| M.U.L.E. Returns | |
|---|---|
 M.U.L.E. Returns logo | |
| Developer(s) | Comma 8 Studios |
| Designer(s) | Dani Bunten |
| Platform(s) | iOS, Android |
| Release | 25 November 2013 (iOS) |
| Genre(s) | Turn-based strategy |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
M.U.L.E. Returns was a strategy mobile game by Toronto-based developer Comma 8 Studios. It was a licensed iOS remake of the 1983 classic M.U.L.E.
The gameplay of M.U.L.E. Returns closely follows that of the original M.U.L.E. , though the controls are adapted for mobile device touchscreens. [1] Improvements over the original include a pause feature, three difficulty modes, social media integration, and the ability to apply custom skins. [1] [2] [3]
In 2012, Electronic Arts was in licensing negotiations with M.U.L.E.'s original developers, Ozark Softscape, though these were unsuccessful and Ozark ultimately awarded mobile platform rights to Comma 8 Studios. [1] Comma 8 began developing the game simultaneously for iOS and Android, using C++ and a framework middleware. [1] To create as faithful a reproduction as possible, the developers traced and reimplemented the original 8-bit code. [1]
Comma 8 released an official trailer for the game on 27 June 2012, [4] [5] and discussed the game's development at World of Commodore 2012 in December. [1] The game was originally slated to be released in mid-2012, [3] though this was pushed back repeatedly, first to the end of the year, [6] then to early 2013, [1] and finally to late 2013. The game was eventually released for iOS on 25 November 2013 [7] and was presented the following week at the 2013 World of Commodore in Toronto. [8] However, as of 16 February 2019 [update] further development on the game has been discontinued. [9]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| GameRankings | 53% (based on 3 reviews) [10] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| 148Apps |   [11] |
Reviewers' attitudes to M.U.L.E. Returns were split. [10] Matt Thrower of Gamezebo appreciated the game's "unique and enthralling mixture of strategic concerns propelled forward by real-time pressures" but criticized its patchy tutorial, sloppy artificial intelligence, and showstopping bugs. [12] Pocket Gamer 's Harry Slater, who is not a fan of the original M.U.L.E., criticized the remake as "outdated, with sloppy touch controls and far-from impressive backdrops". [13] 148Apps had a more positive opinion of the game, awarding it four out of five stars and praising its sophisticated supply-and-demand economics. Like Gamezebo, however, they bemoaned its failure to implement the original's multiplayer mode. [11]
M.U.L.E. is a 1983 multiplayer video game written for the Atari 8-bit family of home computers by Ozark Softscape. Designer Danielle Bunten Berry took advantage of the four joystick ports of the Atari 400 and 800 to allow four-player simultaneous play. M.U.L.E. was one of the first five games published in 1983 by new company Electronic Arts, alongside Axis Assassin, Archon: The Light and the Dark, Worms?, and Hard Hat Mack. Primarily a turn-based strategy game, it incorporates real-time elements where players compete directly as well as aspects that simulate economics.
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