is a

maze A maze is a path or collection of paths, typically from an entrance to a goal. The word is used to refer both to branching tour puzzles through which the solver must find a route, and to simpler non-branching ("unicursal") patterns that lea ...

arcade game An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade v ...

that was released by

Namco was a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Na ...

in 1994 in Japan. It features many of the characters from the company's earlier games (including: the ''

Galaxian is a 1979 fixed shooter arcade video game developed and published by Namco. The player assumes control of the Galaxip starfighter in its mission to protect Earth from waves of aliens. Gameplay involves destroying each formation of aliens, who ...

'' flagship,

Pac-Man originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...

, the ''

Rally-X is a maze chase arcade video game developed Namco and released in 1980. Players drive a blue Formula One race car through a multidirectional scrolling maze to collect yellow flags. Boulders block some paths and must be avoided. Red enemy cars ...

'' Special Flag, the Solvalou from ''

Xevious is a vertically scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Namco for arcades in 1982. It was released in Japan and Europe by Namco and in North America by Atari, Inc. Controlling the Solvalou starship, the player attacks Xevious for ...

'', Mappy from his self-titled game and several others besides, many of whom only initially appeared in the game they were created for).

Gameplay

Pitt (and Patti) must walk around the

s, collecting items and avoiding enemies (which include the Heitai from ''Toy Pop'' along with the Pookas and Fygars from ''

Dig Dug is a maze game, maze arcade game developed by Namco in 1981 and released in 1982, distributed in North America by Atari, Inc. The player controls Dig Dug to defeat all enemies per stage, by either inflating them to bursting or crushing them unde ...

''); however, they have the power to drop their Tinker Balls, which are both invulnerable to the enemies, and move around by pressing the Line button, therefore creating a line between them and their

ball A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but can sometimes be ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used f ...

s. Releasing the button makes their balls come back to them; the enemies are killed by having the balls slam into them. There are also pieces of

popcorn Popcorn (also called popped corn, popcorns or pop-corn) is a variety of corn kernel which expands and puffs up when heated; the same names also refer to the foodstuff produced by the expansion. A popcorn kernel's strong hull contains the se ...

which can be picked up around the mazes - and pressing the Popcorn button, Pitt and Patti can throw them at the enemies, and they shall bounce off the walls until they hit one (or evaporate if they have not done so by the end of the stage). Killing all enemies in a maze advances the player to the next stage; however, in the event of one enemy remaining, he will make for the nearest corner of the maze, say "Bye-bye!", and disappear (which shall detract from the "Pursuit Bonus" that the players will receive after they defeat Mao at the end of the game).

Reception

In Japan, ''Game Machine'' listed ''Tinkle Pit'' on their April 15, 1994 issue as being the twenty-first most-popular arcade game at the time. Scott Alan Marriot of ''Classic Gamer'' in 2004 believed ''Tinkle Pit'' carried the same kind of simplicity present in games like ''

'' (1980) and ''

'' (1982). In 2015, ''

Retro Gamer ''Retro Gamer'' is a British magazine, published worldwide, covering retro video games. It was the first commercial magazine to be devoted entirely to the subject. Launched in January 2004 as a quarterly publication, ''Retro Gamer'' soon became ...

'' found the game to be strange yet charming, liking its level variety and simplistic mechanics. They blamed the genre's severe decline in popularity and its confinement to Japan as the reasons for its obscurity, and said that it would appeal to Namco fans for its amount of references and cameos to their other properties. ''Retro Gamer'' also viewed it as a good example of the transitioning video and arcade game scene of the decade, writing: "If you ever need reminding that the arcade market of the early Nineties was a weird, transitional scene, ''Tinkle Pit'' should serve well."

Notes

References

External links

* {{navboxes, list1= {{Dig Dug/Mr. Driller series {{Galaxian {{Mappy series {{Pac-Man {{Xevious 1993 video games Arcade video games Arcade-only video games Crossover video games Japan-exclusive video games Maze games Namco arcade games Video games developed in Japan