Here we are again, playing a virtual reality version of the classic Ping-Pong game. This time, it is a futuristic version of the game styled off Tron and updated with some extra flair. While I definitely have some gripes to get through with King Pong, I’ll hand it to the developers over at Iconik for aiming to create an interestingly new version of the game. The problem is, they may have overdone it with the creative freedom on this.

Gameplay

Just like any game of ping-pong, the goal is to hit the ball to the other side of the table and get past your opponent. However, in this game, it is literally impossible to hit the other side of the table and you don’t need to aim at all when you hit the ball with the paddle. Simply touching the ball will send it over to the other side.

Hitting the ball harder and softer does change where the ball will hit on the opponent’s side of the table at least. This is good to know because of the power hits that can be accessed when you hit enough spots on the table. There are a total of 16 spots on your opponent’s side of the table to hit and by lighting up a row, you will be given a power-up to use.

Power-ups can be a variety of things, from teleportation, bright ball, dark ball, power shot, and more. If you manage to get all 16 spots lit up, you will get a super power-up that once used will reset the spots to be lit up once again. The power-ups and supers that you have to use are accessible and changeable in the main menu with more options unlocked as you defeat more AI competitors.

One of my big issues with this game is the way the competition for single-player works. After you do the tutorial level, you will be able to face off against the first AI. First, you have to defeat them on Easy, then Normal, and then Hard before you can get to the next AI character though, so if you don’t have the skills to beat this game on Hard then you don’t get to move on. Also, every time you load in to face off against this AI, regardless of how many times you have done it before and what difficulty you have chosen, you will have to get through their entire entrance discussion before the match can begin.

Expectations

There is honestly a lot of work to do with this game. For one, add more control to the ball for the player. It literally doesn’t feel like playing Ping-Pong at all in this game. I just need to have my paddle around where the ball is going to go so that it marks it as a hit and goes back to the other side. That is ridiculous and should never be the case. Maybe on some kind of handicap mode to keep it simple for some players, but this lack of control makes the game uninteresting.

Your AI’s don’t need to talk so much. I get the point of having a story and the first time I come across an AI opponent I would be fine with a big long introduction. However, after the first time I see the AI, future matches against them should just have a short “so, you have returned” type of message. Especially if you are going to set it up where I absolutely have to face off against the same AI more than once, I shouldn’t have to go through their whole spiel every time.

Verdict

King Pong’s gameplay is far too simplistic and the general setup for the game is not exactly player-friendly. There is quite a bit of work to be done for this game, so I am glad to see it is in early access as I thought it was a finished product when I got it in the French Touch VR Bundle. As someone who enjoyed Ping-Pong a lot when I was younger, I am hopeful to see this game updated to include a more natural feeling experience - even with the power-ups involved.