Land-a Panda

Notoriously picky about choosing a mate, the cute and cuddly panda bear is an endangered species which has seen its natural habitat ravaged by mankind and relies largely on conservation schemes to survive.

With that in mind, the quest of reuniting Yang Gyang – the lead character in Land-a Panda – with his true love Tian Tian is a noble undertaking indeed.

The fact that this act of union is achieved by firing our furry hero out of a wide range of different cannons might raise eyebrows, but it’s through this bizarre delivery method that Land-a Panda derives its addictive and appealing properties.

The two lead characters – which are named after a real-life panda couple heading to Edinburgh Zoo in the not-too-distance future – are separated by a selection of increasingly fiendish obstacles.

Metal blocks impede Yang Gyang’s aerial progress, while spiked surfaces cause him to explode in a shower of fluff and gore than would be enough to give your average WWF member a heart attack.

To make matters worse, not all of these deadly threats are stationary – on later levels you encounter spooky ghosts and peckish birds that also have a disastrous effect on Yang Gyang’s wellbeing should he come into contact with them.

Yang Gyang’s sole mode of transportation around these levels is cannon. Some are stationary, others move in predetermined patterns. Some have a fixed aim while later examples allow you to adjust the trajectory manually. There are even cannons that allow you to teleport your panda avatar around the level.

The variety is impressive, and thankfully Land-a Panda is careful to drip-feed the new cannon over the course of the first few levels. There are four worlds, each sub-divided into twenty levels, and by the time you progress to the second world you’re presented with some seriously demanding puzzles.

Not only do you need to get your angles right, but some stages require you to exercise expert timing in order to successfully negotiate moving obstacles. However, just getting to the end of the stage is only half the battle - there are three coins on each level, which you have to collect tachieve a perfect score.

When you consider the size of the game and the fact that it comes with OpenFeint and Game Center support, its long-term appeal is vast. Getting three coins on every level is a challenge that will test even the most adept gamer.

The biggest issue with Land-a Panda is the way in which you fire the cannons. To jettison Yang Gyang into the air, you tap the cannon with a finger. Those that allow you to aim are controlled by two rotational buttons that appear at the bottom of the screen.

Although the system works well on early levels, it’s a little imprecise on the more difficult stages. When you’re attempting to fire a moving cannon, it’s all too easy to stab out with a finger and miss completely. It would have been better to have a virtual 'launch' button on the screen.

Despite this minor grumble, Land-a Panda provides hours of top-notch puzzle play, not to mention heartwarming 2D artwork. Repeatedly uniting Yang Gyang and Tian Tian through the 80-odd stages of Land-a Panda might not have any real effect on the global population of the species, but it’s unquestionably great fun regardless.