Having experienced Cosy Computer’s new game Pizza Possumearlier this year,I was hopeful that it would wind up being a modern arcade delicacy, as mentioned in the headline. Everything was there, from the old-school premise to the simple gameplay, complete with a few modern flourishes. All it had to do afterwards was just flesh things out a bit and it would succeed in replicating some old-school thrills. Plus, how can you say no to a game where you help a little critter like this scarf down pizza? The finished game is finally here, and it’s time to see if this is ultimately worth chowing down on…
The story of Pizza Possum is that you are a possum in a quaint little seaside Italian village, and you have a dream of eating the giant pizza belonging to the village’s dog leader, Bella Chonki. Granted, our little possum friend will be eating at least a good twenty or so pizzas on the way up to Bella’s pizza (among other food), so you think they’d be satisfied, but hey, it’s a classic arcade game, plot is sort of secondary here. To get to Bella, you’ll have to scarf down food along the way in order to earn keys, which unlock more parts of the village, being patrolled by numerous guard dogs.
And that actually sums up the gameplay as well, since the only major commands are “move around” and “use item.” Beyond that, there’s a stealth twist to things as you try and maneuver around the guards, minimizing the amount of time you’re in their sights before their Metal Gear Solid-style exclamation mark fills up and them you have to outrun them in a chase, or just hide in the occasional bushes and wait for them to pass. You also get an arsenal of items to use, unlocked after each run based on your score. These get useful and creative, ranging from drinks that help you speed up to dog disguises that help you get around better, which are all fun to use.
There’s also the massive amount of food to eat as well, which includes pizza, fruits, fish and more, plus hidden zeppoles or the the occasional large dish like a massive tiramisu or caprese salad. Eating food is as simple as walking up to it and automatically chowing down (or standing in the vicinity of larger dishes and whittling them down, creating a nice risk as they can leave you open to get spotted), though too much food in a short amount of time fattens our possum buddy up and briefly slows you down. Again, that’s pretty much it. It’s simple, controls well, and being able to move around smoothly and basically vacuum up snacks is incredibly enjoyable.
It also helps that the game makes great use up its setting, with a lot of different regions to unlock and visit on your way up to the massive pizza, allowing for multiple paths as well, which is always welcome. The layouts in each region are well-designed, each with their own unique sights like vineyards and beaches, well-presented in the cute, cartoonish style. The world essentially being a vertical hill is also unique, allowing for a lot of neat escapes as you leap off of rooftops. There are also a lot of caves to hunt for, which act as your checkpoints in case you get caught. Everything in Pizza Possum was shaping up to be a charming, casual arcade classic.
After just under an hour, I was finally able to wolf down Bella Chonki’s pizza, thanks to the help of a hefty supply of smoke bombs were collected along the way after being unlocked. Upon this, I turned to the game and said “Well, that was fun! Now what do you have next for me?” To which Pizza Possum replies “Uhhh…okay, why don’t you try doing it two more times, but without get caught this time around?” That was the point the game had let me down. Yes, this is basically a small, budget arcade game, but the use of the Ghosts ‘n Goblins trick of having to beat the game multiple times in a row on a higher difficulty to truly beat the game felt like a bit of a groaner, and with only one map and no rearranged placement of items or anything – just more, tougher guards – it couldn’t help but feel like covering for a lack of content.
These second and third runs at least give the player a new crown power-up to use, which can temporarily scare enemies, but this brings us to Pizza Possum’s other notable problem, that being how it handles power-ups. As you can’t carry multiple items at once, with only certain power-ups like the espresso providing permanent boosts, once you pick up one item, the current one you’re carrying gets discarded. Fair enough, as having too many items at once would make things a cakewalk. But discarded items remain on the ground permanently until you get caught, which clutters things up and makes things difficult, especially as power-ups collected from boxes are random, and it can be tricky to grab any discarded goods you may have wanted instead. Then there’s a the issue of when this happens in more cramped spaces, especially towards the end, resulting in scenarios where you’re evading several guards but find your smoke bombs suddenly replaced by the relatively useless roadblocks.
In the end, Pizza Possum is a fun little arcade game, but even with a co-op mode and several unlockable items to try, it couldn’t help but feel like there just wasn’t enough meat here, as though even a couple of extra levels could have greatly helped. It’s still fun while it lasts, but the experience will still leave you hungry for more in the end.
Closing Comments:
Pizza Possum delivers a clever twist on classic arcade gameplay with its simple and fun stealth-based gameplay, and it has a ton of charm in its colorful visuals and appealing take on an Italian landscape. But a lack of content and awkward handling of power-ups provide a sour taste, though there’s still enough here that you should at least consider sampling a bite of it. If it’s good enough for our possum buddy, after all…
