When it comes to recognizable
characters and console mascots, the Nintendo brand certainly doesn’t have a
shortage of them whether it’s an Italian plumber named Mario or a feisty big ape
named Donkey Kong. While SouthPeak Games’ Mister Slime for the DS might not put
Slimy into the same category as Nintendo’s biggest stars, it certainly does a
great job of bringing us a game worthy of Nintendo’s innovative portable gaming
machine.
Ok, so Mister Slime’s cute character
Slimy isn’t the new Mario or Kirby but Slimy is certainly a likeable little
creature that is willing to go to great lengths to help his fellow Slimes in
their time of need. You see, the game’s main story mode introduces a Slime named
Slimy who finds himself in the middle of a yet another conflict between his
people and creatures known as Axons. You see, Slimy takes it upon himself to do
something to aid his village and his people because he is next in line to become
the future Village Chief. Of course, even with Slimy’s unique abilities, the
Axons are not going to make it easy.
Mister Slime is not your usual
platform/puzzle game and this is thanks to the fact that Slimy has four arms he
uses to get around his environment. Utilizing the bottom touch screen, the only
way you can move Slimy is by using your trusty Stylus to move one of Slimy’s
arms to reach for anchors scattered throughout the map. Slimy can stretch his
limbs a good distance and you can even let him drop if the surface below is
padded enough that it won’t hurt him.
Of course, swinging from anchor to
anchor might sound easy but it takes a bit of skill to reach the next available
anchor. Secondly, there are some hazards you will encounter such as insects of
various kinds as well as mechanical doors the require keys or the flick of
Slimy’s hand to open. You will encounter other fellow Slime along the way and
many of them will help you in some way but the hard work is left up to you and
your ability to get Slimy through the environment and through the circular exit.
You’ll even have to do some collecting.
The obstacles that are placed in
your path make the game even more challenging since each creature and insect in
the game poses different threats to Slimy. Some insects, for example, won’t hurt
Slimy but rather tickle him to the point that he will let go of his anchor and
fall to his death. Other insects will hurt him on contact while other might
paralyze or wrap the little critter up like a mummy. The environment also plays
a role in affecting the gameplay such as maps where everything is frozen and
maps when everything is lit on fire. There are even levels where you will dive
into water (resurfacing every now and then for air).
Axon, a character you encounter
later in the game, also teaches you how to use different abilities such as the
Power of Air, Fire, Earth as well as Fire and Ice. These powers you unleash by
drawing any of the Power elements’ symbol with the Stylus. Aside from utilizing
the touch screen you will also make use of the DS’ microphone to make Slimy fly
in areas where you need to use the Power of Air. Your friend Aria will even
teach you how to catapult to each place that are too hard to reach with grab and
you can even catapult into enemies in order to push them out of your way.
The game has a number of inventive
levels that will challenge you like a good platform/puzzle game should and there
are times when the puzzles will really have you thinking of different ways of
tackling a given situation. Then again, there are times when the difficulty
setting is inconsistent. Usually we tackle some easy mission as the difficulty
rises with each level but here we take on more easy missions than hard ones. The
action can also get a tad repetitive at times but never to a point that you will
grow frustrated with it.
Oh but there are too many good
points that overshadow the game’s weaknesses. There are bonus levels that add to
the 40 or so levels that are scattered through five different worlds. You can
always go back and replay favorite levels as well as replay them in a Time
Attack mode that has you racing through the level before the time runs out.
There is also a Multiplayer mode that has you playing against a friend wireless
using three different game modes such as Racing Challenge, Flower Challenge and
Score Challenge.
Visually, Mister Slime sports some
rather colorful backgrounds with a lot to look at and the characters are
actually delightfully nicely rendered to the point that the characters actually
stick out nicely throughout the game. Slimy has a number of facial expressions
and there are also numerous visual effects that make this a visually pleasing
game. As far as the sound is concerned, the game also has a more than decent
soundtrack and good sound effects that gamers should really play this one
loudly. Also, Slimy and his people speak a funny gibberish that doesn’t get on
your nerves.
Mister Slime is a genuinely
engrossing and fun Nintendo DS title that falls a tad short in some ways but
still manages to be the most fun you’ll have using your Stylus. If the level
difficulty wasn’t so inconsistent, this could have been a perfect
platform/puzzle game. Still, there is much to like about a title that is
inventive enough to keep gamers busy with its plentiful levels and interesting
gameplay style. This is certainly a game Nintendo DS owners should really not
miss.
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Gameplay: 7.5
Many of the game’s levels and game worlds offer plenty of diversity and are
actually quite inventive despite the fact that the action gets a wee bit
repetitive in places. Thankfully the controls are decent and the Stylus is put
to good use as well as the microphone.
Graphics: 8.0
The game looks good and the characters and backgrounds are actually quite
colorful. There are also some nice visual effects that give the game much
personality.
Sound: 8.0
Aside from the good graphics, Mister Slime has a good soundtrack that goes
well with the game. Slimy and his people speak gibberish but it won’t fail to
put a smile on your face. Even the sound effects are good.
Difficulty: Easy/Medium
The game’s major weakness comes in the form of the unbalanced difficulty
level that starts off easy and becomes more challenge then goes back to easy.
The door opening puzzles aren’t incredibly hard to figure out so the real
challenge comes from guiding Slimy to his destination.
Concept: 7.5
The fact that the game’s here is a little glob of slime with multiple arms
you know you’re in for a different kind of platform game. The game uses the
Stylus in different ways and there’s even a multiplayer mode. There are even
bonus levels and the Time Attack mode adds an extra challenge to the levels.
Multiplayer: 6.5
You can play three different multiplayer game modes with a friend and the
game runs smoothly. The game modes are actually fun but I don’t see gamers
playing them for very long.
Overall: 7.5
Mister Slime is a delightfully engaging and likeable Nintendo DS game that might
not be perfect but is still a game worth a look if you like decent platform
games with good puzzles. Yes, there are things that could have used improvement
but, overall, Mister Slime is a truly enjoyable game well worth your attention.
