Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack

While the majority of PS Vita owners will no doubt be making their way through the various big-name titles for the console - such as Uncharted and WipEout 2048 - I've been thoroughly enjoying the cheap and cheerful digital releases.

Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack is one such release. Think the ball-rolling, object-eating mechanics of the Katamari series with side-scrolling puzzles thrown in and you've got a fair idea of how Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack works.

Forget your £30 titles - this is one of the best Vita launch games available, with plenty of personality and creativity packed into a tight little package.

Telling tales

You play as a nasty, microscopic alien blob that's living in a test-tube in a lab - but not for much longer.

After breaking out of your confines, it's time to start swallowing up anything that's smaller than you. As you suck objects into your blob, you'll grow bigger and bigger and thus capable of ingesting larger and larger items.

Throughout the game your blob keeps growing, to the point where there simply isn't anything left to eat any more. The story is simply told through this journey and the various things you're asked to eat, in a perfect example of story told through actions.

Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack plays wonderfully, with physics-based gameplay that sees you roaming platforms in search of your next feed. Your blob can jump around, fire itself out of cannons, and fit through pipes and the like to reach a whole host of different areas.

Exploring is hugely rewarding, as the entire game looks gorgeously cartoony and expansive, giving a great feeling of scale as you grow bigger and bigger.

It also helps that there are plenty of jokey backdrops and elements to keep you smiling - just wait until you find the bit that's inspired by a certain popular bird-themed smartphone game.

Blobbing about

However, while the overlying core of Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack is your journey to eat everything in sight, the real meat of the game is the puzzles.

There are physics-based conundrums to solve throughout, which usually involved avoiding lasers, scaling buildings, and swinging objects around to launch your blob across the level.

Pressing the L and R buttons lets you use your magnetic powers. Hold L and you can pull yourself towards certain objects, while R pushes you away.

Without spoiling the puzzles, the level of creativity on show here using these simple mechanics is incredible, from causing your blob to hover on the spot to creating staircases for climbing over pits filled with spikes.

There are also plenty of bits that break from the norm and keep the game flowing, such as maze rolling games that ask you tilt your Vita to move the blob around a maze, and flying sections during which you need to boost your blob around in the air.

At-tacky

Some people will take issue with the fact that Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack looks and feels a little too much like a browser-based Flash game or a smartphone game.

It definitely straddles the line at times, but overall we were far too blown away by the puzzles and content for this to be a serious issue.

It's also notable that the game doesn't make much use of the Vita's functionality, outside the maze levels and the occasional touchscreen dragging bits.

However, with secret blobs to find on each level, gold medals to collect, and full online leaderboards for every level, this is a Vita game we're going to have installed on our systems for a good while.

If you're looking for a little something special to download from the PSN Store, Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack is by far your best bet.

Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack

Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack is the best downloadable launch game for the PS Vita
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Mike Rose
Mike Rose
An expert in the indie games scene, Mike comes to Pocket Gamer as our handheld gaming correspondent. He is the author of 250 Indie Games You Must Play.