Mr. Slime
Ages: Everyone

This is one of the weirdest, most mind bending side scroller that I have played. You control a blob of a creature with four stretchable arms as he makes his way from hand hold to hand hold by releasing and extending one or more of his arms. At first it feels slow and awkward but in a little while you bond with the creature and you kinesthetically sense how to move. Eating flowers is the way you accumulate points and you need to triangulate the arms so Slimey's head passes over the flower - really keeps you focused. For the most part you are looking for exits to get into the next level.

As soon as you become comfortable with the movement, challenges are introduced in the form of enemies that can loosen your grip on the hand holds, even take your life. There are different kinds of walls - some will cause you to lose life points, some will propel you along. Not all doors will open to your touch and you will need to find keys. Handholds will become problematical - some with fire and ice will require gloves. Slimey will be able swim underwater provided he attends to his air supply and you can give him a boost by blowing into to the microphone. I haven't gotten there yet, but eventually Mr. Slime meets Axon - an alleged participant in the conflict over land - who uses his special powers to help Slimey - could this mean peace?

Fun Factor: Try it - you'll love it.
Player Friendly: Saves at end of level. A complete manual. Good in-game instruction.

Reviewed by: Editor - 08/08