Maze Mice

Jump right into the action

I think it's easy to conclude that Maze Mice is "Pac-Man + Snake" by looking at a couple of screenshots, and that's about 85% accurate. What makes this more of a strategy game than an arcade game, however, is the timer at the bottom of the screen: it only ticks up while the mouse is moving. Enemies freeze in place so you can plan the path you'll take or strategize which upgrades to pick, which now that I think about it, is a cool interpretation of what makes Roguelikes like Rogue. Less-patient players can simply keep the momentum and never stop, allowing for a more arcade-y playstyle. Both are fun and it's cool that the game adapts in that way.

The game loop

Run around a maze and collect XP (blue bubbles). Level up and choose 1 of 3 upgrades. Avoid the cats, or better yet: kill the cats. Survive until 10-ish minutes, when the boss comes out. Beating the boss ends the game. From there, you can play on endless mode or end the game and unlock new upgrades and new playable mice.

Finding synergies

The most interesting bit of the game is choosing upgrades that work well together. It's also what gives the game its variety, since there are only 2 enemy types (plus the boss) and 4 maps. There are also 30-ish unlockable mice, but I didn't feel that any of them offered much of an advantage since the only difference is their starting upgrade. It's fun to discover the synergies organically, like pairing the Cannon, which allows you to place a cannon that auto-fires at enemies, with the Disco Ball, which spawns a disco ball in the center of the map that doubles weapon damage. Throw in an Energy Drink (reduces cooldowns) and now you have a superweapon.

Final thoughts

I'll keep this review short and sweet, like the game itself. It isn't nearly as sticky as solo developer TrampolineTales's previous game, Luck Be A Landlord, due to the limited variety of enemies (two) gameplay that doesn't change much between difficulties or maps. But like Luck Be a Landlord, what's fun is the upgrade synergies. So while I don't think I'll attempt getting all the achievements, especially having to beat the game with every character on the maximum difficulty level, it's definitely a game worth checking out if you're a game developer or arcade game enthusiast. While it's a little repetitive (what arcade game isn't?), the concept and genre mashup is solid and worth exploration.