Gaming: Muri: Wildwoods Demo Blends Cute Critters And The Same Satisfaction...

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I absolutely adore the satisfaction of virtual cleaning. I love scrubbing grime and dirt from structures in PowerWash Simulator, and especially adored cleaning up the ocean in Loddlenaut. So naturally, it's no surprise that Muri: Wildwoods, an adventure game set on a mysterious island where you embark on your first solo mission as a cleaner, struck a chord with me. Now, having made my way through the demo, I am more excited to continue cleaning than ever—a phrase I never thought I'd say.

At the start of the demo, you're introduced to Pelle, a mouse-like creature called a Muri who's also conveniently armed with a water gun and an almost incessant need to clean. After spotting a bird flying overhead that seems to be covered in a black mass, Pelle decides to chase after it, ending up on an entirely new island which none of the team has seen before. As you can probably expect, the island is doused in the same black substance as the bird—the corruption. It becomes our job to make our way around the island and bring life back to the world by cleaning up the corruption. Nice and simple.

However, it's not just rocks, shells, and coral you have to clean. Along the way, you'll meet a number of the island's wildlife, too, like Shruppies (my personal favourite, and a combination of puppies and shrimp), which have fallen victim to the corruption. After a blast with your water gun, their colour returns and they run up to you, which is particularly adorable. And yes, before you ask, you can pet most of the creatures.

As you spray and clean up, returning the world to its former glory, new pathways reveal themselves. You're not really told where to go, but the world does a fantastic job at getting you warmed up in a fairly empty area and giving you a few patches of corrupted land to clean before moving you onto the next. Before long, I was trusted with deep cleaning an entire ship, and with my new water gun skills, quite happy to accept the task.

Unlike games like PowerWash Simulator though, you're given a visual representation of your progress by the world literally springing to life underneath your paws once you've cleared all of the corruption from an area. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing the time lapse at the end of a powerwashing session to show all your hard work, but being subconsciously reminded of why you're cleaning in the first place makes it a lot easier t

Source: PC Gamer