I was introduced to M.U.L.E by a good friend of mine. At first glance, it looked like a really lame game. But it turns out to be a very fun, though unusual strategy game that blends elements of luck and planning together. The basic premise is that you and a few other aliens come to a planet called Irata and are told to colonize the place. Using your MULE (Mutli-Use Labor Engine) you engage in various tasks to be as successful as possible. Gameplay: 9/10 You can play with 4 players, whether computer or human, to manage the resource mining in the game. You can chose from 8 different alien races to be from. Once you start, you have a time limit based on the difficulty that you set the game. The game is played in a couple phases: management phase and auction phase. Management includes farming, energy collecting, mining for Crystite, selling land etc.. Auctioning allows you to compete with each other for the best prices on resources. There is a lot of depth in the game play, such as random events that effect the colony and different types of land. This is clearly the strength of the game. Graphics: 4/10 As I mentioned, I thought this game looked bad. That is because the graphics are not good. They are sub-par when compared with other NES games. You will not find it very visually appealing, as the graphics are very boxy. Sound:5/10 The only sound in the game are a few beeps from different events and the music for the game's beginning. Otherwise, there isn't a lot going on. Reviewer's Tilt: 8/10 Despite its weaknesses in graphics and sound (which is explained by the fact that this is originally a C64 game that was translated to NES... This is still a very fun game. It provides a change of pace from other games and has a high level of replayability.
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