[3][4][5][6] Pink Panther was criticized for its control and difficulty, although the Amiga and Atari ST versions received praise for their graphics.

The player must rob belongings around the house while simultaneously preventing the homeowner from bumping into obstacles, which will wake up the owner and foil the Pink Panther's theft.

[13][15][1][14][2][4][12][10] Mark Patterson of Commodore User stated that Pink Panther "was a potentially good idea but it's over-shadowed by its extreme and sometimes tedious level of difficulty.

"[15] The Games Machine also criticized the "awkward" system used to manipulate the homeowner's movements, stating that it "requires rapid and accurate reactions, and if a single mistake is made, you have to go right back to the beginning.

"[4] Tony Horgan of Commodore Computing International considered the "extremely awkward controls" to be one of the worst aspects of the game, writing that "the combinations of joystick position and fire button needed to select and place the right object can be infuriatingly difficult to carry out.

[1] Steve Merrett of ST Action wrote, "Having to redirect the sleepwalker is tedious and having finally managed it on one occasion, the wretched Inspector caught me straight away.

[10][2][7] Horgan, reviewing the C64 version, stated that the Pink Panther's limited frames of animation "are not enough to give fluid movement.