisoft’s hit puzzler “Lumines”, comes Mercury, which will satisfy any craving for a puzzle game for quite some time.
February 8, 2010
