Steam Game Review] Perfect for the New Year!　Pummel Party", a backgammon-style party game for PC

In this series, Mina Tsujimura, aka SteamMania, a core gamer on Steam, reviews in detail the recommended games available on Steam, a PC game platform that is currently enjoying a lot of popularity. Here, she introduces the fun of the games.

At the end of the year, people are always looking forward to playing backgammon-style party games!　There are various types of party games such as Mario Party, Momotaro Dentetsu, and the New Year's Game of Life. However, all of these games have strict rights issues and are only released on consoles and smartphone apps, so there are very few that can be played on PCs. Therefore, we would like to introduce "Pummel Party," a backgammon-style party game that can be played on PC with friends.

Interesting variety of mini-games

Pummel Party" is a backgammon-style party game for 1 to 8 players, with three difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, and Hard. There are two game modes: board game mode and mini-game mode. In board game mode, players collect trophies while playing mini-games, or the game ends when a specific number of turns have passed. The number of turns can be selected from 10 to unlimited.

In mini-game mode, players play 10 to 30 games in a row without playing backgammon. The rules are simple: the player who wins more games wins.

The mini-games vary from racing games for speed, to memory games, to games completely based on luck, to games where players push bombs against each other like you might have seen in a certain party game, etc. Unlike e-sports games, there is no need to have different skill levels to enjoy the game.

Incidentally, I like the game "Memorize the Menu" the best, in which you have to memorize multiple ingredients that are displayed for a moment and put them into a pot. This game is like a scavenger hunt at a field day, and you can win even if you don't have good reflexes.

I played the board game mode on AI difficulty normal!

I would like to play it right away. First, I set the difficulty level to Normal. There are a total of 7 map types. This time, I chose Winter Glow, a winter map perfect for the end of the year, and set it to 10 turns. The rule is that the game ends when 4 trophies are collected or 10 turns have passed.

When the game starts, the turn goes to the person who rolls the highest number of dice; from the second turn, the order is based on the better score in the game.

This time, the treasure chest is located here!　If you stop at this square, you can exchange the trophy in the victory conditions in exchange for 40 keys.

By the way, there is only one of these treasure chests in the map, and each time someone exchanges it, the location changes. It's a familiar ...... rule.

The important mini-game has yet to take first place ....... I don't feel like I can win when I see how agile the BOTs are.

Turn 3. I managed to get the first trophy!　The mini-games are not going well, but I seem to be lucky with the dice. In the beginning of the game, you just have to keep going.

And the next trophy was on the left side of the map, a little further away.

Turn 5. while I was going for the second trophy, I saw a BOT Sam approaching the square right behind me.

If you are attacked and your HP is reduced to zero, you will be forced to return to the starting point. I had only 15 HP left, and depending on the item, it could be reduced to zero with a single blow, so I had to take a quick shot!

I attacked because it was do-or-die and I had to be first. I threw a Nasubi bomb and BOT Sam flew to the lower left corner of the screen with the momentum of ....... To my surprise, he managed to survive with only 1 HP remaining. He is stubborn!

Turn 6. As luck would have it, the BOT Sam was stopped in a nearby square again. I was able to finish him off with my rifle and send him back to the starting point.

Turn 10. Just in time to get the second trophy. Now I think I can manage to win!

At the end of the 10th turn, the ending screen appears.

Here, the person who attacked the most, collected the most keys, and won the most mini-games will be awarded, and finally the winner will be decided. This system is also "a thing" in backgammon style games. I was so happy that I took several screenshots.

I tried AI difficulty hard.

Since I was able to win on Normal, I decided to try Hard. The number of players was the same as before, four. This time, we decided on "Pirate's Paradise," a map with a pirate motif.

This time, the treasure chest is here!　It is roughly on the left side of the map.

On the first turn, we stopped at the skull square. I set a trap to inflict damage when other players stop here.

The mini-game was my favorite, "Word War" (a game in which words are displayed above your head and you have to spell them using the buttons at your feet)!　The prize was a "switching portal" (you could trade places with other players), and I got the most powerful item from the first turn.

On the third turn, Bot Daniel approached the treasure chest and used the replacement portal he had just acquired to swap places. I can't roll the dice on the turn I used the replacement pole, so I aim for the trophy on the next turn.

Turn 4. I used the item of the rocket to get to the treasure chest while defeating the other players. I successfully got the first trophy by pushing the item.

The next treasure chest was on the right side of the map. If you head there from here, it is directly opposite, so it may be difficult to get consecutive GETs. ......

Turn 6. As predicted, we are not close to the treasure chest at all. At this rate, it could be reversed at any moment. ...... So, I try to use the power of the item again.

The effect of this item is that something random happens when you open it.

Apparently, there are three patterns: the first is a one-turn break for a false answer; the second is a choice of three mini-games to play next; and the third is a choice of a goal. And the third is a warp right in front of the goal.

Ta-da!　What a surprise, it was a warp in front of the goal of the winning pattern. Now I've got my second trophy!

But then I realized that I was short ...... of keys ....... I completely forgot that I needed 40 keys to exchange.

Oh no, I'll see you next week. I got myself back on track and continued on.

Next to the treasure chest was an armory square where I could get a powerful item that I could only get in this square. I missed getting a trophy, but it was a good thing that I got some kind of amazing item.

Turn 7. Finally, the BOT got the trophy.

Turn 9. Remembering the "Arcade Challenge" item I got earlier, I try to use it as a last-ditch effort.

The opponent is Bot Jack, whom I somehow chose!

After choosing a challenger, a retro table tennis-style mini-game begins.

The result is .......

I won safely!　Yay, yay, yay.

To tell you the truth, I had to win in order to write about it, so I worked really hard.

>The final award results are as follows: Bot Sam won the attack prize and the key-collecting prize, and the mini-game prize went to the author. Thanks to the trophy I got at the end, I was able to win just in time.

Incidentally, I also tried the 8-player mode on the hard difficulty level, but the insanely strong AI beat me up for a long time, and it was truly a hellish experience. ...... If you are a fan of party games, or if you are planning to stay indoors while playing games during the New Year's holiday, why not give it a try?

Title Information

Pummel Party" by Rebuilt Games
Released on September 21, 2018
Price: 1,500 yen (as of October 26, 2021)
#.

Author：Suchimu Mana (Mina Tsujimura)

Writer and gamer at Office Mica. Her favorite game genres include sandbox survival games and horror games. Her style of game playing is a text-chatting game player who is afraid of VC players.

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