Review by Jon Donnis
Pit Panic is built around one simple idea, keep moving upwards. The problem is that almost everything in the ancient temple is designed to stop you. Traps, enemies, environmental hazards and awkward routes are all competing for your attention, while the collapsing surroundings leave little room for hesitation. It creates a fast platforming experience where good movement matters as much as knowing what to do.
The controls are one of the game's strongest features. Movement is responsive, which makes the fast pace much easier to handle, and there is a satisfying sense of momentum to getting around the levels. Once you become familiar with the movement, the game gives you plenty of opportunities to use it properly, particularly when negotiating hazards or trying to maintain a good run.
The hook adds considerably more depth than a standard grappling tool. It can dig through blocks, swing you around the environment and reveal hidden treasures, making it useful for both movement and exploration. More importantly, it becomes part of the game's environmental puzzles rather than simply being another movement mechanic.
Those puzzles provide some of the more inventive moments. Objects and materials can be manipulated in unusual ways, including turning sand into glass and jelly into fire. Bridges can even become weapons when the situation calls for it. These ideas give the levels a playful quality and encourage you to look at the environment rather than simply searching for the next platform.
There is also a good balance between straightforward platforming and experimentation. You can often see where you need to go, but working out how to get there is another matter. The physics-driven movement means that positioning, timing and momentum all matter, which gives the platforming more substance than simply jumping from one fixed platform to another.
The level design benefits from the game's variety. Four distinct biomes provide different visual styles, enemies and puzzles, helping to prevent the experience from feeling visually monotonous. The cartoon presentation works particularly well with the game's humorous tone, giving Pit Panic a light personality despite the considerable number of ways it can kill you.
The risk and reward mechanics are another worthwhile addition. Sacrificing health to obtain power-ups can be useful, but it also creates decisions that have consequences later in a run. It is a simple system, but it fits the game's emphasis on quick decisions and gives you another reason to think about whether taking a particular opportunity is worth the cost.
Pit Panic is also easy to understand. The objective is obvious, the controls are approachable and the basic mechanics can be learned quickly. The difficulty comes from putting those mechanics together effectively. Knowing how the hook works is one thing. Using it while moving quickly through a dangerous section is another.
That difficulty will be a sticking point for some players. Death is frequent, and mistakes can set a run back considerably. Certain precision sections leave little room for error, while some situations require trial and error before you understand the correct approach. For players who enjoy demanding platformers, that is likely to be part of the appeal. For more casual players, it could become frustrating quite quickly.
The game's challenge also means that progress can feel inconsistent. You can have a strong run going and then lose it because of one poorly timed movement. That makes successful attempts satisfying, but it can also interrupt the momentum that the game's otherwise excellent movement creates.
There is a similar issue with repetition. Pit Panic offers a large amount of content, including more than 1,000 handcrafted levels, daily challenges and player-created levels. That gives the game plenty of material to work through, but the fundamental objective remains the same throughout. You are still trying to climb, avoid hazards, solve environmental problems and improve your performance.
The daily challenges are particularly useful because they provide a reason to return without requiring another full commitment to the main experience. Competing for better times adds another layer for players who enjoy chasing their own scores or comparing their performance with others.
The question is whether that is enough to provide long-term appeal. For me, Pit Panic works particularly well as a game to play in shorter bursts. There is enough variety and challenge to make individual sessions enjoyable, but I am less convinced that I would want to spend huge amounts of time playing it continuously.
That does not take away from what the game does well. The movement feels good, the hook gives the platforming its own identity, the environmental puzzles are entertaining and the different biomes provide welcome variety. The difficulty is also more rewarding when you start understanding the mechanics and making fewer mistakes.
There are certainly moments when Pit Panic becomes a rage game. A difficult section can demand several attempts, and losing progress because of a single mistake can be irritating. But the game does give you the tools to improve, and the challenge generally feels connected to mastering those tools rather than simply making the game difficult for its own sake.
Pit Panic is therefore a solid and enjoyable platformer with a clear mechanical identity. It does not completely avoid the problems associated with its genre, particularly repetition and frustration, but its responsive controls, satisfying movement and environmental puzzles give it enough character to stand apart.
I like Pit Panic, although I am not convinced it has the long-term pull to become a game I would continually return to. For players who enjoy challenging platformers and do not mind repeated failure while learning a level, there is plenty here to enjoy. Those looking for something more relaxed may find the difficulty considerably less appealing.
Pit Panic scores 7.5 out of 10.
Out Now on PS5
