Now available on both Xbox LIVE Arcade and PlayStation Network, Eiconic and Valcon Games’ Polar Panic sees players enter the shoes of Polar to take on Mr. Big and the evil Globoco Inc. in an attempt to rescue their family. A Puzzle game in which both quick-thinking and logic are required to progress, Polar Panic is most definitely aimed at a family audience, and with a cheery aesthetic and a reasonable price, it certainly seems as though the team has devised an appealing title for that demographic.

            Polar Panic features two main gameplay modes – Story and Puzzle – each of which contain fifty individual levels. The overarching object of both modes is to reach the exit of each level, moving and breaking ice blocks and various other block types to overcome a variety of increasingly challenging obstacles. The Story mode is comparable to that of the single-player element of a Bomberman title, involving enemies to avoid or eliminate and hidden bonuses to uncover. The Puzzle mode demands more logical thought as to how the elements on each level can, or should, be used to open a path to the exit.

            Within the Story mode, players must face increasing amounts of enemies as they venture through levels against the clock. With three lives (and more available to collect within the levels) players must ensure they survive by pushing blocks into enemies, earning multipliers for eliminating more than one at a time, and collapsing igloos to remove the possibility of more spawning. When beginning, enemies will only be able to attack at very close range, but it’s not long before armed hunters start firing at you from a distance. Many clever techniques can be used by players to rack-up a large score – allowing enemies to eliminate one-another by dodging bullets, for example – and finding hidden bonuses is a pleasant distraction, but all of this must be kept in-check as players will always be governed by a strict time limit. Each level gets graded, and an average grade is accredited for the Chapter. Players can replay individual levels to improve their grading and find any hidden bonuses.

            The Puzzle Mode tasks the player with reaching the exit in as few moves and in as short a time as possible in logical puzzles using the rules established in the Story Mode. Fifty challenges are included, and though the first ten may well be fairly simplistic, they act as a nice primer for the brain-teasing that awaits in the later challenges. The Story mode is simplistic enough for younger gamers to grasp by themselves, but the brain-teasing in Puzzle Mode will undoubtedly call for a greater appreciation of the rules of the game and it’s varying block types. Like many of the best videogaming logic challenges, Polar Panic’s Puzzle Mode plays best with a room full of participants, each offering their own opinion as to the possible solution for the equation at hand. And that’s exactly what Puzzle Mode is: an equation with an answer that made elude you for some time, and yet seems simple once revealed.

            In addition to the Story and Puzzle modes is a Survival mode, in which enemies continually enter the level until Polar is no more. Survival mode can be played by up to four players and is a pleasant distraction, but fails to hold interest for as long as the two main gameplay modes.

            Polar Panic is a pleasant looking game. Polar is well animated and the explosions caused by dynamite blocks are dramatic in their cartoon-like effect, but the all-encompassing whiteness can often obscure many blocks or routes that are available. The sound effects are charming in their simplicity, and the soundtrack has clearly been influenced by artic escapades featured in animated movies.

            Polar Panic is a game designed for a family evening on the couch, and in that it remains entertaining throughout. The reasonable price and cheerful aesthetic are the icing on a cake made of some wholly enjoyable brain-taxing. Experienced gamers will most certainly draw parallels to IREM’s underappreciated Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) release, Kickle Cubicle, and younger gamers will appreciate the vast assortment of unlockable bonuses. Polar Panic presents a powerful argument for videogames’ ability to draw families together, but it remains a somewhat shallow experience when played alone.

-END-