Spy Mouse

Spy Mouse is Australian developer Firemint's most recent game being released shortly after their sell out to industry giant Electronic Arts. If Firemint sounds familiar then you're right as Flight Control was their baby and it really took them places. And from the looks of things Spy Mouse tries to capitalize on their expertise in the line drawing genre of games.

In Spy Mouse you play the role of Agent Squeak. Agent Squeak is a mouse, but I have to admit I don't see much in the way of him being a spy. Simply put you are trying to grab the cheese and sneak by the kitties. The first level is easy. In fact, I don't think there's a way to fail as there are no cats to catch you. You just drag through the cheese, out the door, and you move on to the next level. As the game progresses new elements are introduced such as mouse traps that need disarming and mouse holes to hide in. But each level comes down to drawing a line that your mouse follows to pick up cheese and get out of the house.

The key element of the game is the cat as cats are the only things that seem to get in ones way. The cats follow a little predefined pattern of movement and apparently don't have very keen senses as you can pretty much follow right behind them and so long as they are looking the other way then you'll be safe. The thing this game reminds me the most of is Metal Gear Solid on the Playstation with its 2D overview and the need to sneak past the guards. It should also be noted that the cats may also have a little snooze built into their movement patterns and alert you before they pounce making things even easier.

Ultimately Spy Mouse falls into the puzzle game category where you are timing when to make your move in order to slip by the cats to get the cheese. One thing I use to judge these games is how well the game builds in difficulty and that's one area where Spy Mouse does not do so well. It wasn't until level 12 that I felt any degree of challenge and even then there was little resistance. It might be a good game for kids, but with so many other great games available this one just falls short and doesn't offer much that would compel me to come back to it. 3/5 stars for a game that's not horrible, certainly not great, and fits in nicely with 'mediocre'.