Mercury Meltdown [PSP]

Archer MacLean's Mercury was one of the first PSP puzzle games, and one of the most difficult. The challenge was to guide a blob of mercury from one end of a level to another, often across narrow bridges spanning bottomless drops, all the time desperately trying to keep your mercury from spilling over the side. Depending on your mood, it could be either fun and stimulating or downright maddening.

Based on our preview of the sequel, Mercury Meltdown, many criticisms of the original were taken into consideration. Gone is the strict level progression that left gamers cold if they couldn't pass one challenge. Now the collection of 160 puzzles is broken into a series of 'labs', with 16 levels in each, plus unlockables. Can't finish one? Move on to another.

Finishing each puzzle is also easier, at least superficially. Gone is the separation of levels into Race, Percentage and Task modes. Now each level might contain all those challenges. Complete a puzzle under the par time to win the Race aspect, then return later to cross the finish line with enough mercury intact to nail the Percentage flag -- as long as you cross the finish line at all, the puzzle is technically won.

The game also looks different, as the crisp realistic renders have been replaced with more friendly cel-shaded images. The cartoonish approach begins with the menus, extends to the amusingly scientific 'labs' and goes straight on through the game. Most appealing of all is the new camera, which has been adjusted to be more controllable and to better keep the action in view.

You'll also find a greater variety of puzzle elements like heaters and coolers to speed up and slow your mercury respectively, and a plate that turns the blob into a solid ball. There are also some other entities roaming around the levels, like the blocks which have to be pushed or rolled onto switches.

There's also a color wheel to go along with the returning spray paint squares. Not only will you have to dye the blob red, blue or green to activate switches, but there are shades in between which require rudimentary color mixing. So yellow means that you'll have to split the blob, pass one part through the red painter and another through a green one and then recombine to activate a yellow switch.

Finally, bonus stars on each level can be snagged to grab new skins for your mercurial blob, and most likely to open up other challenges as well. It's difficult enough finishing a level with all challenges won, so grabbing the bonus stars should prove to be quite a task.

We're thrilled to see the changes made to the Mercury formula so far. The original game was great fun, at least until you hit that inevitable brick wall of difficulty when, most likely, you'd be off to the trade-in shop. With the non-linear progression and greater variety of Meltdown, that may no longer be the fate of players everywhere.