PONG Quest Review for Steam

PONG Quest was developed by Chequered Ink Ltd. and published by Atari Inc. onto the Steam platform in April of this year. It is described on the Steam platform as a “new take on the seminal arcade smash” and a “uniquely PONG-themed dungeon-crawling RPG.” The game can be played in multiple ways, with a multiplayer mode, an adventure mode, and online competition mode. By combining classic ping pong gaming with aspects of contemporary gaming and a simple (but effective) story, this game becomes the perfect kind of game to play while bored during quarantine.

PONG Quest starts off by allowing you to customize your paddle into a character. The designs for character customization do not include much, but it is a paddle so I did not expect much. You also have the chance to win yourself new items if you want to spruce up your character’s look even more. I found the way that the paddles look cute, and the addition of faces was a small change from the classic version of the game that I very much adored. Because the Quest Mode features a story, there are multiple characters, dialogue, and different settings in the game. The characters are fun to look at and have some comical dialogue. As for the game graphics, the producers maintained the old school look of the game, in contrast to the modern features added to the game play.

In the important ways, PONG Quest operates just as you would expect classic computer ping pong to function. However, the creators increase the challenge and fun of the game by adding items that can assist your abilities in the game or make things harder for you. Players can collect and use different kinds of balls in the game, ranging from the self-explanatory curve balls to whirlpool balls, which make a whirlpool on the court that swallows and shoots the ball out sporadically.

You also have a health bar (which sadly depletes every time you play but can be upgraded) and other helpful tools, like an enemy detector. The combination of regular virtual ping pong game play with limited health and special balls that you have to press keys and multitask to apply makes the game slightly more difficult than one would assume, which in return makes it more interesting as well. As for difficulty, the game starts off going pretty easy on you by giving you a significantly higher amount of health when you start off, but the fact that you have to fight multiple battles without health replenishing in between can make it more difficult than it should be, depending on your stealth skills.

While PONG Quest is meant to be somewhat of an adventure game, there isn’t much going on in terms of the story or the world design, so if you are not into the modernized ping pong game play this probably is not the game for you. You are in a kingdom and the king is looking for a knight that can help him regain control of his kingdom. He asks you to help him find four orbs to open the door that apparently leads to the source of his problem. You retrieve these orbs by clearing areas. These areas are basically designed as hide-and-seek mini-games where, if you are caught by another paddle, you have to battle them. You continue to stealthily move through areas trying to keep your battles to a minimum so that you can maintain enough health to progress.

The lack of content or things to do outside of the battles means that the game can get old pretty quickly if you are not getting full enjoyment out of the battles. Luckily, this is only in the case in quest mode. You still have the opportunity to play local multiplayer mode with family and there is an online mode to meet and play with friends. Its simplicity makes it easy to have others join you, so it is a great way to pass the time while quarantined.

8/10

Check Out the PONG Quest Trailer:

PONG Quest is available on Windows PC via Steam.

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.