Everyone knows it’s notoriously difficult to get Pandas to mate, so what shall we do to help them? Shoot them out of cannons of course.
Every level starts with you playing the part of Yang Guang – a cute Giant Panda trying to reunite with Tian Tian (his lady Panda who is situated at the end goal of each mid-air puzzle board). If you fail to reach the end you’re subjected to a little shot of Tian Tian’s heart actually breaking in two!
To reach the end of each level you simply have to suffer being shot out of various cannons until you inevitably bump into your wife. This all starts off easily enough, with level completion being just a few taps away, but as you progress through the game each new world introduces more obstacles and puzzle elements into the mix, soon making this a much more skilful game then you expected.
With the introduction of spinning cannons, hovering ghosts, spikes, lasers and even teleports; Land-A Panda seems to change from a ‘timed jump’ game to a more puzzling adventure where you have to plan out your jumps and positions for the whole level. This results in a lot of replays which also gives you a chance to have another go at collecting the 3 coins that are placed around each level for that elusive ‘perfect score’.
Pros: Adorable characters, fantastic Japanese-style animation and addictive game play.
Cons: There are no check points throughout the levels, this can cause some frustration when you accidentally shoot off into the abyss just past your Lady Panda’s head and have to start right back at the beginning again.
Big Pixel Studios have done a great job of creating a cute and fun game with just the right amount of puzzle, strategy and variety.
