Mercury Meltdown is the sequel to Archer Maclean’s Mercury, a puzzle game in which you tilt the game environment to navigate a blob of Mercury, or several chunks, through various mazes as hazards try to zap, attract, repel, eat, or blow you up.
Mercury Meltdown has a new bright graphic style, many unique stages, a free-look camera, phantom mercuries, replays for your best times that may be stored, and much more. The game’s initial realistic graphics have been redesigned in a cartoon manner, and a black line has been drawn around the perimeter of the Mercury.
The game’s fundamental change is the ability to shift the Mercury into three additional states. Aside from the normal state, you may now use a heater and a cooler to change the Mercury into the “Fast” or “Slow” forms and a solidifier to transform it into the “Solid” state, a spherical, non-breakable ball. The Mercury may still be split using a splitter, which is required to solve several riddles.
Unlike the original Mercury, the game is divided into themed “Labs” rather than “Worlds.” Astro, Bio, Chemical, Electro, Geo, Atom, Aero, Hydro, Micro, and V.R. (Virtual Reality) are the ten labs with 16 first stages. The PS2 version includes two more: Chrono and Cryo, dual analog control, rumble support, enhanced visuals, and all of the original Archer Maclean’s Mercury levels. The PSP version has 168 stages, whereas the PS2 version has almost 200. Unlike the last game, there is no set order to complete the stages, and you can play all of the steps immediately after unlocking a Lab.
Attributes indicate how well you perform in games. The best performance earns a golden cork based on four criteria: a high score (a 1 sticker), all bonus items discovered (a star sticker), 100% mercury (a corked test tube), and completing the game within the time restriction. During gameplay, your progress is indicated by faces that replace the timer. The time restriction no longer causes the game to finish; instead, it displays a sad face, and players can still complete the level. The mercury limitations have also been eliminated, but access to some later groups still requires 100% mercury.
A color chart is displayed in the top right corner to aid in color mixing in the game. This can also be accomplished in the paint shop. This update includes multi-paint shops, triangle base pyramid-shaped constructions with three colored gates on each side, and more.
There are now five party games in addition to the main game, which are unlocked by collecting extra stars in the main game: Metrix*: puzzle games in which colored blocks must be fitted into a pre-defined grid.
Paint: Move the Mercury as much as possible to paint the tray against your opponent.
Race: Use boost pads to guide Mercury around the fast track and avoid falling off.
Rodeo: tilt the field to keep the Mercury on the field while a fan attempts to knock you off.
Shove: like curling, aim the Mercury for the center of the target.
All party games on the PSP may be played in multiplayer mode through Wi-Fi. The tutorial is now distinct from the main game, and there is a new Playground mode where you can test out the game’s various components.
