PengPong is a roguelite bullet heaven mix of Brotato and pinball with a retro cartoon theme

The demo of PengPong has hooked me in quite fiercely, with it's clever combination of game mechanics that combine Brotato with a form of pinball. If you appreciate the style of games like Cuphead, you'll probably like this too - they went with a similar sort of retro cartoon theme.

What actually is it? A physics-based top-down shooter based in small arenas. You use a hockey stick to strike pucks and weapons, defeating waves of enemies through timing, angles, and ricochets. Along with the roguelite progression system of gradually getting more powerful, along with different item builds - there's a lot to like about this one.

Once you've finished an arena you're given holes to jump down with each one being a different event. They could be another normal battle, a boss battle, a contract to get a special item, a room to get a free heart or spend coins to heal multiple hearts, a room with a slot machine to try and gain some extra coins and more. Their artists did a good job on the old-school casino vibe from it.

I really just love the added chaos here of things bouncing around. Especially with all the power-ups you can buy, along with extra special buffs you can slot into your hockey stick - like making your puck massive (shown in the screenshot above). It gets really varied and different with each run, love trying out different combinations of abilities and items.

And of course, there's a whole bunch of meta upgrades when you inevitably reach your doom and die.

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Game Highlights:

• A Unique Hockey Stick-Based Combat System - Instead of directly firing guns, players use a hockey stick to strike pucks and weapons into enemies. The result is intuitive but skillful action built around timing, positioning, and angles.
• Roguelite Progression That Changes Every Run - Enemy waves, item choices, and build directions change with each playthrough, creating a highly replayable experience that can be enjoyed in short, satisfying sessions.
• Over 100 Items and Synergies - From offensive upgrades to mobility, defense, and risk-based power boosts, a wide range of items allows each run to develop in a different direction.
• Retro Cartoon-Inspired Visuals - PengPong features a distinctive art style inspired by 1960s rubber hose animation, combined with neon energy, arcade-like chaos, and dark humor.
• Built for Fans of Fast, Replayable Action - Designed for players who enjoy roguelite shooters, bullet heaven games, and arena survival action, PengPong offers quick runs, impactful upgrades, and a combat system that rewards both instinct and precision.

Tested with Proton 11 on Fedora KDE it works perfectly in the demo which is part of Steam Next Fest. This is one you have to look out for as it's a lot of fun to smash things around the screen and keep levelling up.