De Blob - multiplayer hands-on

We were already excited about de Blob back when we first previewed itlast summer. THQ had us somewhere between the words Wii Remote and Jackson Pollock. And even if de Blob didn’t feature fresh, innovative Wii mechanics in gameplay (which it does, in flying colors), the plot is still compelling: de Blob and his pals liberating the world from the monochromatic forces of the INKT Corporation with lurid graffiti. Tack on to that a funk-tastic soundtrack that changes depending on what paint colors you mix together and you already have a game that demands interest. But now we have a whole new reason to be jazzed about the lurid painting adventure coming to Wii: multiplayer!


Above: Lock on with Z and flick the Wii Remote to smash your opponent - it'll slow him down

De Blob features four mode of multiplayer that can be played by up to four people on a single Wii (the color revolution hasn’t gone online yet). Each mode pits players against one another in a race to color as many buildings as possible within a time limit. The first mode, Paint Match, is just that- painting as much of the town as you can, hoping you outscore your opponent when time runs out. You get more points for painting buildings that haven’t been touched than you do for painting over whatever your pals have already painted- but it is fun to be a bit of a jerk.

The second mode, Blob Race, is the same deal only with a savagely competitive twist. Buildings that you're supposed to paint are highlighted with your color in a specific order. If your buddy finishes his building and gets to yours before you can, hecan score points off of your building by painting it in his color. And unlike Paint Match, you can’t paint over what’s already been painted, so book it.

The third mode was our absolute favorite. De Blob on the Run is like a game of tag but with the “it” being on the run and the “not its” hunting him down. The first Blob to grab a paint container becomes “it” and has to paint as much as he can without being tagged by the other Blobs. If the other Blobs find him and execute a smash attack by Z-targeting on the Nunchuck and flicking the Wii Remote, “it” gets smished and the other players have a chance to grab a paint container and start painting. The “it” can shield by holding down B, but once the “not its” track you down, it can be hard to get away.

The last multiplayer mode is similar to Paint Match, but in Sewers the environment is so hazardous, it’s hard to paint anything without drowning in evil INK. Players can still paint over whatever other players have painted- but really, between trying to stay alive and trying to get to paint containers that get submerged in the rising INK tides, you’ll be lucky if you get much of anything painted in the time limit.

CATEGORIES
Latest in Action
Beyond the Ice Palace 2
After 37 years, this Commodore 64 classic returns with a new Metroidvania sequel that gives serious old-school Castlevania vibes
Fortnite's Lara croft skin in front of a building
Fortnite has had Tomb Raider's Lara Croft locked away in battle pass exclusivity jail for almost 4 years, but she's reportedly getting a new skin very soon
The Last of Us 2
The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann sounds like he's contemplating the end of his career: "When is it time to stop?"
Screenshot of Neil in Death Stranding 2
Hideo Kojima says he chose Death Stranding 2's Solid Snake lookalike because he needed an actor who "would surpass" Mads Mikkelsen
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
5 years after starting development, Neil Druckmann says Naughty Dog's new game Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is "still evolving and changing as we're making it"
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann says Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet will also be about "being lonely," as if his zombie apocalypse wasn’t isolating enough: "I really want you to be lost"
Latest in Features
The Witcher 3 screenshot of Geralt
Avowed and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 tap into the same thing that makes The Witcher 3 so compelling – and it's something I'm always looking for in RPGs
Marvel Rivals Spider-Man
Spider-Man has become every Marvel Rivals player's worst nightmare
The Punisher holding two machine guns in the rain
Daredevil: Born Again - Learn the bullet-riddled comic book history of the Punisher before he officially joins the MCU
A woman in a underwater machine waving during the cinematic teaser for Subnautica 2.
Subnautica 2: Everything we know about the new underwater survival game
The AMD Ryzen 7 8700G being held above a motherboard by a reviewer
AMD's pro-consumer 9070 strategies are exactly why it's primed to dominate the CPU market in 2025
Assassin's Creed Shadows cinematic screenshot
Assassin's Creed Shadows' transmog looks set to combine the best of Odyssey and Vahalla to make changing my drip easier than ever