Trash Panic Hands-On

One of the surprises at the 2008 Tokyo Game Show was a downloadable game for the PlayStation 3 known as Gomi Bako (or "trash can" in Japanese). The game, a curious mixture of Puzzle Quest, Katamari Damacy, and Tetris, featured complex physics and some of the most addictive gameplay at the entire show. Here we are, six months later, and the game is coming to the States (and elsewhere), with the new name of Trash Panic. As we found out during our recent hands-on time with the game at Sony's spring press event, it's deeper than we thought during our first look at it, yet it's just as addictive as we remembered.

On the surface, Trash Panic's gameplay is as simple as can be. You have a trash container that you're supposed to fill up with as much garbage as possible. As in Tetris, random items appear, and you're required to find space for them in the disposal. What sets the gameplay apart is the relatively complex physics at work; you can smash and break objects--an essential strategy, because destroyed items take up less space in the bin. Different objects have different properties--a weighty metal dumbbell, for example, can be dropped on trash below it and smash garbage underneath it, but a sponge, on the other hand, while relatively small, won't be destroying anything.

There are other tricks you can pull off to pack more junk in this trunk. Dropping a lit match (which appears randomly) into the trash will light up all of the flammable material, making more room in the trash container. In fact, producers showed us a handy trick to make the most of fire: after dropping the match into the container, you can quickly open and close the container lid by rapidly pressing a button, essentially fanning the flames and creating that much more destruction.

Smashing and burning trash is remarkably satisfying and addictive. What we didn't understand about Trash Panic back in Tokyo, however--largely due to the language barrier--is that burning garbage isn't necessarily the ideal way to play the game. This is because of how you are judged at the end of each level. Disposing of garbage in a sanitary manner--by smashing it to bits--is considered "eco-friendly" in the game, while burning garbage is considered "ego-friendly." At the end of a level, you'll be rated on how much garbage you disposed of in either an ego- or eco-friendly manner.

In true Japanese fashion, there's a measure of the absurd running through the visual design and gameplay in Trash Panic. For example, little aliens will mull around the floor of your container, keeping track of how many items have fallen out of an overflowing container. In addition, the game's six levels will feature increasingly large trash containers and increasingly large objects to dispose of. According to producers, the final level will feature a garbage bin that's essentially planet-sized, with appropriately proportional trash to get rid of. If you want to show off your destructive skills, the game will let you record up to 10 minutes of footage and upload it to YouTube.

Trash Panic's goofy sense of humor and semirealistic physics should appeal to players who giggle when things go boom, and we're pleased to see the ego/eco mechanic add some depth to what was already one of the highlights of TGS 2008. Look for Trash Panic to hit the PlayStation Network in the next couple of weeks.