My Life’s Quirks – Addicted to Mousehunt

Have you guys ever heard of the game Mousehunt?  It’s a Facebook game by HitGrab that you can also access via an app.

Almost three weeks ago, Jason mentioned that he noticed his co-worker sneaking a peek at his phone at regular intervals through the day.  When he asked his friend what he was up to, his friend told him he was “checking his trap”.  Um…what?

Jason’s friend was playing Mousehunt.  Jason thought the game looked interesting and decided to try it…and was hooked pretty much from the get-go.

Mousehunt is a game of strategy and planning.  Of cunning and wit.  But mostly, it’s a game of luck.  That is what makes it so addictive and that is also what pisses you off to no end many times in one day.

Basically, you set traps and try to catch mice.  That’s it.  That’s the game.

The day after Jason’s friend introduced him to Mousehunt the kids got into the game. Jason was playing at home and the kids were drawn by the sounds the game was making and were quickly sucked into the game.  They cheered when Jason he caught a new mouse and were sad for him when he missed.

With all the commotion, I had to see what was going on.  After watching Jason play and seeing the kids watching Jason play for the better part of a half hour, I decided to try it too.  I suck at video games but I thought I could play this one easily.  I still haven’t decided if joining in the fun that first day was a good idea or a very very bad idea.

Instantly, I was hooked.  The little horn that sounds and the fireworks that go off when you catch a specific mouse for the first time are so gratifying.  Hearing that sound after you haven’t heard it in a while is like getting a fix.  I know what you are thinking.  You’re thinking “crazy” right?  Well, you’re probably not all that far off the mark.

One part of the game that is quite impressive is the artwork.  Just look at some of the mice you can catch!

…but you can’t deny that the art is well done.

There is a whole world you can unlock and explore with each place having its own indigenous mice.  That means there are many many new mice to catch and many hours of fun to be had!  Then of course you have your illusive mice.  Man, they piss you off when they come to your trap and eat your cheese without setting it off.  That means that the damn mouse actually came right up to my trap and tricked me!  F*cking mouse!  I was ‘this’ close and the damn thing got away.  If I ever meet him again I’m going to pounce on his furry little ass and…

*blinks back to reality*  Yeah…it’s a bit additive.

Did I tell you that once you reach a certain level you are only allowed to ‘sound your horn’ once every fifteen minutes?  So you sit there, constantly checking your phone or your Facebook to see if it’s been fifteen minutes yet.  You look and feel like an idiot…but you just don’t care.  Because you next catch might just be the Black Widow mouse and man, she is tough to get!

You think I’m hooked, check this out.  My kids.  They each have this print out with pictures of all of the mice you can catch in the game.  They study it all the time and when we catch a new mouse, they run to check it out on their sheet!

They even invent their own mice.  My 5 year old son has cooked up ‘Wish Mouse’ and my eight year old daughter invented ‘Cool Mouse’ (she spelled it ‘coule’ because “ou” = “oo” in French).

My son actually gives me shit in the morning when I haven’t caught a specific mouse “for him”.  What the hell?!  It’s a total crap shoot!  Yes, you try to pick the strongest trap that you own for the site and the best cheese and so on but ultimately, it’s luck.  Too bad my son (or my patience) doesn’t understand that.

So yes, as I write this post, I have checked my phone a few times to see if it’s time to sound the horn and hunt and I may have cursed once or twice because I either caught nothing or not what I wanted.  Do I have a problem?  Probably.  But I’m still going to play because as frustrating as this game is, it’s a sh*t load of fun.

Addicted to Mousehunt.  Just another one of my life’s quirks.

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