On the Ball

Developer: Taito      Publisher: Taito      Released: 1992      Genre: Arcade      Platform: SNES

I’m a simple man at heart.  When it comes to video games I have my favorite genres; rpgs, action games, and platformers.  But I love to look outside my wheelhouse every so often and try titles I would otherwise ignore.  It happened with Tetris, which sounds silly as everyone loves Tetris.  I also grew to love Kickle Cubicle once I tried it.  I rented On the Ball after reading its Gamepro review and did not regret it.  It is easy to pick and play but hard to master and a really good port of the arcade game.

On the Ball is a port of the arcade game Cameltry.  I don’t know why they changed the name but that is irrelevant.  This is a perfect match for the SNES’ capabilities; Mode 7 simulates the rotating playing field perfectly.  This was an under the radar release but is an excellent choice for those looking for something a little different.

This is a simple game at its core.  The goal of every stage is to guide the ball to the exit at the end of the maze.  The hook is you don’t directly control the ball.  You rotate the entire maze to guide it indirectly.  Rotating the playing field left or right will change its path as it rolls.  The only direct control you can exert is making the ball jump to break blocks.  Gravity and inertia play a role as you build momentum to fall quicker and bounce off walls.  The physics are especially impressive as they feel perfectly modeled.  At the end of each level any leftover time is carried over.  You are also given bonus time to help complete the next stage.  Completing each maze as fast as possible is critical as a result.

There is a nice slow build as you progress through each set of courses.  New mechanics are introduced at a steady clip that completely alter your approach.  One of the first is breakable bricks.  You can do so by manually jumping on them or manipulating the field and breaking them using your momentum.  Soon enough there are time down blocks that remove precious seconds from the clock, conveyor arrows that hijack your movement and bumpers that send you flying.  Each of the four courses (training, beginner, expert, special) has some new mechanic that helps keep the game from being stale.  It also sells the idea that you are being taught the game’s mechanics and are being tested in each scenario.

While it may seem simple on its face there is plenty of depth.  Ideally you want to avoid touching any walls as long as possible.  Once you’ve mastered rotating the field this it is entirely possible to glide through most levels.  It’s masterful to see in motion.  Holding down the button will cause you to drop faster but also makes your rebound worse.  This becomes a detriment in the later stages but is also necessary for speed.  None of this would matter if On the Ball did not have great level design.  The game is incredibly creative and does a lot with very little, able to create numerous compelling levels out of few base objects.  I just wish there were more.

Surprisingly On the Ball is pretty short.  That may come as a shock considering there are forty + levels but each only lasts a few minutes at most.  This was an arcade game after all.  The difficulty definitely increases in each new course but that simply means you’ll replay some levels once or twice.  Some more exclusive home content would added to On the Ball’s longevity.  As it is you’ll play through it once and never revisit it again.

The game suffers at the absence of a competitive multiplayer mode.  This is a glaring omission; competitive mode is why Tengen Tetris is better than Nintendo’s official release.  Two players competing for the best times on the game’s many levels could have added so much to the game.  The alternating option present might as well not exist in my opinion.  What a missed opportunity to make the game better than the arcade.

In Closing

That being said On the Ball is pretty cool.  Although I wish there were more content Taito brilliantly executes on their concept and On the Ball is enjoyable while it lasts.  It’s also highly available on multiple collections and makes for a good way to kill some time.