Pangolin Review

Before this game, I had never heard the word, "pangolin." I had no idea what it meant and just thought it was some clever name that a developer came with. I was surprised to find out that a pangolin is actually a small, scaly anteater that is found primarily in Africa and Asia. Not only is it a real creature, it is also the main character in this game. Instead of being rough and scaly, though, the pangolin in the game is as lovable as any cartoon character and curls up to bounce around in this challenging physics-based puzzler.

There are many physics-based puzzle games floating around in the App Store and most of them utilize simple, one-touch controls. Pangolin is a little different and amps up the difficulty by requiring that players get two fingers involved. The object of the game is similar to golf. Players are set out on a course and must reach a target within a certain number of shots. Instead of whacking a white ball around, players bounce a curled up pangolin towards a red and white target. To bounce the pangolin around, players will need to create a platform by touching two fingers on the screen. The further apart player’s fingers are will determine how high the pangolin will bounce off the platform. Each time players create a platform counts as one shot and each course has a limit of shots that can be used. The physics will definitely take some getting used to. The platforms need to be positioned carefully and at the right angles in order to bounce the big-eyed pangolin in the direction he needs to go.

As if the physics themselves aren’t difficult enough to master, the game throws in different obstacles to avoid before reaching the target. There are also coins and diamonds strewn about that can be collected to increase player’s scores. I’ll admit that this game is pretty challenging and it’s difficult to gather all the coins and diamonds in even the beginning levels. Its difficulty level is sure to add to the amount of time that players can spend playing and collecting all the items.

I’ve been really impressed by Pangolin. The artwork is great and the gameplay and controls are different enough to set the game apart from other games in the genre. The first ten levels are free but the game does require an in-app purchase of $0.99 to unlock the next 40 levels. Pangolin is well worth the free download to play through the first ten courses to really get a feel for what this little creature is all about.