This release from US Gold in 1988 for the good old ZX Spectrum was a fine blend of humour and arcade action.
It was met with generally positive reviews back in the day and was always worth a chuckle.
The title was so unusual it is a classic game that is well remembered by many. It is also a game that was worked on by talented developer Peter Gough who we were lucky enough to talk to a while back.
Anyway, this is the next of our Funny Games to be looked at on our favourite ever 8-bit machine.
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| Great Loading Screen, Great Title |
So, let's have a butchers once again!
After a brief introductory sequence showing the other porky contestants the playing area is revealed and your pig enters the gaming area from the left.
Displayed on screen are your porky opponents and a bunch of bombs with numbers on them. The referee blows his whistle and the game begins.
Moving at speed your opponents run about the screen, pick up bombs before ejecting their explosive payloads; usually in your direction.
You have to do much the same thing; the object being to turn them into BBQ'd pork while dodging about and saving your own bacon. Ahem.
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| Squeel Like A Piggy Boy! |
Once the game is underway the action is frenetic. The bombs bounce around the screen nicely and take out plenty of meat in a localised blast.
If any of them come to rest then the numbering system becomes all important.
Seconds tick away visually, until at three seconds the bomb begins to flash. Now would be a good time to step away from the flasher...
As you progress through the game it becomes more difficult; the initial countdown number on the bombs is reduced, some of the bombs start a count down without even being picked up and the other players become harder to kill. Some will need multiple hits before you can stick them between two slices of bread.
Occasionally a deceased opponent will leave a power-up icon behind. These will give you extra powers such as: throw further, blast protection suit, wider explosion field and a nice speed boost. Between levels there is a sub-game to give you a chance to increase your score.
The mini-game lasts for about one minute. Pigs will pop their heads up out of holes in the ground (in a whack-a-mole stylee). What you have to do is run around planting kisses on their gobs (yuk) before they disappear again.
The more sloppies you deliver, the more points you get; and what do points make? Well, a higher final score I suppose.
The graphics are animated nicely and as far as sound goes it is spot effects on 48K version, but on a 128K machine there is a snappy continuous tune.
For more laughs try the two-player option, the best link-up you'll have in a while :-)
Classic Arcade Action:
Funny Games
