Monaco is the newest indie game from Pocketwatch games, and is set to release April 24th.



After we got our hands on Monaco, it was easy to see why this indie stealth game was making off with so many awards. It features an entertaining co-op mode, challenging single player mode, an incredible musical score is easy on the ears - and at $15.00 it's pretty easy on the wallet, too.

To start off, it's nothing like anything you've ever played. Or at the very least not like anything I've ever played. It's as if Metal Gear and Splinter Cell got together with Gauntlet and turned into Monaco. It's loosely dungeon crawler like... except not.

By the time the game loaded and the menu became visible I loved it. The music, the colors, and the loading screen saying "confiscating assets." Love it.

The Story

You and a group of other 'dirty criminals' are trying to successfully navigate a chain of inevitable events to escape from Monaco.

For example: The Mole (one of your starting characters) has connections in the underground criminal world, so you hijack a bus transport he's on, rescue him, and gain those necessary connections. It's straight forward - but that doesn't mean it's simple. The hilarious, dry dialogue is one of the stand out features of this game, and just about every pre-mission banter between the characters is a gem.

One early example that left me laughing:

The Mole "Mole's friend has boat." The Lookout "Your friend can smuggle us out of the country?" The Pickpocket "We may not be able to afford that kind of service." The Mole "Doesn't matter, bank across street. Bank has lots of money. Dirty criminals should act like dirty criminals."

Thus begins - Mission: Rob the bank.

Every mission starts this way... Mostly hilarious.

The Characters

There are four main characters and four unlockable characters - all with their own special ability. The unique differences between characters makes this game's co-op spectacular.

The Lookout (my favorite thus far) - She is able to see all guards in the area from behind walls. This is extremely handy when trying to sneak through an area, but don't expect to beat every level playing as just her.

The Cleaner (my second favorite) - the only lines The Cleaner has in the story line by the way is "...". You don't even have to see his face, you can just have the mental image of what his expression would be. The Cleaner can knock guards out with chloroform, so long as they don't see you coming.

The Pickpocket - This character has a pet monkey that will collect nearby coins for you automatically. This skill is most useful in co-op play because it can relieve some strain from the rest of the group to get the mission completely while still collecting most or all of the coins.

useful The Locksmith - (I think you can figure this one out) he can pick locks quicker than other characters.

The remaining four characters start with The Mole - He can break through most walls and obstacles, he can be useful in select maps where he makes it easier to access areas in the level. The other three characters? I will leave for you to find out - don't want to ruin the mystery ;)

Game Play

For most levels the goal is: acquire something from wherever you are, then escape.

Simple enough, right?

Sure, you can attempt to run straight through as fast as possible, grab whatever it is, and dip out... The problem is that running around without strategy is a great way to let a guard see you. The guards themselves aren't very intelligent, but that doesn't matter - set an alarm off and its like kicking a bee hive. Yeah, each bee is pretty dumb, but does that matter when there's 40 of them descending upon you simultaneously.

The best way to make it though is strategy, relying on your ever-shifting field of vision, available blueprint, and crack team of dirty criminals to get you through.

Final Assessment

I love it. The music, the sounds, the colors, the controls, the story, the mechanics, the characters, the co-op play, the simplicity. I could go on and bore you some more, but I'll go ahead and stop. But that shouldn't stop you from giving Monaco a try. Make sure to take a crack at it in both single player and co-op, playing on a team with other people totally changes the experience of the game.



Want to pick it up? You can buy the game directly from the developers at www.monacoismine.com.

I'll see you in Monaco!