Panic 64 Preview: eight stages, fast movement and arcade style scoring

Panic Porcupine is going 3D. That’s the big change in Panic 64, but it’s not the only one. Developer Spicy Gyro Games is taking the fast, slightly frantic platforming of the earlier game and dropping it into fully polygonal stages, then adding drifting, boosts, missions and score chasing to the mix. The result looks less like a traditional 3D adventure and more like a platformer that wants you to keep moving. Panic 64 is currently planned for PC in 2027. It puts Panic back up against Dr. Proventriculus, with the chickabirbs once again caught up in the trouble. The setup is simple, and that seems intentional. This isn’t shaping up as a story-heavy platformer. The focus is movement, timing and getting through each stage as cleanly as possible.

Eight stages, two missions each

The structure is refreshingly easy to understand. Panic 64 has eight linear stages, and each one comes with two missions. There are also four boss fights along the way.

That linear design matters. You’re not being asked to wander around a huge map searching every corner for the next objective. Instead, the stages are built to push you forward, with the challenge coming from how well you move through them. That fits the series. Panic has always been about speed, and Panic 64 looks keen to keep that identity even after switching to 3D. There’s also a grading and scoring system. So finishing a stage is only part of the job.

If you enjoy replaying a level because you know you clipped a wall, missed a shortcut or lost speed in one awkward section, this is clearly aiming in that direction. Better runs should come from learning the layout and getting more comfortable with the controls, not simply collecting stronger equipment.

Drifting changes how Panic moves

The most interesting addition is drifting. Panic can drift around corners and then boost out of them, which gives the platforming a clear racing-game flavour. That could make a big difference in 3D, where simply holding forward and turning the analogue stick can quickly feel flat. Here, corners can become part of the challenge. It also gives stages another way to test timing. Enter a turn badly and you’ll probably lose momentum. Get it right and you can carry your speed into the next section.

Then there’s Quill Qrush, another new movement ability designed for tighter platforming sections. While drifting appears to handle the faster, wider parts of a stage, Quill Qrush gives Panic another option when accuracy matters more than raw speed.

That mix could be important. Constant speed sounds great on paper, but a good platformer needs changes in rhythm. A fast section feels faster when it’s followed by a sequence that makes you slow down and place your jumps properly.

Power-ups add another layer to each run

Panic 64 also scatters CRTs around its stages. Smash them and you can pick up different power-ups, including an egg magnet and boost soda.

These aren’t complicated additions, but they fit the arcade-style structure. A useful power-up can change how you approach the next part of a stage, and players chasing better grades will probably start learning where each CRT sits and whether grabbing it is worth the extra movement.

That’s where Panic 64 starts to look more interesting than a simple 3D conversion of Panic Porcupine. The basic ingredients are familiar, but drifting, power-ups, missions and scoring give the stages several things to keep track of at once.

The low-resolution 3D look is very deliberate

Visually, Panic 64 goes straight for low-resolution polygonal graphics. Characters use chunky shapes, textures stay deliberately rough and the environments have the kind of simple geometry associated with early 3D platform games. It’s not trying to hide that style behind modern lighting or highly detailed surfaces. The whole game sticks to the same visual approach.

A compact platformer with a clear idea

Panic 64 doesn’t look interested in becoming a huge 3D platforming epic. That’s probably the point. Eight stages, two missions per stage, four bosses and a scoring system make this sound like a relatively compact game built around repeat runs rather than sheer size. The drifting mechanic gives the movement its most obvious twist, while Quill Qrush and the power-ups should keep individual sections from feeling too predictable.

There’s still plenty we don’t know ahead of the planned 2027 release, especially how demanding the missions will be and how much difference the grading system makes once you’ve cleared a stage. But the basic idea is already clear. Panic 64 is taking a fast 2D platforming formula into 3D without turning it into something slower or broader. It still wants you moving. Preferably quickly.

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