![]() ![]() While the camera and a few other nagging issues can make things vexing at times, Pool Panic shines past the mild blemishes as it’s a dazzling display of artistic buffoonery. This is a game not short on content, as even an initial run through the 100+ levels is in the 5-10 hour range. More modes and secrets are unlocked as you get through the stages, including a Hard Mode that offers more challenging versions of every stage. Each one has a strict time limit, so it operates as more of a challenge mode. Panic Mode unlocks early in the adventure, offering endless randomly generated pool tables with all varieties of balls. A local multiplayer mode for up to four players is available right away, which can lead to some hot nonsense and good times. That little stinger is an earworm that’s like the hell version of the battle ending music from an RPG (that’s a compliment, I think).Īside from the main campaign, Pool Panic has a few other modes. The music is catchy and a little repetitive, but in an endearing way, like the song the cue ball sings at the completion of each level. Everything is hand drawn but moves in 3D space, making for a distinctive look ripe with expressive characters and scenery, akin to playing a cartoon. The charming humor carries across the entire presentation. The personification of all the balls is hysterical to boot. The ball types are all their own little puzzle to solve, with aggressive bear balls that attack you and skeleton balls that discover stilt-like bony legs to tower high. The levels are short and do not overstay their welcome as ideas, mostly seen in new ball types but also presented in different locales and obstacles, are introduced rapidly. Pool Panic has a fervent pace that keeps getting weirder and weirder. The ingenuity on display throughout each of the more than 100 levels is nothing short of breathtaking. A simple and quick level restart generally fixes these issues and the overall freedom you have in each level is, fortunately, more or less worth the exasperation. ![]() The physics can also lead to balls going out of your reach, making levels impossible to finish every so often. When combined with the puzzles, the solution might be obvious but a key part could be hiding behind a tree out of your sight. The problem with that is objects can be obscured by each other very easily, especially since you’re regularly knocking balls all over the place destroying and altering the landscape. The frustrations aren’t helped much by the camera, which cannot be controlled and instead follows the action in a way. ![]() The world map does let you skip around if a level is tough, but while gorgeous to look at, the overworld is too open and dense for its own good at times, making it a challenge to find where new levels are. It borders on adventure game design in that respect and, much like adventure games, can sometimes be too vague and verge on maddening. A bulk of them just involve hitting all the balls into the hole, but sometimes you’re just placed in a room with no visible balls, meaning you have to engage with the environment to reveal them. Further progression opens up the full gamut of insanity that is nestled in this world, ranging from a ski race and a car race to a fight with a giant spider. Optional goals are available as well that require the player to complete the level in a set amount of time, only use a specific number of shots, not scratch, and hit every ball in. Early levels are crazy but still on the simpler side as you have to contend with alive balls that must be guided into a gaping hole before draining the eight ball down that hole and hopping in yourself for level completion. A straightforward tutorial sets up the relatively simple controls as you move a cue ball around and line up shots with the other analog stick, but after the intro, the expansive world map is opened and you’re sent off to your own wild machinations. It starts off in a somewhat familiar place: a pool table. ![]()
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