Pengo

Pengo is an arcade game developed by Coreland and published by Sega in 1982. It is a game that involves mazes that can be manipulated by the player in each level. From Pengo's debut, he has also had some sequels over the years.

Also:

• • Published by: Sega

  • Developed by: Coreland

  • Designer: Nobuo Kodera, Tsutomu Iwane, Akira Nakakuma, Shinji Egi

  • Platform: Arcade

  • Year Released: 1982 Maze, Platfrom

  • Genre: Maze, Platfrom

History

Originally made as an arcade game, it has been ported onto the Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Commodore 64, and Sega Game Gear. Pengo has made a cameo appearance in the game Up'n Down.

Game Design Elements

The player must guide Pengo through a maze of ice blocks and enemies to try and push the diamond blocks together to proceed to the next level. You can also proceed to the next level if all the Sno-bees are killed. There are 16 levels to go through before the game restarts again.

Gameplay

The gameplay is relatively simple. You must guide Pengo through the level by pushing ice blocks and going around to find the diamond blocks to proceed to the next level. Pushing the walls while there is an adjacent Sno-bee nxt to it will stun them for a few seconds.

Controls

There are 2 controls for Pengo, and its movement and pushing blocks. You can move up, down, left, or right to navigate through the level as well as pushing 1 button to move ice blocks that are infront of you.

Plot

Pengo must through a series of mazes, bring together the diamond blocks, all the while avoiding (or killing) the Sno-bees to progress.

Characters

The starring character of the game is Pengo, a penguin, which the player controls. The other characters are the blob-like Sno-bees, which try and thwart the player's efforts to win by getting in Pengo's way and ultimately killing him if they run into him.

Art

Visual

The levels are mapped out all on the same screen so the player can see the whole level. The background is black with blue ice blocks, 3 of those blocks consisting of diamonds shapes within them. Pengo is colored white, bright red, and neon green and has 3 different views: front, side, and back. The Sno-bees also have three different views as well as change color each level.

Sound

The game has background music that starts after a few musical starting notes are played at the beginning of each round. There are sounds for when Pengo pushes ice blocks as well as when Sno-bees hatch from ice blocks. There's also a tune for when you die, or if you win, are rewarded with a upbeat, short tune.

References

http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?letter=&game_id=8989

http://www.arcade-history.com/?n=pengo&page=detail&id=1944

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pengo_(video_game)

Links

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Mw-XkalHUg - Different versions of the background music in Pengo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObIftYOD9EI&feature=related - Gameplay of Pengo and some info