Boing!

A very tasty Mexican soft drink, Boing! originally came in tetrapacks, and currently it is available in 250 ml, 500 ml and liter packs, as well as in little returnable glass bottles. The drink has no carbonation, and it is available in many flavors, all of them fruit. The interesting bit is that the fruit used closely reflects the fruit available in the Mexican market: apples, strawberries, mango, guayaba, tamarind... In fact, Boing! is an attempt to recreate, industrially, the home made agua de fruta.

It is produced by Pascual, a company that was on the edge of financial disaster when the workers took over and turned it into a production coop. I would guess that its current problem is that it is in direct competition with the likes of Coca-Cola and Pepsi, global companies with incredible advertising power. Bizarrely, the Pascual logo is ... Donald Duck, although the bottle bears no Disney copyright. I find it interesting that the Mexicans, despite their patriotism, happily drink Coca-Cola all day long, despite the availability of a local, Mexican owned, alternative.
And now, the biggest secret of all: Boing! tastes really good.

When in Mexico, don't confuse Boing! with Trebol, a really nasty, chemical tasting, fizzy bottled drink.

Atari 2600 Game
Produced by: First Star Software
Model Number: n/a
Rarity: 8 Very Rare+
Year of Release: 1983
Programmer: Alex Leavens and Shirley Russell

This was the only Atari 2600 game produced by First Star Software. It is a great Q*Bert clone. The game is played on a 6x6 grid. The object is to turn the colors of all the steps, by stepping on them one at a time. This game is a lot more fun than the 2600 version of Q*Bert is (and actually predated it by a few months). But it can't compare to the arcade Q*Bert it was based on.

From the manual

You bounce the BUBBLE around a playfield of 36 STEPS (6 rows of 6). The BUBBLE must land on each step and turn it "on", sometimes in a particular order. The BUBBLE EATER or the PIN will pop the BUBBLE if either comes in contact with it. The BUBBLE EATER chases the BUBBLE, while the PIN descends the steps from the top row down. The PIN will pop the BUBBLE or the BUBBLE EATER if they are in its path.

The object of the game is to jump the BUBBLE around and turn each step on. When you first begin the game a short tune will play before you can start. In the first 3 levels, jumping on a step will turn it on and leave it on; but in the last 3 levels, each time you jump on a step, it will reverse: if it's "off", it turns "on" - if it's "on" it turns "off! On some levels you must turn on a particular row or rows of steps before you can turn on steps in any other row (see LEVELS).

The BUBBLE EATER always start out in the lower right corner, waits a couple of seconds and the tries to catch you (the BUBBLE). If he lands on you or you lands on him, you lose a BUBBLE. The PIN starts out at the top, randomly choosing one of the 6 columns. Avoid the PIN as it is a fatal to the BUBBLE! You can temporarily zap the BUBBLE EATER by luring him under the oncoming PIN. The BUBBLE EATER disintegrates and starts glowing. After a few seconds the BUBBLE EATER reappears and continues the chase. Make good use of this time! The glowing time (when you are safe) decreases as the waves advance (see LEVELS). You can turn on steps while the BUBBLE EATER is out of commission. When the BUBBLE EATER is stunned and glowing, the BUBBLE can jump on him without popping.

Collectors Information

There was also a variation of this game that was available in a Xonox style case (with a handle on the end). Both versions are equally rare.

This game is valued at around $100 USD (price current as of September 2001). As always, games with boxes and manuals are worth more.

Boing! is also the catchphrase of the Mr. Saturns from the Super NES game Earthbound. The phrase is not merely Boing!, but it's written in a unique, wacky, game-specific font featuring lots of loops and squiggles.

Boing! is typically used in the middle of a sentence of line of dialogue. Example: "Me Mr. Saturn. Boing! Can do all you for. Boing!"

Boing! doesn't seem to have any specific meaning except to add to the wackyness of the Mr. Saturns. They are the most unique group of characters in Eagleland.