Mail Mole is the first video game from Talpa Games, a small independent studio in Barcelona. This is a 3D platform adventure starring a friendly messenger mole named Molty. The adventure takes place in Carrotland, where a mysterious power failure threatens the celebration of the long-awaited Summer Festival.
Mail Mole
Release Date: March 4, 2021
Plataformas: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch y PC (Steam).
It can be played on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X / S thanks to backward compatibility.
The new Talpa Games video game, co-developed and published by Undercoders, is primarily inspired by the 3D installments of the Super Mario franchise. According to the producer of the game, Àngel Beltran, from Super Mario 3D World they have adapted the structure of individual levels with unique mechanics and from Super Mario Galaxy they have come up with the idea of having a hub central: la Peaceful plaza.
Despite the similarities with other games, Mail Mole has a very special and characteristic protagonist. Molty is a messenger mole and always moves underground. It is a 3D platform game in which, for most of the time, the character being controlled is not seen.
According to the study, this curious displacement system was born from the very limitations of development. “We didn’t have any artists, so the animation and character modeling work was out of our reach,” says Beltran. In addition, Talpa Games had raised the idea of making a puzzle game starring a mole. By crossing these ideas with limitations, they found Molty.
Screenshot of Mail Mole
Beyond the Super Mario franchise, the study has also had as references titles such as A Hat in Time, Snake Pass, Yooka-Laylee and Slpatoon, from which the main inspiration for Molty’s displacement comes from. Although, instead of moving under colored ink, it does so underground.
Apart from the basic movement, the messenger mole has some special moves. It is capable of sprinting, performing loaded jumps, hitting using inertia and destroying objects by carrying its full weight after jumping. These basic skills must be continually mixed to clear the levels, each focused on specific mechanics and with a unique visual style.
Screenshot of Mail Mole
From Peaceful plaza, Molty must use cannons that take her to each level. Once there, your goal is to quickly reach the end of the map to deliver a letter with the activation code for a generator. In this way, the messenger mole is recovering the electricity supply of Carrotland.
“Once we were clear that he would be a mole, we began to propose the narrative. Why do you have to reach the end of the level? What is the OBJETIVE? From here came the idea that it was a courier and that the objective was to deliver letters in mailboxes at the end of the levels ”, affirms Àngel Beltran.
According to Talpa Games, the main bumps in the development of Mail Mole have been the lack of experience from the studio and teleworking due to the coronavirus pandemic. “In college we had learned the basics of what it meant to develop a game, but until you start making a game with a commercial perspective, you don’t understand how the team has to be structured or how to come up with a good production plan”, Beltran assures.
Mail Mole was born as a university project. The four members of the team began the development of a third-year subject in the Degree in interactive digital content of ENTI at the University of Barcelona. Development continued when, as part of a university internship, the studio moved to the Undercoders offices. Two years later and several months after completing the degree, Talpa Games is fully dedicated to the development of its first title.
Mail Mole arrives this March 4 to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and PC (Steam). Thanks to backward compatibility it can also be played on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X / S.
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