Micro Mayhem Preview

Diminutive racing enters the bedroom.

Witness: an indoor landscape, unremarkable to the naked eye. Witness: ketchup, spilt, haphazardly. Witness: toys left out unattended. But all is not as it seems, oh no! What lies before you is a vast indoor rally race, and its competitors are not "normal sized." Micro Mayhem, currently under development by Jaleco Entertainment, is a racing game of incredibly small proportions.

Formerly "Out of Control Racing," Micro Mayhem promises to give players a chance to race miniature cars through challenging household environments. Players can expect to tour exotic locales like the bed, bathroom sink, and kitchen table as they speed through each indoor rally course. The action will take place across eight different rooms, and more than 15 cars will be playable.

When players first start up Micro Mayhem, only four rooms will be available. The bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, and laboratory are all open from the start, while the other four rooms are unlocked as players progress through the game. When certain challenges are met, players are given keys to unlock new rooms. Tiny cars unlocking human-sized doors, what will they come up with next?

Each room presents appropriate challenges as well. Soap can be a debilitating obstacle in the bathroom, while spilt ketchup has similar effects in the kitchen. Also spread throughout each course are various pick-up items. Some function similarly to those found in Mario Kart (you can attack opponents with them), while others can be used to activate special objects housed in each room. While specifics haven't been released yet, players can expect objects such as fans to come into play with those pick-ups.

Courses involving ramps, loops, and obstacles exist in each room, and players even have to option to edit tracks of their own. While you can't edit the rooms themselves, it's possible to lay out track pieces wherever you want. This should keep those who played through the standard game entertained for quite a while afterwards.

Micro Mayhem will feature several multiplayer options as well. Capture the flag and deathmatch are both included, as is rescue (items scattered throughout the level must be returned to a teams base). Whether or not Micro Mayhem will support online play across all platforms has yet to be announced, but the split screen action should greatly increase the replay value.

Graphically, it's still too early to tell whether the game will be strong across all platforms. Since it is being released on all three consoles and the PC, it would be reasonable to expect all four versions to look similar. The handful of screenshots released over the internet show a game that has a strong sense of style, but they can't show how the game will look in motion.

As of now, Jaleco has released little information regarding Micro Mayhem. Specifics about the game are hard to come by, but the premise sounds entertaining and the screenshots look promising. Expect more information as the game nears its Q1 2004 release date.

Preview by Matt Dedrick