Platform:DS
ESRB: E- Everyone
Genre: Puzzle/Casual
Number of Players: 1
Publisher: Pop Cap Games
Release Date: 2-25-2009
Official Site

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Do you have what it takes to be a Peggle master? Find out as you navigate series of ball – bouncing challenges in Peggle Dual Shot for Nintendo DS. You’ll need luck and skill on your side to score your best as you bounce balls, perfect tricky shots, and engage with real masters in this action-packed family- friendly game.

Graphics:
The stages are colorfully illustrated with what seems like painted backgrounds. I had just figured out on a recent play through that the orientation of the pegs match the background. For example, if there is a tree in the background the pegs will be arranged in the shape of the outline of the tree. I thought that was really cool. Since the game relies on the pegs as the main part of the game that’s about as far as the graphics go.

Controls:
The controls are simple. (When do I not say that?) The stylus, directional buttons, or the shoulder buttons can be used to move the launcher left and right and pressing “A” will release the ball. You can also release the ball by releasing the stylus once you have aimed the ball. The only problem I had with the controls was that sometimes when I was trying to aim with the stylus I would end up pressing the shoulder buttons trying to grip the system. When if first did that I had no idea what was throwing off my aim. Once I found out that I was just holding the shoulder buttons I just decided to stay clear of holding the DS from the top.

Flow:
I played through the Dual Shot adventure mode and I’m about halfway though Peggle Nights and there’s not much of a difference in terms of gameplay style. There is just a story change. Dual Shot’s story is that we are learning to be a Peggle master in Nights we are learning what the Peggle masters do in their dreams. The masters are an entirely different story though. There are ten masters: Bjorn, Jimmy Lightning, Kat Tut, Splork, Claude, Renfield, Tula, Warren, Lord Cinderbottom, and Master Hu in that order, They have the most interesting names and they each have a power unique to them that you can access by hitting the green peg. There are only two in each level so it’s best to use them wisely and they levels are designed for you to use them. My current favorites are Bjorn’s superguide ability which makes aiming the ball a lot easier and Tula’s ability to light up the nearest orange pegs.

Anyway, to complete the adventure modes you have to play through each of the masters’ five stages using their powers for each one. The last five levels are a free-for-all where you can use any of the masters’ powers to get through the levels. Those last levels are the hardest because it’s hard to know which powerup to choose. Those things make the flow interesting.

Fun Factor:
At times this game can be annoying because the ball just sometimes seems to have a mind of its own and will never go where you want it. Also the levels are sometimes frustrating and hard to clear, but the game has a certain flare that makes you want to keep trying the game over and over to see what you could have done differently to win.

Female Aspect:
The game shows no bias to which gender it prefers to play it. Anyone regardless of the gender can play this game and the same experience can be achieved.

Replay Value:
If you are looking for a game that you can replay over and never get tired of playing, this is your game. The game includes two games in one: Peggle Dual Shot and Peggle Nights which further enhances the replay value. There are also quick play rounds, so there is no shortage of Peggle fun.

Vainya’s Comments:
Peggle always seemed like it was too hard for me. The DS version was at first no different. It started out hard and then I gradually started to get the hang of the game. I think the DS platform worked in the game’s favor. Peggle is made for the DS. The touch screen controls seemed to work almost flawlessly and provided a fun playing experience.