Pandemonium features eleven levels split into three regions each. After completing each section players are treated to a score screen and an auto save point. This works well for portable gameplay as there is never much time before another save point.
Pandemonium follows the story of Nikki, Fargus and Sid who aren’t your everyday heroes, in fact they are far from it. After unleashing a beast upon the town that they live in, the trio must now go and find a wishing well to save the town. The storyline isn’t that great but in this instance, it hardly matters. Pandemonium is basically a game of going from point A to point B as fast as possible. The game times how long it takes the player to complete the level and reports back at the end of the level. As you'd expect, the faster your times are the better.
Players can play through the game as either Nikki or Fargus (the latter also includes Sid). As they aren’t exactly heroes, the two (or three if you include Sid) characters are restricted to jumping. Similar to Mario, players must jump on the enemies to kill them. The game is really straight forward and easy to play and the 5 button on the N-Gage is basically the only button used.
Nicely, the game also features N-Gage exclusive Bluetooth compatibility and N-Gage Arena play. The multiplayer service is a race through one level and players are able to compete against each other’s times on N-Gage Arena. If you manage to find another player with an N-Gage then a multiplayer game can be played through Bluetooth. A broader range of levels would have been appreciated but beggars can’t be choosers.
As mentioned above, Pandemonium is a point A to point B game. There are sometimes multiple paths and secrets to unlock but overall most of the game feels restrictive and linear. Sometimes players can bounce off enemies to string a combo and reach the end of a section. If players want though they can casually go through a level collecting every jewel, and it's good being able to have a choice at what pace to take the game.
Pandemonium hasn’t been ported to the N-Gage perfectly though. In high intensive parts of the game your character will move noticeably slower than normal. Loading is also a bit of an issue here also - we knew N-Gage games loaded but Pandemonium loads when it opens a level and when starting up, meaning loading can take around five to six seconds, hardly good enough for a portable title.
The graphics are good inPandemonium and the “3D” environments come off looking okay. Some details have been eliminated from the N-Gage version but overall not many sacrifices were made. The characters are distinguishable and the environments are varied, ranging from a desert to a saw mill.
One severe omission from Pandemonium for the N-Gage is the soundtrack. Gamer’s have lost a decent soundtrack and the substitute is hardly sufficient, with players now treated to a narrow spectrum of noises, almost all of which prove annoying. These range from a 'jump' noise to an 'enemy' noise, and little else besides. The sound is flat and almost non-existent - in short, we seriously advise turning it off for your sanity. We don’t know why the soundtrack has been sacrified, but we do know it almost certainly should have been kept in.
Unfortunately the levels in Pandemonium are similarly limited: they're relatively short and don’t take long to complete, especially if the player decides to go through them in the fastest possible way, neglecting to explore to any extent. There isn’t too much variation between using either character and it's essentially the same game whether you play as Nikki or Fargus. The multiplayer aspect is good, but the inclusion of only one level leaves something to be desired. The multiplayer will not keep the player entertained for long.
Pandemonium for the N-Gage is a great achievement. It runs well, generally looks good and plays well. Unfortunately, it's hampered by an average frame-rate at times, poor lastability, and linear game play. Crystal Dynamics could have added in extra N-Gage levels or improved the Bluetooth multiplayer, but unfortunately this is a disappointingly straightforward port of an eight year old title that wasn’t that great in the first place. It's worth a look if you’re a fan of platformers and don’t set your expectations too highly. Otherwise, steer clear.
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