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Ah! I remember this quite fondly. I first came across it in the Arcades. I felt drawn to it because of its graphics and gaming concept. I invested a few coins in the arcade machine and I fell in love with the game instantly.
Then I bought the ZX Spectrum conversion and was delighted. Despite the colour loss, the poorer graphics, the fragile sound and the overall inferiority of this version, it was still quite a kick.
Then I bought the Amiga. Oh, my! "I must get PANG for the Amiga", I thought to myself. And as soon as I could, I did. And what a bomb it was. It knocked me out of the water... permanently.
I played this for hours on end. I gathered a fairly large group of pals at my bedroom (about 10 chaps total) and we did marathons on this game, playing 2 player games without cheats and Arcade-like (only one credit. no continues allowed). How fond i am of those memories. Those were the times. No worries, just fun.
PANG is the definition of simplicity. All you have to do is burst every bubble that comes on your screen. The bubbles start out big and bouncing high and will become smaller and short-bounding as you burst them into oblivion. The levels are all composed into one screen only, there is no scrolling, neither up/down nor left/right. Every level differs on the disposition of the platforms (some solid, some destructible) and ladders and in the number of bubbles on-screen (and the backgrounds and music, of course). You control a cute fellow who cannot jump. He is armed with a very interesting weapon that fires a sort of cord that will destroy the bubbles. There are several power-ups that you can fetch, from grabbing cords to power shots. In addition to that, you can always eat some lovely fruits and drinks, which add lots of points to your high score. That's it! Isn't it simple? But you'll see that "simple" is not synonymous with "easy".
What more can I say that hasn’t been said already? If arcade games are your thing, you just can’t afford not to own PANG. It’s one of those games that, in my opinion, transcend the word “game” and become a “work of art”. It’s not quite a philosophical statement (like Alley Cat for the PC was), but it’s more than just a game. Imbibed by its Nipponese origins and ideologies, PANG is strong enough to cause in us, westerners, that old fascination with those Japanese oddities that often remind us of just how different we can be in the equality of the Human race. Go try PANG now! Do it because it's great and do it because it proves just how swell our beloved Amiga was. You know I'm always right.
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Graphically, PANG is incredibly polished. It’s an almost perfect conversion of the original arcade. Aside from some missing sprites (the moon, the stars in the between-levels animations, etc.) everything is there. The graphics are very colourful on a cartoonish (animé) or consolish kind of way, which is always refreshing to see on a western computer.
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Sound wise, the Amiga version dares to supplant its arcade cousin. Everything is top-notch. From the bubble bursting to the gun firing, from the musical tunes to the power-ups, everything sounds so lovely and cutesy that it just makes you go “Oh! How cute!” And indeed, it’s quite lovely.
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Aha! The fundamental piece of every game. How does PANG fares in what really counts? Well, for starters, PANG fares very well! For starters and for finishers as well, ‘cos PANG behaves greatly all the way through. If you have played the Arcade version you already know what to expect. It’s a spot-on conversion of the revered of the arcade original. It’s because of conversions of this quality that Ocean France has gained their – much deserved – reputation for excellent software. In terms of arcade conversions for the Amiga, PANG stands second to none. You can play solo or with a friend (simultaneous) and you can choose where to start the game (only on difficulty settings of Normal or above). The game comes in only one disk so no disk swapping. Life is good.
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| Popping bubbles is just one of those concepts that could only have originated in Japan. The almost “Zen”-like nature of this game is immense. You’ll be hopelessly hooked on balloon bursting. The only thing that my picky personality can see as bad is that it doesn’t save your high scores. It’s a pity, I’m telling you, but it's not enough to destroy the perfect mark. In the end, when we stop to weight it all, we rapidly conclude that PANG rules! PANG is your friend! PANG cares for the children and the animals! PANG just rules! Period. You may rightly shout: "OMG!!! The PortugueseWarrior gave a perfect 10!" And you're right! It's something really special. Just try it! You’ll be bursting bubbles forever! |
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Get Amiga Forever with pre-installed Workbench, games, applications, and much more.
It also contains the original Amiga ROM-files, 100% legally!
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