The Ball Review

02 Nov 2010 at 07:01:24 by Peter Parrish
Systems used to review this title: (PC)

The Ball's set-up is pretty funny. Cast as a mute archaeologist investigating ruins in Mexico, you begin the game by falling down a very large hole (ok, that's not terribly funny.) One of your pals calls down to make sure you're alright, before suggesting that you just kill some time by exploring the area while they rig up a new crane. Hey, you've got nothing better to do, right? Then you stumble over a device with a huge skull on it that can attract and repel a gigantic ball.

As contrived plot-devices go, it's fairly blatant. Luckily, this first five minutes is where the contrivance ends and where the creativity begins.

The Ball is a nifty first-person solving-mechanisms-with-the-aid-of-a-huge-sphere game, which would put it in a category of its own, were it not for the fact that everyone you talk to about it will take roughly ten seconds to say 'oh, so a bit like Portal then?' It is a bit like Portal, but the nature of the challenges are different. You see, in Portal your gimmick weapon was all about spatial movement - the transference of a body, or object, to an unexpected place. Here, the emphasis is much more physical. The ball is a solid sphere with its own attendant properties. Many of the set-piece situations in the game require the use of its weight and size, but others twist these dimensions against you, separating player from ball with a space only the player can fit through and forcing you to find an alternate path to meet up again.

Originally a runner-up in the Make Something Unreal mod contest, The Ball has been turned into a full game - and there's enough here to justify that classification. My run through the campaign clocked in at just under eight hours (with a moderate amount of exploring around and dying, but not an excessive amount) and once you've finished with that there are four action-based 'Survival' levels to tackle too. It's also worth noting that the game's release is being handled by two publishers: Tripwire Interactive has issued it digitally on Steam and GamersGate (with other digital platforms to come,) while Iceberg Interactive are doing an English-language retail release from 12 November, complete with bonus goodies like a full soundtrack.

During the first portion of the game, developers Teotl Studios walk the player through the basics of controlling the ball. The left mouse button controls a hammer-attachment on the skull device which can either fire the ball off into the distance or be used to hit certain designated blocks. Holding down the right will drag the ball towards the player (assuming it doesn't get stuck behind a corner) and keeping it held will allow you to either drag it behind you like a reluctant dog or secure it in front of you while you make you way around. Player buttons need to be stood on by the player, while ball trigger buttons need to be pressed or rolled over by the ball. Whenever the ball is blocking the player's view, it handily goes translucent.

This, though it certainly bears explaining to the player, is relatively simple stuff. When I said these lessons constituted 'the first portion' of the game, that actually translates to about an hour and a half, and the easier puzzles really wander on for far too long. In fact, the only things this segment doesn't teach the player are that he can fall an unlimited distance without taking damage (though I suppose the introduction technically covers this,) and that he can breathe underwater for a remarkably long (but not unlimited) time. During these opening sections you may be more occupied by trying to figure out why the player-character seems to be about four feet tall. It's a little disorientating at first and feels like you're perma-crouched, until you press crouch and find you can actually go lower. I'm all for diversity in games though, so if we're genuinely controlling a gentleman of stunted growth then my hat is off to Teotl.

After this extended tutorial session, matters pick up considerably. As your mini-man progresses through the corridors and ruins of Aztec-inspired temples, the mechanisms necessary for progression become more complex. Likewise, single room puzzles expand to hub-like areas with multiple areas that need to be solved in order to continue onwards. Saving in the game is automated by checkpoints, which at first seems as if it may be a rather harsh system. However, if you're involved in a multi-part puzzle The Ball remembers which stages you've already completed, so death is not as punishing as it may otherwise have been. Failing a jumping-based puzzle several times over is still annoying, but not maddeningly so.

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