When the first World War ends, the streets of England are ripe with opportunities. Based on the Netflix show of the same name, Curve Digital and FuturLab bring us Peaky Blinders: Mastermind, a spin-off of the English gangster show, now approaching its sixth season on Netflix. Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is an interesting and rather innovative game, coming from the minds behind Velocity and Velocity 2X. Peaky Blinders: Mastermind does feature a distinctive gameplay mechanic that fits well within the universe of Peaky Blinders but despite a refreshing take on adventure and action, the journey doesn’t last long enough.
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is themed to the Netflix show of the same name, Peaky Blinders. Peaky Blinders follows the adventure of the Irish travel gang, the Peaky Blinders, as they venture into the England underworld in the years following World War One. The gang consists of a varied ensemble of misfits, all seeking to carve a piece out of the opportunities that await in the streets of London. The gang is lead by the sharp and intelligent boss, Tommy Shelby. Tommy has had it tough, but his wits and awareness have made him as sharp as a knife and remarkably forward-thinking. This gives him the ability to execute incredibly complex heists that would otherwise be impossible to pull off. Set before the events of the first season, Peaky Blinders: Mastermind puts players in the shoes of the Peaky Blinders as they just get started.
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is an adventure and puzzle-solving game from the brilliant minds at Futurlab that focuses on the use of time and time manipulation. As Tommy is incredibly wise in executing heists, timing and punctuality is absolutely everything. In Mastermind, you are the mastermind to these heists and must manipulate time to your advantage to pull off various heists, using the assortment of characters within the gang to complete objectives. They will be challenged by guards, rival gangs, and the authorities on their early quest to the top.
The time mechanic of Peaky Blinders: Mastermind takes some getting used to but is nonetheless accessible to many players. Players move their character and interact with the world, grabbing keys, pulling levers, and paying off strangers to help out. Each level has a series of challenges, such as walking through a door at a particular moment for when it is open or avoiding a guard at a specific moment when he is distracted. To complete the more complex challenges, players can choose the other characters with the push of a button.
At the bottom of the screen is the timeline and time can be rewound to a specific point. Most importantly, a character’s action can be locked in place, meaning that players can hit play and have that action go automatically through. If a player is caught by a guard, time freezes but can be rewound to avoid that particular moment. Using the rewind feature, and controlling characters at specific times, players can sneak into heavily defended areas undetected and secure important items. Each character has their own abilities as well. Polly, for example, can talk to guards, distracting them long enough for Tommy to get past. Other characters can brawl, set fires, and crawl through small spaces. Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is more of a game of wits and intelligence than a game of relying on violence and pure action. Futurlab has garnered a reputation of creating games that go outside of convention. With Peaky Blinders: Mastermind, Futurlab have turned what otherwise would have been a straightforward action into an intelligent puzzle game.
Playing Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is fascinating; despite its puzzle mechanics, the game remains fast-paced. Each level has a scoring and grading system and those that maximize their resources in each level will receive the highest score. If players complete the level under a certain time, they will receive the maximum score. Utilizing the time manipulation mechanics is interesting as the system logs actions and allows for those actions to continue in order to create a perfectly executed operation. It’s unique and distinct. As someone unfamiliar with Peaky Blinders this exclusive level of thinking and problem solving has encouraged me to consider watching the show for its uncommon setting and direction. Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is certainly a strong case for rethinking common game design and moving forward on riskier but more rewarding mechanics. I was pleasantly surprised by how Peaky Blinders: Mastermind played and how fulfilling it was to have executed a heist to a tee.
The biggest drawback to Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is its length. The game doesn’t last terribly long and is only ten levels long. The replay value is all about achieving a higher score and a higher rank through each of the game’s ten levels. Peaky Blinders: Mastermind should have been perhaps ten levels longer and I would have liked to see what could’ve done with ranged combat. Mastermind does have a unique gameplay style, but it can become rather repetitive. Players will be opening a lot of doors and levers. This isn’t a terribly bad thing but the game could have used some kind of variation. The show does feature several shootouts, though as this game tasks place before the first season, I understand why that isn’t featured. The story is interesting, though told through dialog boxes and concept art. However, it does its job in setting the scene. Peaky Blinders: Mastermind can be beaten inside of a day, but is still a solid ride for fans of the show and those looking for different games to play. Some of the locations from the show are prominently featured in the game, though the levels tend to blend together. Yet, the style of the show is retained, including a solid soundtrack from Feverist, providing a sharp sound to the overall game.
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind sets a benchmark for unconventional gameplay done right. It is a game that stands out from the competition with its unique take on time gameplay mechanics, something that often isn’t seen nowadays. Its overall style is also quite strong and its unique world will certainly encourage players to check out the show on Netflix. While it needs some work in length and gameplay variation, Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is worth the trouble going on this heist.
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind was reviewed on the Nintendo Switch thanks to a key supplied by Curve Digital. More information can be found on the official website.
