Well, thereís brilliance, for starters.
That seems to be a primary component.
Thereís a substantial amount of simplicity, too.
Beyond that, Iím not sure what else PopCap puts in their games, but clearly, itís habit-forming...and
therefore, Iím suspicious.
This stuff is like 19th century Coca-Cola.
From games like Bejeweled and Zuma to Plants vs. Zombies and Peggle, PopCap makes it really
hard to put down their products.
Speaking of which, Iím supposed to review this, but I, uh...
I donít know, leave me alone.
Iímócanít you see?
Iím very busy.
Ah, thatís the stuff!
The series arrives on the Nintendo DS in Peggle: Dual Shot, a compilation package that includes
the original Peggle, Peggle Nights and ten all-new levels from Q Entertainment, the studio
responsible for this cartridge.
Oh, and theyíve also developed games like Lumines and Meteos, and so...you know, combining
their powers with PopCap is like, single-handedly destroying human productivity.
Run for your lives, Undertoads!
Do not buy this game!
Actually, do the exact opposite.
This game is great.
If youíve never played Peggle, itís basically a mixture of pinball and pachinko.
Each level has a number of pegs, some blue and some orange, and a little cannon.
You use that cannon to fire little pinballs that bounce from and destroy the pegs.
Your objective, then, is to clear all the orange pegs before running out of pinballs.
Itís simple enough, but the catch is youíre only in control of the cannonís aim.
Once youíve fired a pinball, gravity takes over and control of the pinball falls entirely
in the hands of physics.
This means you really have to be smart about your aim.
And to be honest, it helps to get lucky, too.
In fact, much of Peggleóand your successóis a matter of chance.
Obviously, this strikes some as a flaw, but a bit of luck doesnít necessarily exclude
a fair challenge in Peggle.
Things like being smart about your aim and playing the right angles are much larger factors
to having success in this game than just crossing your fingers.
Of course, Peggle certainly tempts you with distractions.
Purple bonus pegs beg for your attention and reward it with serious points, and if you
can break five purple pegs during one level, you end up in a bonus level packed with shiny
gems.
Of course, the trade off to all this is that youíre shooting at purple pegs instead of
focusing on the orange ones...and when you have limited pinballs, thatís a risky proposition.
Unless youíre good.
Hence the skill that complements the luck in Peggle.
Peggle: Dual Shot is played entirely with the stylus.
You aim by touching the cannon and rotating it, and once youíre ready to unleash the
fury, you just tap it.
So it controls great with the stylus.
Now, like PopCapís DS version of Plants vs. Zombies, there is a slight drop in presentational
value on Nintendoís system, but otherwise, it makes the transition to the DS very nicely.
It may be in new packaging, but Peggle: Dual Shot is the original formula.
Peggle doesnít look like much.
In fact, it looks like something you could play at a carnival for pocket change.
But after youíve played for an hour straight, you realize thereís something special about
Peggle, and its as potent as ever in Dual Shot.