Well, it seems as if my psychic channeling class has finally paid off. The folks at Sunrise Games have created the exact product I've been looking for: a game where I can be a red rubber ball named Bernard and run around frantically collecting little blue gremlins that open chests containing the letters P-A-N which eventually gives me a frying pan that I can use to whack evil mutant alien penguins over the head before they reach the DoomScale and conquer the world . Who comes up with this stuff anyway?
Mutant Penguins can best be described as an anti-Lemmings puzzler. Instead of trying to help the penguins reach the goal (the DoomScale), you must prevent them from doing so by changing their direction of travel, building slicer-dicer machines that hack them into penguin chum, or simply bopping them over the head with your frying pan (or baseball bat if you choose to play as Rodney the melancholy pear). When you smack alien penguins they release power orbs; collect enough power orbs and maybe you'll get the boomerang frying pan or torch breath. You'll need these special power-up weapons to obliterate the penguins, as your regular weapons simply slow them down.
Graphically, Mutant Penguins is simple but colorful. The levels are large, and navigation can be confusing when you're racing to prevent the penguins from reaching the DoomScale, but you can scroll the screen before the action starts to develop a strategy. The music and sound effects are okay but again nothing spectacular, with the exception of the Wookie yelp. Gameplay is annoying when using a keyboard, but passable if you're using the Gravis Gamepad. Even so, if you can get past the ho-hum presentation, the game itself is incredibly addictive, original, and just plain fun. Expect to lose some sleep trying to figure out how to solve that board you played for three hours earlier in the day.
While it won't win any awards, Mutant Penguins is entertaining and intriguing, and a pretty great value at $20. If you want a game that combines a novel plot, a bit of puzzler strategy, and a touch of good ole violence, Mutant Penguins is a good choice.
