One of those things has been Mech Mice, the new online game from the minds of former Club Penguin employees rsnail, Screenhog, and Businesmoose/MechMoose. It has been in the works for years and has now been released for beta testing. But was it worth the wait?
| Source: Rocketsnail |
Let me start out by saying Mech Mice is not like Club Penguin at all - not that I expected it to be. If you were to take someone off the street with no prior knowledge of either game, they would tell you that the games were made by two completely different people. But, nope. They're both from some of the same people. It just shows you how much creative range these guys have.
Mech Mice is a strategic turn-based game with machine guns. Club Penguin is not that at all. And, while the former may show more similarities to the game that this site gets its namesake from once the multiplayer part of it opens, don't expect monthly Mouse Style's or a Music Jam in Mech Mice's future. They are two different games with two differing tones.
| Source: Rocketsnail |
Another thing that sets Mech Mice apart from Club Penguin is its story. While, granted, Club Penguin has a story-line with tons of information, Mech Mice has a rich, darker plot. I have to say it is an intriguing one, with an interesting good versus evil story arc surrounded by smaller stories. Unlike Club Penguin, the story runs the game.
Speaking of which, most of the characters also seem pretty interesting. The banter they have during levels is cool to read and it's nice that we can switch to the next slide of dialogue when we are ready. (I hate when you have to read in-game dialogue quickly before the game automatically switches to the next slide.) Although, on the flip-side, I have to say after reading some of the characters' bios, the descriptions seem to mold together since they're incredibly similar sometimes. There isn't a lot of back-story to set some of the characters apart. Maybe that will change as the story goes on but for now, I have to say I thirst for more.
| Source: Mech Mice Guide |
The game-play is also pretty good and differs from its predecessor. As I mentioned before, the game makes you think - you need a strategy to pass the later levels. It also has an exploring element to it - you need to collect three hidden tokens in each level to say you've aced the game, giving the levels good replay value. The game also acts a bit like chess once you get further into the game, taking a turn-based approach (Ala Card Jitsu Snow) for game-play. It makes for a nice break from the game-play I'm used to.
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| Source: Mechanic Mice |
The music is also a great aspect of the game. Some scores are from the brainchild of several classic Club Penguin hits - Screenhog, so it's no surprise the composition is so high in quality.
| Source: Rocketsnail |
The game's designs are also generally top-notch. The lighting is great, the colors are great. The illustrations are incredible. One of the only things I see that I think is a negative is the fact that the 3D backdrop (made in part with the canyon walls) looks a bit strange. The characters also look a bit blurry in-game. However, the Team did say some art would not be completely done in the beta, so I won't hold it against them - yet.
| Source: Mech Mice MM Cheats |
At a one time cost of $14.99, the game's premium is incredibly reasonable. Coming from someone who has spent many-a-dollars on Club Penguin Membership, I have to say I'm incredibly grateful.
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| Source: Mech Mice MM Cheats |
The whole point of a beta test is to help improve a game. Despite this, Mech Mice feels like a pretty-much finished game. Aside from a few hitches getting the game to work on my Windows laptop and the inability to save (as of this writing), the game is almost glitch-less, besides a few small snags here and there.
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| Source: Mech Mice Guide |
One thing that I think the game could improve on is its accessibility to women. While the game's target audience is males, I think the game needs more primary female characters. Sure, several girls exist in the Mech Mice canon, but they don't play a prominent role in the game as far as I've seen as of yet. This will probably change in the future, but I thought it was worth bringing up.
Having said that, I think girls will enjoy this game. It is pretty universal - I do think there is something for everyone.
| Source: Mech Mice Wikia (Magenta) |
In closing, Mech Mice is a great new game from some of the amazing minds behind Club Penguin that was worth the wait and did deserve the hype. Does it reach C.P.'s magnificence? Not quite, although I believe that's too high of a bar for any game to hit. But, does it offer a fun, unique experience that I'll be coming back for? Yep - I plan to purchase the Founder's Package soon enough. I can't wait to see how it will evolve in the future, with updates to the story, a multiplayer mode, and an app on the way. The game can coexist with Club Penguin. It won't be trying to compete with it, really. It won't be replacing it. They can exist together, with players bouncing back and forth. It's an awesome game. Just don't expect Mech Mice Perspective in the foreseeable future.
As Billybob would say, Waddle On!
- Chillin43
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