Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack has finally been released on the Xbox 360. Originally a critically acclaimed PS Vita launch title the transition to Xbox 360 should indeed be a smooth one. But has Mutant Blobs Attack retained the original charm, or has it left 360 owners feeling a bit bloated?
Well, I’m struggling a little with Mutant Blobs Attack.
Struggling because I can’t find a damn thing wrong with it!
DrinkBox Studios have managed to bring a game to the Xbox 360 and the Xbox Live Arcade that has immediately thrown my all-time favourite XBLA games running for cover. Mutant Blobs Attack is THAT good and it threatens to consume all in it’s path.
A mutant blob is on the run, first escaping from the college lab it found itself in, then taking in a small town, blasting off to the moon before taking down the world and threatening to devour the whole damn galaxy. A puzzle-platformer with plenty of searching thrown in for good measure, you control a small blob helping it devour everything and anything in its path. Of course, as if usually the case when you start off small, you’ll at first only be able to eat the little things, building your way up as you grow in size. And it’s this unique but outstanding formula that keeps MBA evolving from the very first minute right up to the last.
Where you’ll at first find yourself scouring the college floor for instant grub, six scenarios and 24 levels later, you’ll most definitely be taking in larger objects in order to keep you alive and help you in your break for freedom and domination of the galaxy. Each scenario features a number of separate short levels, none of which should take you more than ten minutes to complete, and these short quick stages mean Mutant Blobs is the ultimate in pick up and play titles and will happily keep you going for a few hours at a time, or just the odd five minutes.
But things would get a bit boring if the same old thing was being run through over all 24 levels and this is where some special blob powers come in to great effect. As a standard gelatinous mound of goo, there is little more to your skills than some Left Stick movement and a bit of jumping. All that changes once you magically get some special powers that enable you to move objects with telekinesis, stick to or repel from magnetic items or use your newfound rocket boost power in order to escape the traps that are frequently in place to stop you from ruling the world.
With numerous blobby friends needing a helping hand, you will find that the replayability of MBA is fairly high. There’s absolutely no way you’ll find all your hidden alien buddies on your first playthrough and even less of a chance of grabbing a gold medal time and score at the end of each level and with some gorgeous worldwide leaderboards in place, you certainly won’t be able to leave it with a friend or five above you in the standings.
For as near as damn it a £6 game, it’s graphically good, as smooth and fast as you want it to be and pays some lovely homages to games past and present throughout, with a quick hit of Angry Birds a personal fav. For me though, a combination of the low price point, the creative intelligent puzzles and the memories it evokes of Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet that makes the game stand out above near on anything else I’ve played on the arcade. If I was being really picky, I’d point to the lack of a multiplayer or co-op mode and mention that barring a few levels, it’s not overly taxing, but in the same breathe, maybe it’s these things that make Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack so damn pleasing.
Perhaps the only thing Drinkbox should have changed is the title….WHEN Mutant Blobs Attack would have been so much better!
Now, where’s the Xbox One version?
