Play Pang online

On UsuArcade, Pang plays as online two-player co-op: you on your phone or PC, your friend on theirs, in the same game and in real time. Pang was one of those cabinets that hooked everyone, from kids on the way home from school to parents killing time. The idea couldn't be simpler: pop the balloons before they flatten you. The catch is that every big balloon splits into two smaller ones, and those split again.

History

Pang came out in 1989, developed by Mitchell. Japan knew it as Pomping World and American players knew it as Buster Bros., while Europe kept the name Pang.

Its mix of action and puzzle, set against famous landmarks from around the world, made it one of the most-loved cabinets of the early 90s and led to several sequels.

How to play

You move left and right along the bottom of the screen and fire a harpoon straight up. Hit a balloon and it splits into two smaller ones that bounce at different heights, until the tiniest ones vanish. Touch a balloon and you lose a life.

Stages have ladders, platforms and breakable blocks, plus power-ups: double harpoon, a harpoon that sticks to the ceiling, a gun, a shield, a clock that freezes the balloons and dynamite that shatters them all at once. Each screen is a little puzzle: picking which balloon to pop first is half the battle.

Fun facts

• The journey takes you past backdrops from different countries, each with its own painted scene.
• In the U.S. it was released as Buster Bros.
• Two players can play at once, splitting the balloons or stealing each other's power-ups.

In the arcade

Just like the arcade, only from your own couch: sit down at the Pang cabinet, invite your friend once they're in the lobby and pop the balloons as a team. Nothing to install: it runs in your browser on phone or PC, gamepad supported, and every game starts with INSERT COIN, free.

Your friend can even jump in after you've already started. Anyone else in the lobby can drop in as a spectator and watch live while chatting, and your scores go up on the arcade's high score board.

FAQ