Some people may be familiar with countryball comics, the little comedy sketches that flood the internet and feature balls representing the countries of the world in different situations. Bang-On Balls: Chronicles integrates this universe and offers us collections in various 3D biomes. Launching in early access in 2021, the game is finally coming to our consoles on October 5, 2023. So intrigued by the trailer, we can’t wait to get our hands on it.

Turning his hump

You don’t have to look for a real storyline in Bang-On Balls: Chronicles. Bob, the ball we play with, goes to the Bobbywood film studio where he can explore four different worlds. In each of these universes, a list of objectives is offered to us, allowing us to uncover the bosses that have been achieved.

These objectives offer no real staging, but rather serve as pretexts for exploring large portions of the game’s terrain. These goals are ultimately just appetizers that encourage us to go further and try to eliminate fifteen filmstrips and a ton of other films. costumes (tattoos, beards, weapons, shields, clothes, hats) are present in each level.

This scheme is classic, but has proven to be very effective, making us really want to collect everything in our path. And if many costumes only have a visual function, there are also some that still have some effects such as lightning, fire or even ice for example and will not do much to make it easier for us to finish off the enemy.

In the first level, in the midst of a Viking invasion, we have to destroy Norse ships. To do this, we passed through a fortress and were pleasantly surprised to see that it was full of hidden passages, shortcuts and other secrets that needed to be uncovered. Almost every time we are given a treat, we end up staying longer at this place than we originally thought. And that is ultimately just a small part of what the first world has to offer us.

The level design is a real hit, and the quality doesn’t weaken in the other three levels. The second takes us to the height of the Cold War, during the space race, with the map divided in two, the Soviet Union on one side, and the United States on the other. Then comes the world of pirates where skeletons, conquistadors and voodoo wizards gather. The Last World is inspired by Japan and refers to several eras: from feudal times to the present day.

Wrecking ball

The richness of these levels wouldn’t be the same without simple and effective gameplay. It is possible to jump (and even double jump with some equipment), dash forward and parry. And although the camera is occasionally erratic, especially on buildings, we quickly enjoyed throwing ourselves at enemies or scenery because the scenery was almost entirely destructible.

However, we can resist the sometimes confusing clashes a bit when multiple enemies are present on screen and taking damage from attacks we thought we had parried or dodged. However, even if you have a life limit, death is not a punishment. We respawn at the last checkpoint visited, but if we return to the fight location, we will find enemies with the same life remaining as when we died.

But if a particular encounter proves too difficult, adventure companions can be recruited at any time. Bang-On Balls: Chronicles can be played by two players in split screen or up to four players online. Thus, you can join a multiplayer session at any time via different access points located throughout the level and drive at full speed into the battlefield.

By simply focusing on the main objective and exploring each level a bit, this title will keep you busy for around five hours before you see the final battle and end credits. It is short, but this duration can easily be doubled if we set a goal to find all the costume pieces and try for 1,000 G. The latter will not be in vain because each success will require us to… fart in a different place. Captivating !

We will only finish by discussing the technical aspects of a game that, without ever surprising us with stunning graphics, is still able to offer rich and colorful environments, but above all very varied. We didn’t notice any technical issues other than the camera issues mentioned above and some rare lag, but nothing to spoil the fun.

Tested on Xbox Series