Mercury Hg Review

Game: Mercury Hg

Developer: UTV Ignition Games

Publisher: UTV Ignition

Available on: Xbox LIVE Arcade & PlayStation Network (Reviewed on Xbox LIVE Arcade)

Mercury Hg, a clever play on initials if you are familiar with the periodic table of elements, would not normally be my cup of tea and, while there have been other iterations of the game, on both iOS and PSP, this is my personal introduction to the series; I must admit I was presently surprised.

The game places you in the life of a blob of mercury which has to reach the exits of various levels. Sounds easy enough but of course there is much more to it. You guide the blob of mercury through the levels by tilting the board using the left thumbstick. This can be tricky as most levels offer challenges and obstacles, colliding with certain structures will cause the blob to separate into multiple pieces depending on the level of impact, this is not a good thing as you will gain bonus points at the end of each round for the percentage of mercury you have intact. Other obstacles include differently charged magnets, some which may pull you away from your path; others will try to push you off and some areas will have no boundaries at all so precision is key.

Later areas will even offer multiple levels which make navigation more time consuming but the puzzling a bit more challenging. Some levels require your little blob of mercury to colour coordinate itself with the exit in order to complete the level, this colour change is done through the use of various stations that will allow the liquid metal to change to whichever colour that particular station happens to be. Sometimes you will even need to combine two colours to match the colour of the exit. Be mindful, however, some levels will have decoy colour stations that only serve to distract you from the colour station that you’re meant to be looking for. With this eating time, I wish I would have paid better attention in my art classes at school.

The main meat of the game is found in the discovery stages, they will hold your hand a bit in the beginning with a few tutorial stages but the difficulty will gradually rise from there on in. Though it will never get frustrating to the point of throwing the controller across the room, expect to replay quite a few of the later levels if you want to accomplish 100% completion. Once you’re finished dabbling in discovery mode, give the bonus mode a try as this mode offers a different challenge, it almost works in reverse. You start off as a smaller blob of Mercury as you attempt to collect vials that contain more of that precious liquid metal, with the goal to finish the level with 100% mercury. Those who may want a more structured outing will enjoy the challenge mode. ere there are specific goals given at the beginning of levels that consist of 2-5 areas each. An overall time limit is given to finish the entire level so don’t dawdle. Wasting time in the earlier areas will not leave you much to work with in the latter.

The graphical style of the game is simple yet functional, the mercury itself has a shiny metallic tinge to it that looks great sliding across the well designed levels. Each area sports a main colour offset by splashes of other colours, mostly blue, pink or green and the physics are also well executed as the mercury blob responds well to each tilt. It will morph in order to absorb the impact of walls, or split into smaller equally well animated pieces when it comes into contact with spikes. Overall, the game’s look is not spectacular, but it works well and is visually pleasing. I must also commend the score; I am a big fan of games that have great music and I found myself bobbing my head or even humming to the semi synth, electronica and alternative tunes that inhabit the background. Fans of Daft punk or Basement Jaxx may find a lot to like here. If you don’t fancy the music there’s even an option to use your own track list as the soundtrack.

VERDICT: When I began playing this game I had no idea what to expect; there were no enemies to jump on or aliens to shoot…but maybe that’s part of the appeal. What I did get is an addictive puzzle game that offers challenging levels and a good soundtrack to boot. Mercury Hg has pretty good replay value as each stage has 4 individual achievements; a time limit to beat, collectibles, mercury percentage, and then, of course, beating the level itself. These can be attained at any time so players who need to 100% a level will always find themselves coming back for more. The selectable modes differ enough that most people will find something here to enjoy. If you’re looking for a break from the 3000 shooters available, I strongly recommend Mercury Hg, if only for the soundtrack, give it a try.

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