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Cyborg Mice at WonderCon '09 One of the great things about comic Conventions is that the little guys get a chance to strut their wares to those that have no idea who they are. Or at least they try. You get to see small press, up and coming artists, very independent film-makers, and the random bikini model and/or porn starlet. While making my rounds I spotted a mouse with guns amidst the autograph tables. It looked cute and deadly, which is a great combination to nab an audience. It turned out it was a cyborg mouse from the game Cyborg Mice Arena that will be coming to the Community Games section of Xbox Live. So, now we also have independent Community Game developers at the conventions? Sure, I'm game. Cyborg Mice Arena is being developed by Bioroid Studios using the Xbox 360's small-time-developer friendly XNA. The latest build of the game was available to play at WonderCon for two-players. I believe the final game will have 4-player mouse action. From the outset you can choose your mouse and customize it. I selected the random color blue and started playing. Cyborg Mice Arena is an isometric shooter with a familiar control scheme. You use the left analog stick to move and the right to aim, but actually shoot with the left and right triggers. You shoot robot drone things and have to destroy the pods they spawn from. I'm not sure why the mice are shooting these things or why they have robot parts, but I like it. Hmm, maybe I should have picked up one of those Cyber Mice Origin books. Anyway, the graphics were fairly simplistic, which I'm fine with in independent shooters, but the game will apparently be receiving a graphical overhaul before its release. I spent maybe five minutes or so with the game, reaching stage six, but it was plenty of time for me to know that I'll purchase it when it hits Xbox Live. It was a fun little shooter and since it's a Community Game it'll be cheap, possibly around 200 points or so. The game isn't even out yet and Bioroid had the merchandise all ready to go with t-shirts, a print, a comic, and patches strewn over their booth. Cyborg Mice Arena is actually just the first game as Bioroid is planning to bring more games starring the cute cybernetic rodents. I admire their bold push right out of the gate with all the merchandise and hope they meet their goals so we can see what other games the Cyborg Mice will be in. Head to CyborgMice.com for news on the game and it looks like you'll be able to visit them at San Diego Comic-Con this year, maybe with another game in tow.
- Shawn - 3/4/09 |
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