Cutesy
puzzlers and single screen arcade games are the perfect match for
hand held consoles. When done well they offer short bursts of fun and
head-scratching action that's perfectly suited to gaming on the move.
Games like Amidar, Qix, Tetris, Bomb Jack, Bubble Bobble, Catrap and
Boulderdash are all great examples of this. And so too is Amazing
Penguin.
Developed
by Natsume and released in 1990, Amazing Penguin is an exceptionally
fun single screen arcade puzzler starring a cute Arctic bird wearing
a beret. Why he is wearing such inappropriate head wear is
unexplained, but I would imagine if he were a human character he
would be called something very different from 'amazing'. It would
still begin with an 'A' though.
At
first glance it looks like your average run of the mill Amidar clone,
a title which involves moving around the lines of a grid to 'colour'
in the squares, but here the mechanic is different. While the levels
do resemble line drawn grids, instead of colouring them in by moving
around the outside line, you have to move over and destroy the dots
on them. Both white and black dots can be removed by pressing A over
them, while black dots can also be kicked with the B button. Removal
of all dots around a square grid will colour it in, with the
objective to colour in everything to beat the stage. Enemies patrol
the lines and colliding with one spells instant death for our
flightless hero. Amazing Penguin is not completely defenceless,
though. Removing white dots reverses the movement direction of all
the foes on-screen, and kicking a black dot sends it hurtling across
the screen, temporarily eliminating any enemies in its path.
Colouring in a square also kills any adversaries currently moving
around its lines.
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As
you progress the levels become larger and more complex and the
enemies faster and greater in numbers. It is a challenging game and
also a very addictive one that will keep you coming back for another
quick go, or to beat your score, even after finishing the main quest.
There are over 40 stages in total, with every fourth stage revealing
a twee picture as you colour in the squares. The graphics are basic,
but very clear and appealing (essential for games of this style) and
the music is insanely catchy and will stick in your head long after
you turn off the console.
Amazing
penguin is a great example of the simplest ideas being the best, and
while it clearly owes a debt to games such as Amidar and Qix, it has
enough personality and ideas of its own to hold its head high in the
world of hand held arcade puzzle games.
Title : Amazing Penguin
Developer : Natsume
Publisher : Natsume
Year : 1990
