The first Challenge of the first season of the One Credit Challenge is here!

As a reminder, this first season runs from September 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026, featuring 20 arcade games of all kinds, with two games per month (from the 1st to the 15th and from the 16th to the last day of the month).

At the end of each Challenge, the winner will receive a game from a list of about 100 titles (provided they have not won one in the past three months; otherwise, the key will be given to the second-place participant, and so on).

And we start with … Tinkle Pit!

Developed by Namco in 1993 and released exclusively in Japanese arcades, Tinkle Pit is a colorful maze game mixing action and puzzle elements. You play as Pitt (or Patti) armed with a mysterious Tinker Ball, which you place in the maze and recall like a yo-yo to defeat enemies.

A fun feature: the game is full of references to the Namco universe, from Pac-Man to Xevious, as well as Mappy and Dig Dug.

Very colorful, the game offers a wide variety of levels and a surprisingly rich set of enemies for its genre. Bonuses and different enemy patterns add a strategic dimension, allowing you to score quickly… or get trapped!

Despite a discreet original release, this mix between Pac-Man and Bomberman is now considered a retro gem, brought back into the spotlight in 2024 thanks to its re-release on Switch and PS4 in the Arcade Archives collection.

🏆 Challenge rules

Your goal is to achieve the highest score in a single credit.
The challenge runs from September 1 to 15, 11:59 PM. You can attempt as many times as you like.

📢 How to participate?

1. Launch the game (rom "tinklpit")
2. Play and try to beat the highest score
3. Take a screenshot or a photo of your final score
4. Share your score on the Discord #challenges channel, including your username and score

⚖️ Rules to follow

To ensure fairness:

• The score must be achieved in a single credit, without save states, rewind, cheats, or auto-fire (unless part of the game)
• Gentlemen’s agreement: using glitches to artificially inflate your score is also prohibited

🎁 Rewards and fair play

The challenge is mainly about discovering games, sharing tips, and, of course, having fun, all in a friendly competitive spirit!

• The winner will receive a game key (GOG, Steam, etc.) to choose from a list of around 100 titles
• If you have won a challenge in the past three months, the reward will go to the next player 🥇🥈🥉
• Your ranking will be added to the One Credit Challenge leaderboard
• The champion of the first season will choose between a free RGB Dual 2 or a one-year Recalbox Patreon subscription

Good luck to everyone, and may the best score win!