Mercury Meltdown to Provide a More Puzzling Experience

by Louis Bedigian

“It was important for us that those familiar with the original game could still find a new challenge.” 

Last spring, Sony’s long-awaited handheld arrived with a wide variety of games. It had the expected ports, offshoots, and sequels. PSP also had unique titles that launched all-new franchises, including the ballsy, hardcore puzzler Mercury. This year the developers are preparing another set of challenges for players to overcome, to be received in the form in Mercury Meltdown.

New puzzles (and more of them), new challenges, new blob physics, and a new graphic style give Meltdown a distinct edge over its predecessor, and over any other blob or liquid hero on the market. He has no eyes and cannot speak. Legs are nonexistent!  But when it comes time to bend and twist through a tiny crevice, only one blob can get the job done – the blob from Mercury. 

Take a gander at the screen and tell me: could the Man of Steel solve this one? I think not.

Just how powerful is this blob, and why was he chosen for the job?  We were as clueless as anyone until we spoke to Ken Gratz, Director of Product Development at Ignition USA. Ken informed us of the new features within Mercury Meltdown, and gave us several reasons to believe it’s better than the original.

Mercury Meltdown uses a more vibrant graphic scheme than the original. Why the change?

Ken Gratz: Though the first Mercury had its own unique style, it was generally felt that it was too dark and somewhat clinical. Because of this, the game was pigeonholed into a certain demographic. The new approach means that the game is more appealing and accessible to a wider audience. The new style also makes the obstacles and enemies easier to make out. There is no question that Mercury Meltdown suits the PSP perfectly.

As a disc-based platform, PSP has had longer load times than most handhelds. How have you found a way around this issue for Mercury Meltdown?

KG: The load times on the first title were, in one word – long. Unfortunately, due to certain restraints at the time, as well as not being familiar with the Dev Kits, we could not avoid it. We were always conscious of the problem, however. Needless to say, we have cut down load times in Mercury Meltdown dramatically. There are a number of factors to this, but the new software libraries have helped, and our programmers are much more familiar and quite adept with the equipment. We have used better compression / decompression techniques this time around and estimate load times to be less than half of what they were in Mercury 1.  

What are some of the new mercury blob physics?

KG: We were very keen on making a sequel that wasn't just "more of the same." It was important to have that "new, yet familiar" feel about it. It was important for us that those familiar with the original game could still find a new challenge. To do this, we took the most important aspect of Mercury, the blob, and gave it 3 additional states or forms. These are:

NORMAL - The same as what can be found in the original Mercury.

COLD- A higher viscosity, slower form than Normal. This blob "clings" together more, allowing the player to ride very thin edges without breaking up.

HOT - A low viscosity form that makes the blob faster, easier to break up, but harder to control.

SOLID - The pinball - great for reaching those out of the way areas using tramlines, or rails.

How have the controls changed since the first game?

KG: The control scheme is the same tried and true system as the first Mercury. The levels are still tilted using the Analog stick, but we have made some slight tweaks in order to make things a little tighter. It is very intuitive and we felt that we shouldn't mess with a good thing. However, there is a new free-look mode which lets the player pause the game and look around to pinpoint any specific areas and objects. It is a more visceral approach to the original help menu.

Will there be a time limit during each mission?

KG: Well, yes and no. This is in fact one of the biggest changes to Mercury Meltdown. What we found (especially in the later levels) was that in the first title you could spend 5 minutes working your way through a level, have the end in sight, and then the time would run out just as you get to the goal. It was quite frustrating and the chances of you going back to that level was not likely. How we have gotten around this is that each level now has three set targets to shoot for – getting to the end with 100% mercury, doing it within the time limit, and collecting bonuses. Achieving all of these will reward you with hidden items. If you don't complete the level within the time limit, you can still carry on to achieve the other goals, or you can be left to explore a quicker route. By not completing a level with the time remaining only puts you at risk of not achieving a high score to open hidden items.  

Tell us about the ghost and replay modes.

KG: Okay, essentially the game now allows the option to save your best runs to the Memory Stick. This allows the player to watch them again later, or have the blob appear as a "ghost" on screen so can you effectively race yourself.

Can you give us some examples of the new puzzle concepts designed for Mercury Meltdown?

KG: We've introduced invisible force fields – that is, invisible until you touch them. They can appear as walls or floors, and our level designers have really gone to town with them. You might find what appears to be an obvious puzzle solution is suddenly thwarted by the appearance of these barriers, or that a seemingly impossible problem is suddenly made viable by the same mechanism. Be prepared to make "leaps of faith."

We've also introduced variations on some of the successful elements of the original title. For instance, the enemy character, Mercoid, now appears in four distinct "breeds.” Instead of simply chasing and eating you, they have new abilities and behaviors.

Are there any puzzles / challenges that are completely different from what we experienced in the first game? Anything new that will jump out and surprise diehard fans?

KG: We hope so. Changes to our underlying technology allows us to do things that were impossible in the first game, such as vertical levels, or flipping levels on end so you will have to play on what was once a wall. 

Does the game have any multiplayer content?

KG: Sure does! We have added 5 party games that can be unlocked when playing the main game…each of which can be played single player or with a friend. Multiplayer really shines, though, when playing against a friend across the levels found in the main game. In this mode additional pick-ups have been added, which is sure to be more fun! 

What can we expect from the party games?

KG: The party games are a fun and diverse distraction from the main game. The five games consist of Race, Rodeo, Metrix, Shove and Paint - my particular favorite being Paint. Hopefully, it won't distract you for too long from the main game…

When you finally finish the game and have completed all 160 challenges, is there any kind of bonus or reward for going through this massive game?

KG: Well, sure!! 

Mercury has been a PSP exclusive franchise.  Any thoughts on bringing it to another platform? Perhaps one with motion-sensing technology that would cater to this game's style? (Nintendo Wii or PlayStation 3.)

KG: We are fully aware of how the unique game play of Mercury would be ideally suited to next-gen machines. All we can really say right now is that if an opportunity "tilts" in our direction, it would be silly for us not to grab it with both hands…

Good to hear.

Thank you for your time.