The Ball

First of all, I LOVE puzzle games. I'm a huge fan of them, everyday I'm puzzlin', and stuff. When I heard about this game, it sounded awesome, so I bought it and downloaded it and was really anxious to play it, but something is just off about it. I can't really place my finger on it, but the game just doesn't work (And I don't mean that literally, I had no problems running the game). I really wish it did, and reading other reviews I wonder if it might just be because the Unreal Engine isn't meant for this type of thing, but I really don't know since UE3 has been used for a ton of different genres. The game isn't really that much fun, it's really pretty though, and I guess it's original, at least. But it's just missing that factor that makes Portal or Q.U.B.E. fun, because frankly, The Ball isn't. I was frustrated a lot of the time since I'd know the way to solve the puzzle, but the stupid ball wouldn't move the way I wanted to and was hard to manipulate, which really ruined the game. I'd pass on this one if I were you, especially at an expensive $10 (I bought it in a Indie Bundle, can't remember which one, so I don't feel ripped off, but if I had bought it for 9.99 or more I would've been ticked). Even if you're a pretty patient guy like me, you shouldn't tolerate poor game design.

A fine little game in its own right. The story is insignificant and confusing and the graphics are extremely orange and brown to the point of it sometimes looking like a tech demo for some future Ubuntu-themed shoot 'em up. So far, so bad. However, the game puzzles are what keep the game alive. They strike the right balance being both challenging and logic, and are genuinely fun to solve. The game is rather short, but if you can get it on sale it can be a nice little addition for a puzzle gamer. Just don't expect the next Portal or you're bound for disappointment, since Portal had great story (or characters), graphics AND puzzles. The Ball only has the puzzles going for it, and this looking like an FPS means people will probably expect more.

Long story short, or rather a short story shorter, as the game is about 5-6 hours total, you become trapped in a cave somewhere in rural Mexico, and decide to explore the tunnels while waiting for a rescue. Each level is preceded by a quick introduction, but you're otherwise left to your own devices and those of the creators of the cavernous world. Zombies and mummies eventually make an appearance as well, but thankfully in small, not irritating doses. The Ball is one of those puzzle games where the challenge lies not in figuring out what you need to do but in actually doing it. It’s more skill-based than a game like Crazy Machines, where you spend most of your time thinking and making a plan. The Ball nailed it here, because the puzzles are geared towards people who are not into having their intelligence mocked by a computer program and who most likely skip the puzzle section of the newspaper. The Ball follows the true and tested formula of puzzle gaming, a simple main mechanic with complex situations. So even though the only thing you can do is push and attract the ball, thanks to magnets, low gravity, water, steam, monsters, elevators, trains, and of course buttons, you rarely have to do the same thing twice. Along with the single player mode there's also Survival which takes you away from solving puzzles and into a first person shooter – only without the shooting. Similar to Unreal Tournament 2004's Invasion game mode, you need to stay alive as long as you can while constant waves of enemies try to make you do the opposite. The catch is you don't have any weapons, only your ball and a certain amount of traps you can set off to dispatch the enemy. To be honest pushing a ball around may not seem like such an appealing idea, but when it's neatly packaged along with great puzzles and fun gameplay it quickly turns into a very appealing game.

The Ball annoyed me. While the enemies are a nice touch, the game is too buggy. The ball sometimes doesn't kill enemies it's launched at, or will obliterate others while barely moving. Sometimes the ball gets caught on walls. When I get injured, my screen turns red and I have to kill myself and respawn for it to go away. There's no way to manually save. The hud is useless and you can't disable it, which really bugs me. Overall, I'm not sure if I'd want this game even if it were free. Don't get me wrong, the game looks nice, the concept is good and it does have it's moments. It's not very challenging though. I always knew what I needed to do, but the game often doesn't register things correctly making the game incredibly frustrating. Unless you're incredibly patient and bored, your money is probably best spent elsewhere.