Pengo (video game)

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Pengo
Image:Pengo.png
Screenshot of Pengo
Developer(s) Coreland
Publisher(s) Sega
Designer(s) Nobuo Kodera,
Tsutomu Iwane,
Akira Nakakuma,
Shinji Egi
Platform(s) Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Commodore 64, DOS, Sega Genesis, Sega Game Gear, Mobile Phone, Virtual Console
Release date 1982
Genre(s) Maze/Retro/Puzzle
Mode(s) Up to 2 players, alternating turns
Input methods 4-way Joystick, 1 button
Cabinet Upright
Arcade system CPU: Z80
Display Raster graphics, standard resolution 224 x 288 (Vertical)

Pengo is an arcade game developed by Coreland and published by Sega in 1982. The player takes the role of Pengo, a red penguin, who resides in the Antarctic. The game takes place in an overhead maze made of ice blocks where Pengo fights the blob-like Sno-Bees who patrol the maze. The objective of the game is for the player to survive as long as possible by eliminating all the Sno-bees in each round.

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[edit] Gameplay

The player has a joystick and a single button. Pressing the button will cause Pengo to push the block in front of him forward. It will slide until it hits a wall or other ice block, crushing any Sno-bees in between. Crushing more than one Sno-bee with a single block will increase the score gained from the Sno-bee kills. There are a total of 16 levels, which will repeat starting round 17.

New Sno-bees appear from ice blocks, hatching from eggs. At the start of each level, the blocks which contain Sno-bee eggs are briefly flashed the color of the Sno-bees for that level. As Sno-bees are eliminated, new enemies will appear from those blocks which contain eggs. The eggs can be eliminated by crushing the ice block. This is the most efficient way of eliminating Sno-bees. If Pengo pushes a side wall, any Sno-Bees next to it will be stunned briefly. They can be killed (for 100 points) by walking over them when they are stunned. By eliminating all Sno-bees on a level, the player progresses to the next level.

Diamond blocks are unbreakable, and if they are aligned in a straight line the player will earn bonus points - 10,000 points if aligned without being against a wall, 5,000 points if aligned against a wall. They can be aligned either horizontally or vertically, and will cause most or all Sno-bees to be temporarily stunned.

After the round has been going on for 60 seconds without a death, the game enters into a sudden death mode; the music tempo and movement speed of the Sno-Bees increases. If a single Sno-bee is left on a level, a jingle will play and the Sno-bee will accelerate, attempting to reach a corner where it will fade away.

[edit] Intermissions

Similar to Pac-Man, there is a brief intermission after the bonus is awarded for any even-numbered round. The intermissions feature eight penguins performing various routines. In the first intermission the Pengos do a small marching routine. In the second intermission they "shake their booty". In the third intermission each penguin stops and salutes you. In the fourth, the penguins turn to face you and then do jumping jacks as they exit the screen. In the fifth intermission the source of the game's background music is revealed - it's Pengo himself, playing a mean piano. And in the sixth intermission, Pengo appears from behind the piano to play "peek-a-boo" with you. The seventh intermission repeats the first, and so on for as long as the game continues.

[edit] Scoring

The points for crushing Sno-Bees depend on how many are crushed in one push of an ice block:

  • 400 for 1 Sno-Bee
  • 1600 for 2 Sno-Bees
  • 3200 for 3 Sno-Bees
  • 6400 for 4 Sno-Bees

Walking over a stunned Sno-Bee awards 100 points.

10,000 points are awarded for aligning the three diamond blocks together if at least one is not touching a wall, but only 5,000 if all are against the walls.

Crushing an ice block will award 30 points if it's empty, or 500 if a Sno-Bee is inside it.

Once a level is completed, a bonus is awarded depending on how long it took:

  • 5000 points for under 20 seconds
  • 2000 points for between 20-29 seconds
  • 1000 points for between 30-39 seconds
  • 500 points for between 40-49 seconds
  • 10 points for between 50-59 seconds
  • 0 points for at least 1 minute

By default, Pengo begins with three lives and a bonus life is awarded at 30,000 points; these numbers can be changed (anywhere from 2 to 5 lives, and the bonus life can be awarded at 50,000 instead) via dip switch settings.

[edit] Ports and variations

Pengo received ports to several different consoles and home computers, including the Game Gear, Commodore 64, Atari 2600, and Atari 5200. There was also an enhanced remake for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis.

There are five known variations/bootlegs/hacks to the game: Penta, Popcorn, Pango, Pingo, Vector Pengo and Push-Push Penguin.

As with most early arcade games, there were numerous unofficial clones for home computers such as Pengi (for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron).

[edit] Trivia

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.
  • Pengo makes a cameo appearance in Up'n Down. If you manage to pass the first four rounds in under a minute each, Pengo will appear in the water of round five riding a surf-board.
  • The first version of the game used Popcorn as its theme music and took a few moments to draw the maze at the beginning of each level. The final version of the game drew the maze instantly and used its own distinctive theme music due to licensing issues.
  • There are only 16 levels in the arcade version and the game loops.
  • Into attract mode, push the two joys to up, press the two action buttons and one button of start game, and it will show the credits of the game. After a few seconds, the game will reset. The wait can be stopped pushing the start 1 button.
  • Capcom's 1991 game Don't Pull (part of Three Wonders) is a modern version of Pengo.
  • The game will always start with the same maze on power up. Once the game has gone through the attract mode, the maze will change.
  • In a bootleg version of Ms. Pac Man, the enemies Ghost Monsters are all replaced by different-coloured Pengos.

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