When it comes to recognizable characters and console mascots, the Nintendo brand certainly doesn’t have a shortage of them whether it’s an Italian plumber named Mario or a feisty big ape named Donkey Kong. While SouthPeak Games’ Mister Slime for the DS might not put Slimy into the same category as Nintendo’s biggest stars, it certainly does a great job of bringing us a game worthy of Nintendo’s innovative portable gaming machine.

Ok, so Mister Slime’s cute character Slimy isn’t the new Mario or Kirby but Slimy is certainly a likeable little creature that is willing to go to great lengths to help his fellow Slimes in their time of need. You see, the game’s main story mode introduces a Slime named Slimy who finds himself in the middle of a yet another conflict between his people and creatures known as Axons. You see, Slimy takes it upon himself to do something to aid his village and his people because he is next in line to become the future Village Chief. Of course, even with Slimy’s unique abilities, the Axons are not going to make it easy.

Mister Slime is not your usual platform/puzzle game and this is thanks to the fact that Slimy has four arms he uses to get around his environment. Utilizing the bottom touch screen, the only way you can move Slimy is by using your trusty Stylus to move one of Slimy’s arms to reach for anchors scattered throughout the map. Slimy can stretch his limbs a good distance and you can even let him drop if the surface below is padded enough that it won’t hurt him.

Of course, swinging from anchor to anchor might sound easy but it takes a bit of skill to reach the next available anchor. Secondly, there are some hazards you will encounter such as insects of various kinds as well as mechanical doors the require keys or the flick of Slimy’s hand to open. You will encounter other fellow Slime along the way and many of them will help you in some way but the hard work is left up to you and your ability to get Slimy through the environment and through the circular exit. You’ll even have to do some collecting.

The obstacles that are placed in your path make the game even more challenging since each creature and insect in the game poses different threats to Slimy. Some insects, for example, won’t hurt Slimy but rather tickle him to the point that he will let go of his anchor and fall to his death. Other insects will hurt him on contact while other might paralyze or wrap the little critter up like a mummy. The environment also plays a role in affecting the gameplay such as maps where everything is frozen and maps when everything is lit on fire. There are even levels where you will dive into water (resurfacing every now and then for air).

Axon, a character you encounter later in the game, also teaches you how to use different abilities such as the Power of Air, Fire, Earth as well as Fire and Ice. These powers you unleash by drawing any of the Power elements’ symbol with the Stylus. Aside from utilizing the touch screen you will also make use of the DS’ microphone to make Slimy fly in areas where you need to use the Power of Air. Your friend Aria will even teach you how to catapult to each place that are too hard to reach with grab and you can even catapult into enemies in order to push them out of your way.

The game has a number of inventive levels that will challenge you like a good platform/puzzle game should and there are times when the puzzles will really have you thinking of different ways of tackling a given situation. Then again, there are times when the difficulty setting is inconsistent. Usually we tackle some easy mission as the difficulty rises with each level but here we take on more easy missions than hard ones. The action can also get a tad repetitive at times but never to a point that you will grow frustrated with it.

Oh but there are too many good points that overshadow the game’s weaknesses. There are bonus levels that add to the 40 or so levels that are scattered through five different worlds. You can always go back and replay favorite levels as well as replay them in a Time Attack mode that has you racing through the level before the time runs out. There is also a Multiplayer mode that has you playing against a friend wireless using three different game modes such as Racing Challenge, Flower Challenge and Score Challenge.

Visually, Mister Slime sports some rather colorful backgrounds with a lot to look at and the characters are actually delightfully nicely rendered to the point that the characters actually stick out nicely throughout the game. Slimy has a number of facial expressions and there are also numerous visual effects that make this a visually pleasing game. As far as the sound is concerned, the game also has a more than decent soundtrack and good sound effects that gamers should really play this one loudly. Also, Slimy and his people speak a funny gibberish that doesn’t get on your nerves.

Mister Slime is a genuinely engrossing and fun Nintendo DS title that falls a tad short in some ways but still manages to be the most fun you’ll have using your Stylus. If the level difficulty wasn’t so inconsistent, this could have been a perfect platform/puzzle game. Still, there is much to like about a title that is inventive enough to keep gamers busy with its plentiful levels and interesting gameplay style. This is certainly a game Nintendo DS owners should really not miss.

Gameplay: 7.5
Many of the game’s levels and game worlds offer plenty of diversity and are actually quite inventive despite the fact that the action gets a wee bit repetitive in places. Thankfully the controls are decent and the Stylus is put to good use as well as the microphone.

Graphics: 8.0
The game looks good and the characters and backgrounds are actually quite colorful. There are also some nice visual effects that give the game much personality.

Sound: 8.0
Aside from the good graphics, Mister Slime has a good soundtrack that goes well with the game. Slimy and his people speak gibberish but it won’t fail to put a smile on your face. Even the sound effects are good.

Difficulty: Easy/Medium
The game’s major weakness comes in the form of the unbalanced difficulty level that starts off easy and becomes more challenge then goes back to easy. The door opening puzzles aren’t incredibly hard to figure out so the real challenge comes from guiding Slimy to his destination.

Concept: 7.5
The fact that the game’s here is a little glob of slime with multiple arms you know you’re in for a different kind of platform game. The game uses the Stylus in different ways and there’s even a multiplayer mode. There are even bonus levels and the Time Attack mode adds an extra challenge to the levels.

Multiplayer: 6.5
You can play three different multiplayer game modes with a friend and the game runs smoothly. The game modes are actually fun but I don’t see gamers playing them for very long.

Overall: 7.5
Mister Slime is a delightfully engaging and likeable Nintendo DS game that might not be perfect but is still a game worth a look if you like decent platform games with good puzzles. Yes, there are things that could have used improvement but, overall, Mister Slime is a truly enjoyable game well worth your attention.