If you’re familiar with PopCap Games’ Peggle, then you’re well aware of the various Masters that came to your aid throughout the game. They provided helpful power-ups, including laser blasts, ball multipliers and other effective tools to get as many orange pegs in as few shots as possible.
In Peggle 2, Bjorn, the unicorn from the original game, makes his return, along with four new Peggle masters that have tools of the trade to help you clear the board. It won’t take long at all to get the hang of their powers and use them to clear the board of those pesky orange pegs.
Here’s a breakdown of each Peggle master, and how their abilities will work best for you.
Bjorn the Unicorn
Bjorn was the first Peggle master to be introduced in the original game, and he’ll start your journey off here as well. Once you hit the green peg on his boards, you’ll have access to his Super Guide, which lasts three turns.
The Super Guide is a light-up path that shows where your ball will go after it bounces off a peg or a wall. This is very useful when it comes to making long shots across the board, which requires hitting one orange peg and then another across the way.
This Super Guide is most useful later on in the game, after you’ve managed to clear away the easier orange pegs and only have a few remaining. It’ll help save you a ball or two by utilizing it, adding to your overall score at the end of the round.
Jeffrey the Troll
If you’re a fan of the Coens Brothers film The Big Lebowski, then you’ll relate quite easily to Jeffrey. He’s a laid back troll with a mantra similar to that of Jeff Bridges’ character, and he has a penchant for bowling and chilling with a nice, cool drink.
His ability is a helpful one, a gigantic boulder that takes one of your ten shots on the board. Once fired, it destroys any pegs that stand in its way, which means it’s helpful for clearing out hard-to-reach orange pegs that sit under a field of blue pegs. The boulder will roll right over those.
It’s best to use the boulder as early in the round as possible, mainly because it can clear a lot of pegs out of the way in one shot. In addition, if you hit a number of orange pegs as it rolls download, you’ll earn enough bonus points to earn an extra ball.
One other thing – when you shoot the boulder, try to time its descent so that it falls into the bucket at the bottom of the screen. It’s easy to get in there, and nets you an extra ball in the process.
Berg the Yeti
Berg is quite simply the friendliest yeti you’ll ever have the chance to come across – though his lack of pants may be a bit hard to overcome. Regardless, his ability to clear the board is useful, thanks to his ice breath.
Once activated, Berg’s ice breath freezes up the board, and causes pegs to move around as the ball hits them. They light up other pegs as a result, causing a chain reaction that’ll make it easier to clear the board overall.
The ice breath only lasts one turn per green peg, so make sure you time your shot properly into crowded areas. The lit-up pegs will multiply as a result, and you’ll clear out quite a few orange ones in the process.
Luna the Ghost
In the darker levels within Peggle 2’s world, Luna the Ghost is the best Peggle master to have at your side. Despite her spooky appearance, her Nightshade ability really goes a long way.
Upon activation, Luna transforms into a spirit guide and forces blue pegs to disappear off the board temporarily, allowing you a straight shot at glowing orange pegs on the board. In addition, any pegs that you might have taken out on a previous turn reappear, so, as your ball crosses through them (since they’re ghost pegs), you’ll increase your score. Upon the end of the turn, the pegs return back to normal.
With Luna’s ability, it helps to line up your shots so that you hit two or more orange pegs on a turn. Only hitting one seems like a waste, unless it’s one that was previously out of reach. In that case, it’s worth a turn just to get it out of the way.
Gnorman the Gnome
Clearly Gnorman is a fan of the classic series Voltron, as he resides in a big robot suit that provides a super-charge to each board he’s on with his Uber Volt. This ability enables pegs to become juiced up with electricity once a ball strikes it. As a result, the two pegs closest to the one that was struck light up as well, providing a 3-on-1 effect for each peg that’s hit.
When you’re dealing with a large group of pegs, or trying to clear away a circular or other shaped structure in the center, you’ll want to have the Uber Volt on hand. It does a superb job clearing away numerous pegs in said structure, making it easier to access others with the remaining balls in your array. Try to use it as early as possible to gain a helpful advantage.
Peggle 2 is available now for Xbox One.
