Transformice is a multiplayer 2D platformer

Players must complete an obstacle course as a mouse to obtain cheese. The catch is one player is the Mouse Shaman and can alter the level at will to help or hinder fellow mice.

Transformice is a game about relying on other players not to be a troll - it only works half of the time

Help mice get their cheese

Transformice features hundreds of player-made levels that can tricky to navigate without help. The Mouse Shaman is the only player that can place new objects on the map. The underlying goal of the Mouse Shaman is to help other player mice get the cheese on the level. Successful Mouse Shaman earn points on skill trees to help.

The downside to the game is when you get an uncooperative Mouse Shaman. While the game's goal is to work together as mice, the Mouse Shaman player is a troll more often than not. It leads to frustrating levels where the Mouse Shaman intentionally kills other player mice.

The Pied Piper of Mice

The concept of one player assisting others and earning points in Transformice is a good one – but it falls apart quickly in the community's hands. Mouse Shaman players often abuse their powers to cause chaos in their levels.

The deception may not be immediately apparent, either. A Mouse Shaman may dutifully help the other player mice through the level, only to drop an anvil on the final platform and kill everyone. What's worse is that the game randomly chooses the Mouse Shaman; players have no control over it.

New players who may not be familiar with the mechanics of a level are often accused of being a troll. New Mouse Shaman players that don't have intimate familiarity with the level end up hindering more than helping.

What's worse is when the game spawns a level with two Mouse Shaman players. Instead of two Mouse Shaman players helping out, it turns into a chaotic competition. The levels are concise and only take up one screen, but there are hundreds of them to learn.

Browser Game Basic

Transformice is not a game you play to enjoy the graphics or the audio. Don't get me wrong – both are serviceable. But this is the kind of game you play in the background while watching Netflix or listening to a podcast.

The Mouse Shaman features customization hats players can wear, but that's the only flair in the game. Levels consist of extremely basic geometric shapes, and Mouse Shaman tools are pulled straight from a Looney Tunes cartoon.

Get the Cheese

The mouse player's ultimate goal is to traverse the level and return to the mouse hole with the cheese. Player mice get points for surviving, while Mouse Shaman players get points for every mouse who escapes. The goal is cooperation and to work together, but that often devolves into trolling.

Despite the bad Mouse Shaman players, the game is still a fun time distraction. Players can spend their hard-earned cheese on new hats, so the game has that 'just one more level' feeling of accomplishment. Whether you'll be successful at returning the cheese in your level depends highly on whether your Mouse Shaman is a troll or not.

Game about cooperation

Transformice is a fun game when players work together and help each other get the cheese. At its best, it's a game about cooperation. At its worst, it's outright chaos, and you're lucky if the Mouse Shaman doesn't kill you. Still, the luck of the draw with each level makes it fun to play.

TL/DR

Transformice is a fun plat-former that relies on the nature of chaos to be successful. While players are encouraged to work together, every mouse for himself mentality is alive and well in the game.