MouseCraft released

Minim · May 17, 2014, 08:17:36 PM

I just recently typed Lemmings on Bing News and found a game similar to that which is yet to be released but has been recently announced (I hope I'm allowed to talk about pre-released games!

http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/undecided.gif" alt=":-\" title="Undecided" class="smiley" />).

The similarity is that this game is more of a cross between Lemmings and Tetris. MouseCraft is the name. It features mice, cheese and some sort of a mad cat scientist as an antagonist. Basically, the mice must navigate their way to the cheese using the Tetris Blocks that are given to you.

Release for this game comes at a 33% discount price until 6 October, so now's the time to get it! It's on the newer PS consoles and also the PC, Mac and Linux. For the creative minds, this game also comes in with a built-in level editor. Should be an interesting new puzzler!

namida · May 18, 2014, 08:20:55 AM

Sounds interesting... I may have to try it. =D

Timballisto · May 19, 2014, 11:47:23 PM

Evidently I should make a game called SomethingCraft. Seems to be the hip thing to do these days.

Prob Lem · May 20, 2014, 02:34:45 PM

http://www.lemmingsforums.com/index.php?topic=993.msg20388#msg20388">Quote from: Timballisto on 2014-05-19 17:47:23

Evidently I should make a game called SomethingCraft. Seems to be the hip thing to do these days.

CraftCraft - the crafting game where you craft crafts to progress.

http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/wink.gif" alt=";)" title="Wink" class="smiley" />

Anyway, I'd heard of MouseCraft, but all of the coverage I've seen so far has been worryingly sparse. I'll be interested in seeing how it turns out, though!

Minim · June 10, 2014, 10:07:25 PM

Forgot to mention that the game will also be released on the PC, Mac and Linux via Steam, per https://crunchingkoalas.com/presskit/sheet.php?p=MouseCraft" class="bbc_link" target="_blank">this. I've updated the OP.

DragonsLover · July 10, 2014, 10:57:07 PM

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18Bt7hhkuQQ" class="bbc_link" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18Bt7hhkuQQ

Minim · July 11, 2014, 06:52:14 AM

Have to say that trailer was a absolute mousterpiece!

http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/laugh.gif" alt=":D" title="Laugh" class="smiley" /> So funny and very good use of cheesy puns. Encourages everyone to pur-cheese it!

It has been released now, but looks like I have to use Steam or Desura to get it, because I don't have any PS consoles.

http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/sad.gif" alt=":(" title="Sad" class="smiley" /> I never even heard of Desura. ~~I also hope it comes at a British price tag... http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/XD.gif" alt=":XD:" title="XD" class="smiley" />~~

Edit: It does! And I have it working on my PC. So let's go!

Prob Lem · July 11, 2014, 04:57:29 PM

Looking forward to hearing your verdict, minimac!

http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/thumbsup.gif" alt=":thumbsup:" title="Thumbs Up" class="smiley" />

Minim · July 11, 2014, 10:05:34 PM

OK. This is only my first day of playing this, but I think it's just enough for me to do a review/verdict.

Generally I thought this was an excellent idea combining Lemmings with Tetris. Putting that into perspective really does make it a great looking puzzler. The Graphics are great, tutorials are easy to follow, and the controls are easy, especially for the PC.

Basically you have "Three blind mice" and you guide them from the hamster wheel (The Entrance) all the way to the cheese. The tetris blocks shown at the top of the screen are there to guide (or hurt if you aren't careful) the mice through the level. There are 7 different rotatable blocks altogether, with each shape varying depending on the level. The default block is unmovable and act as terrain. Some blocks come with an effect, depending on the look. Jelly blocks can save mice from large falls, TNT blocks detonate when a mice comes in contact with them, electric blocks will kill the mice and movable blocks can be moved by the player. The blocks can also be used to pick up shards (Which are helpful for getting a perfect result) and bombs (Which destroys a block of the player's choice). There are also some ratoids which behave like the weasels in Lemmings Revolution, eating any mouse it comes across. There's also some water and acid in some levels. Mice can survive for 10 seconds under water, but sometimes that can be useful to survive drops, as it slows the mice down; while acid instantly kills the mice, and dissolves any part of a block as well.

There's a wide range of in-game options whilst playing. Unlike lemmings you can release the mice anytime you like. There are fast-forward, pause, restart and undo buttons. There are three different grades you can get for solving each level; Passable, Good and Perfect. Good is for getting all three mice home, and Perfect is for collecting all shards as well.

Now about the editor. Very easy and fun to experiment with, and you can be as ambitious or as simplistic as you want. The editor basically displays a grid at the centre of the screen. It comes with an objects menu on the left side, such as terrain, wheel, cheese, ratoids etc. The blocks at the top of the screen, and a file menu on the right side. The file menu also has a handy test level option. You can choose one of four styles (which also affect the look of the terrain) and how long you want your level to be (Unfortunately, not how high, although that's the only downfall I can think of).

To sum it up, despite the complete absence of multi-player I highly recommend this puzzler!

http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/thumbsup.gif" alt=":thumbsup:" title="Thumbs Up" class="smiley" />

Ramon · October 01, 2014, 06:19:09 PM

In case some people are still considering getting this, MouseCraft is now -33% off on Steam until October 6th. (I got it myself now.

http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/tongue.gif" alt=":P" title="Tongue" class="smiley" /> )

Minim · October 01, 2014, 07:38:43 PM

Thanks for letting me know. I've updated the OP to reflect this.

namida · July 12, 2015, 07:05:23 PM

This game was recently (might even still be?) in the Playstation Plus free monthly games, so I grabbed it. Been playing it on PS Vita yesterday, and it's definitely pretty fun. So far, it doesn't have thr same challenge potential as Lemmings, but I still haven't discovered all the objects yet. I definitely agree with it being described as a Lemmings - Tetris cross.

EDIT: Yes, it's still on there, at least in PAL regions. It's cross-buy (whether through Plus or outright purchased), for PS3, PS4 and Vita.

namida · July 15, 2015, 09:08:20 AM

Okay so, I've finished the game now. Third Playstation game I've got 100% of trophies on, after PS3 Lemmings and Final Fantasy X HD.

While a bit on the easy side, it's definitely a good game.

I did feel the difficulty in particular dropped a bit towards the end - the hardest levels were around 50 to 70, with the last few actually being quite easy. The final level was a bit more challenging than those immediately before it, but still not one of the game's hardest. Ultimately I'd say - if you can get this game fairly cheap (or free, through Playstation Plus), it's well worth playing.