Panic in the Park Review

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Panic in the Park

Review by MrLipidJuly 2003

Play It Again … For the First Time

Panic in the Park. Another adventure game that time forgot.  A Windows 3.1 game released in 1995 … the year computer users were in the throes of dumping 3.1 in favor of Redmond’s latest promise of stability. As word spread that Panic could not be completed on anything other than Windows 3.1, interest flagged and, as a Google search will reveal, very few reviews were written.

Thanks to a bit of prodding from PGI and flush from cracking the ridiculously simple save game file format of Milo, I took up the challenge of seeing what could be done with Panic.

I was given invaluable assistance in this enterprise by fellow reviewer Scout and his trusty Win3.1 partition. Thanks to his efforts, it was possible to come up with a workaround for the portion of Panic that makes it crash on anything other than Win 3.1.  You can read all about this workaround here.

Our Story So Far …

The premise of the game is a bit like a Harlequin romance. Can Jamie (Erika Eleniak), the beautiful heir to Skyview Park, keep her evil identical twin sister Janie (also Erika Eleniak … what are the odds?) from turning their father’s dream into a parking lot? Can you, as a dashing reporter, help Jamie find the deed that will establish her claim to Skyview? Will you be able to unmask the thief responsible for swiping and hiding the deed? And will you be able to do it all in just one night?

Our Stories So Far …

Like Psychic Detective or Mode, Panic is designed to be played more than once. Every new game brings a different thief, different clues and a different location for the all-important deed. The hype on the box claims that there are “more than 200 different outcomes” possible. Could be, though I suspect the enthusiasm of even the most enthusiastic players will begin to fade after seeing each of the nine suspects caught once.

Of course, a game that promises “more than 200 different outcomes” is not going to be able to build much of a case against any one suspect. And certainly not with only nine suspects and a half dozen hiding places for the deed. Players seeking to unmask a killer by a process of logical elimination might be happier with Clue.  That said, Panic offers three opportunities in each game for players to pick up substantial hints as to the identity of the thief.

What’s All This, Then?

Panic is a combination of FMV (1.6+ GB worth), Myst-style slide show, arcade games, a few twiddle puzzles and a logic puzzle.  As is standard in the FMV games of the period, players click from one slide to the next and are surprised now and then by a grainy .AVI file. The graphics, while dated, hold up quite well for a game published in 1995. And though the acting is frequently broad, especially among the concession operators, the performances are appropriate and specific given the material. Having spent hours playing Panic, I’ve yet to find myself tired of the title. I like the mood of the world of Panic, and that goes a long way.

Long Day at the Midway

Skyview Park is broken up into four concourses or midways, each sporting three arcade games and a resident guide. As the player moves from game to game, the concourse guides offer comments about the park’s non-game operator inhabitants. These inhabitants are also collectively known as suspects. An arcade victory may or may not prompt the game operator to share additional information on one or more of these potential thieves. There are also clues to be observed, though not picked up, as the player wanders each concourse.  Once all three of a concourse’s games have been won, the operator of the third game will present the player with a special coin for the Oracle Machine in the Gazebo. Drop in the coin and move on to the next concourse. And the next. And the next.

Once all four special coins have been won and deposited with the Oracle Machine, it is time for the nonarcade portion of Panic.  This takes the form of a couple modest sliders, a potentially game-ending pattern puzzle, various objects to locate, a collection of levers and switches to set, a potentially game-ending logic puzzle, a potentially game-ending word puzzle, the final hunt for the deed and a potentially game-ending name-the-thief puzzle. No question, the game has a lot of potential. Or at least a lot of potentially abrupt endings.

Easy Does It

While it might be tempting to fault developer Imagination Pilots Entertainment for making the end of the game a series of “game over” booby traps, a closer look reveals that IPE was, in fact, extremely generous with clues. Most answers are just a screen or two away. Some are actually onscreen simultaneously with the puzzle.  And, if one knows where to look, Panic will reveal the identity of the thief within the first few moments of each new game.

Slow at First, then Faster and Faster

A tremendous amount of effort was put into the production of Panic.  And it is well worth one’s time to savor all that effort the first time one wanders through each of the four concourses. The second or third time through, one can move much more quickly. The velocity that comes of completing each concession as rapidly as possible creates, if only briefly, the feeling of an evening at an amusement park that, while it has seen better days, is still worth a visit.

Technical Note: Panic runs flawlessly in Win3.1 and, with a bit of hex editing, flawlessly in Win95 and Win98. It does not run in XP. The End

The Verdict

The Lowdown

Developer: Imagination Pilots Entertainment Publisher: WarnerActive Release Date: 1995

Available for: Windows

Four Fat Chicks Links

Player FeedbackHex EditingWalkthrough

Screenshots

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System Requirements

486/33 MHz or better 100% IBM compatible system 8 MB RAM and 5 MB fixed disk space 640×480 SVGA monitor with 256 colors Windows 3.1 or Windows for Workgroups 3.11 MS-DOS 5.0 or higher and Microsoft CD-ROM extensions 16-bit sound card and speakers 2X CD-ROM drive

Where to Find It

CD Access $9.95

Prices/links current as of 06/26/03Links provided for informational purposes only.  FFC makes no warranty with regard to any transaction entered into by any party(ies).

      Copyright © Electric Eye Productions.  All rights reserved.  No reproduction in whole or in part without express written permission.

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14 Responses to Fear Factor

  • Fear Factor | Tap-Repeatedly.com | Reality Topics Blog

    […] nobody@flickr.com (graftedno1) wrote a very interesting post today.   Here’s a quick excerpt:My greatest fear is to be trapped alone in a confined space with a blind human, in total darkness. They have a heightened sense of smell and hearing, and. […]

  • Matt "Steerpike" Sakey

    Lewis, you made me think of the scariest moments I’ve experienced in gaming, and we’re very similar people.

    Bioshock had two moments – the dentist and the flooded room filled with mannequins.

    Thief had Return to the Cathedral, which was terrifying to me. Thief 3 had Shalebridge Cradle, which is so scary it ought to be fined.

    System Shock 2 kept me on the edge of my seat, but it was more lonely panic than true fear.

    Korsakovia was so scary that I uninstalled it.

    And STALKER. Oh, god, the haunted labs in STALKER. The latter two games don’t have scares like that. Few games do.

    It’s especially rare for a game to have more than mere “moments” – for a game to be scary from beginning to end, that’s a triumph.

    Wonderful article. As if Gregg’s review wasn’t enough to convince me that Penumbra is not something I have the courage to play!

  • DPenn

    I’m with you Lewis … I’m a bit of a puss. I just have a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of dread as entertainment.

    Still, I’m drawn to dark stories when they have something interesting to say, whether it’s a game like Thief or a film like, say, Gaspar Noe’s Irreversible. So I’ll push through, sometimes peering through my fingers.

    The trouble with games, though, is that if you look through your fingers, you’re probably just going to have to play through the scenario again. :~)

  • Mike "Scout" Gust

    I wanted to play this game. I downloaded the demo but the controls were just too wonky for me to get my head around. I liked the atmospheric vibe a lot. I think I’m a bit desensitized from an overdose of horror movies in my youth so I don’t so much get the dread thing from these games as a nice creepy vibration. If only the controls were better…

  • Lewis B

    @ Mike, what’s wrong with the controls bud? As someone who despises poor control schemes, Penumbra’s is just like any other FPS, except to examine things you right click on them.  To use things you left click.  I’m not sure that can be considered difficult 🙂

  • Gregg B

    @Steerpike: Yeah my greatest shit-scared moments were with those games too. A few spoilers below people, so beware.

    Bioshock – Haha, I remember the dentist. I didn’t really find the game that scary overall but the bit where you go into the wine cellar and notice a mannequin facing the wall and after upgrading your weapon it’s stood directly behind you motionless and quiet just for a moment before attacking you. I shat a brick. I also missed that bit originally until Lew told me about it.

    System Shock 2 – same as you really, more unremitting tension all the way through rather than specific terrifying moments. Oh actually, theres a bit where you call a lift and it breaks then you realise a service droid is coming to fix it… I do remember having sleep issues after my first encounter with the cyborg ninjas though.

    Thief: The Dark Project – The Sword and Return to the Cathedral and Down in the Bonehoard and well, loads of them. The Sword made me break out into goosebumps though because there was a bit where you could hear this creepy giggling which seemed like it was following me about then it suddenly changed to this horrible throaty noise. What made matters worse was that the EAX (bless you Creative) made my foot steps sound like somebody else was there with me. That level was incredible, a bit too incredible as it seems I missed great chunks of it because I was so eager to leave.

    Thief II: The Metal Age – Trail of Blood where you end up in that opening with those damn tree beasts. God the first time I saw one of those hurtling towards me I actually died shortly afterward. Do you remember that Mechanist child walking around on one of the levels? That was a little creepy.

    Then there’s Penumbra: Overture – quite a few bits but I’m not mentioning them here.

    Oh and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. – The brain scorcher lab just because it was so damn quiet. My imagination seriously got the better of me there. Those stuffed animals and heads I’d seen in various buildings led me to believe that those creatures were lurking somewhere in the Zone, specifically that lab.

    @Mike: My control setup was perfect after some tweaking (as well as the simple weapon swing fix). If you ever fancy giving it another go, give me a shout and I’ll let you know my setup.

  • Lewis B

    I’m not sure why guys, but one of my starting paragraphs had gone missing, even though I copied it straight from the original source, and It was fine earlier. 

    Incase you missed it due to some technical issue you might want to re-read just after “Well no she wouldn’t in truth, but in Penumbra: Overture you don’t want to move anyway.” at the very start for those who’ve already read the article. Apologies 🙂

  • Mike "Scout" Gust

    Lewis, it was the weapon swing. It had this terrible, unresponsive feel to it, like trying to hit through molasses. I couldn’t stand using it. I tried the .ini fix as mentioned in the review but it didn’t seem to help. Of course this was the demo…but that shouldn’t have made any difference. I might try the second game instead as I guess they did away with the weapons thing.

    I’m see your first paragraph just fine. It’s the dialogue, right?

  • jdeuel

    I like the argument that weapons can remove fear, but even loaded to the teeth with ammo in AVP’99 the Marine missions were frightful because the enemy was anywhere at any time.

    As for Penumbra Overture, if the controls are anything like the original Penumbra they need to hack in some Wii-Remote 3d controls. I did not like using my mouse for 3d movements.

  • Gregg B

    @Mike: I’ve read that many people avoided conflict altogether in Overture which incidentally is something forced upon you in Black Plague. As somebody who has been renovating a house over the last 6 months with no DIY experience I can safely say that swinging a hammer is significantly easier in real life than it is in Overture without the fix. The fix balanced that for me.

    I’d highly recommend completing the first Penumbra because it’s one big build up to Black Plague which spoils the ending to Overture in the intro. And it’s a great ending too. Just so you know!

  • Lewis B

    @ Steerpike, those moments you mention are all my worst too!!  Do you remember the Robot labs in SS2? Absolutely terrifying, waiting for robots to burst out on you! 🙁 oh and have you ever player Condemned?

    @ Mike, The use of weapons in Penumbra is different to say HL2, where the player is physically holding the weapon, as in Penumbra it floats slightly infront of you.  However, if you change the control method to normal weapon swing, it’s no different!  Speak to Greggi and he’ll tell you what to do 🙂

    @ jdeuel, AVP the original and its sequal were scary however what type of fear do you think it is? I don’t think it’s anything more than sheer tension.  Having a Smart Gun makes you feel incredibly powerful.  I can honestly say in Penumbra the fear is sheer unrivalled terror, where you actually have to force yourself to play on.  It genuinly is that scary! 🙂

  • Jason Dobry

    It’s so true, an arsenal of weapons and ammo rapidly deflates any sense of horror or uneasiness in any game for reasons you already mentioned. Sakey, I thought Bioshock was more “lonely panic,” while I was pretty much always terrified in System Shock 2. I really, really, REALLY did not want to enter The Many’s nursery, and my weapons were so unreliable and ammo so scarce that I never felt safe.

    Silent Hill was terrifying for the same reasons. Ammo was rare and I frequently had to rely on my pipe for self-defense.  Even when I had ammo, the game mechanics prevented my character from being anything other than marginal with any firearm.

    Fear had one moment for me: I was climbing up a ladder, and as I reached the upper platform, my guy briefly looked down as he climbed off. As my perspective looked up again, that Ring-esque little girl was RIGHT THERE, reaching for me. I screamed and she was gone.

    What else…the original Aliens vs. Predator sent me into a locker room and I could only hear the facehuggers scurrying about somewhere within. I had to go in there. I advanced about three steps before the damn thing screamed and filled up my screen with its repulsive underside as it implanted me with its spawn. My roommate made fun of me for weeks for screaming like a girl child.

    Korsakovia–meh.  I was too annoyed and frustrated by the box rearrangement/jumping puzzles to be scared. I uninstalled it after an hour of play, I think. Maybe the scary parts were later, but I doubt it.

    As for Penumbra, I did play through about half of it before other games distracted me. I remember unease and creepiness, but no sweaty fear. I think I’m to blame here, or, more precisely, my daughter, who was still an infant at the time and generally allowed me only to play during the day for 45 minutes at a time. I was denied total immersion and the fear effect suffered. Maybe I should give it another go after I finish Call of Pripyat since she sleeps through the night now. With any luck, Penumbra will keep me from doing the same.

  • Gregg B

    I played the demo of F.E.A.R. but that ladder scare is the only bit I remember. Christ, that made me jump. I’m not too good with cat scares.

    Also I felt exactly the same about Korsakovia. It was creepy at first but then it began to irritate me far too much and it just soured the experience. I stopped playing as a result. Not to mention, when I realised I could bash those smoke-things with my crowbar they didn’t bother me nearly as much.

  • Online Up

    Great article. I look forward to reading more in the future.

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