They see me rollin, they hatin.

Like StarVaders, BALL X PIT aims to breathe new life into the ancient formula. The game takes the good ol brick-breaking Breakout formula and combines it with interesting ideas commonly found in the contemporary roguelite genre. A little bit of survivor-like upgrade structure, a little bit of fusing mechanic, a little bit of base-building and meta progression, all are mixed up and shaken into a quite addicting cocktail of a roguelite. Works great with Steam Deck!

• CORE X GAMEPLAY: I believe one of the core fun factor of BALL X PIT is the catharsis coming from breaking stuff. The gradual destruction of enemy formations is a special dopamine generator the original Breakout created. Of course, this game wants to amplify that feeling to a whole new level. The constant damage numbers pop in and out. The character rapidly launches various balls in high velocity. The constant marching enemies puts pressure on your shooting skills. And the powerful new balls you earn through collecting enough gems allow you to shred through all the obstacles. This combo gets me hooked. The gameplay is so fun that I keep saying "just one more run"!
  
  
• FUSION X EVOLUTION: Now and then enemies drop fusion reactors(the shiny rainbow color orbiting orbs). This is where your power source originates. Fusion reactors grant you several level-ups should you lack any max-out balls. Once you have enough max level balls, they will provide two new options: Fusion and Evolution. The former lets you combine two balls into one, keeping the levels and both of their effects. The latter allows you to generate a completely different ball. It's a fun and intriguing experience to see how the balls interact with each other. In my opinion, Fusion is better for granting your primary damage ball new property and freeing up slots to gain more balls. As for Evolution, I say go wild! Let your curiosity be the drive of discovery. Keep in mind that evolved ball resets its level, so it may not be a good idea to evolve near the end of the level or else you risk losing damage potential.
  
  
• CHARACTERS X COMBO: If the balls are your power source, then picking the right character is the first step for success. There are many characters you can unlock in BALL X PIT. They affect your gameplay in two different ways. First, everyone starts with a special ball. This can be the early sketch for you to plan the type of balls you want to get and the order of ball acquisition. Second, each character(beside The Knight) also has a unique passive which can drastically alter your balls-launching trajectory. Launching from the back of enemies' line, lobbing balls, balls phasing through, you name it. However, the fun really begins when you can bring two characters into the level. The build just becomes infinitely crazier. Imagine the old school Breakout playstyle but the balls phase through enemy blocks and get stronger every time you bounce them back, or turn the whole launching balls into turn-based mechanic and you also need to carefully adjust the trajectory since the balls are effected by gravity.
  
  
• BASE X META PROGRESSION: The other part of the game is the base-building. You can use the resource and blueprints collected in the level to construct new buildings in the base. This feature not only functions to unlock new characters, but it also serves as the meta progression for this roguelite. Buildings offer quite strong and direct benefits in the levels, and you must launch all the characters and let them bounce on them to construct and upgrade, like a mini pinball machine. It's a nice little side gameplay to design the most optimal bouncing route to make the most out of each harvest(launching).

• GRINDY X REPETITIVE: This problem only occurs in the first few hours. Yes, the game accelerates to a complete power fantasy once you nail down some core buildings. However, before you reach that point you must endure through some tedium first. The resource for building upgrade can be grindy. You may need to use the same character to replay the first level a few more times either to collect the remaining blueprints or simply because the stat isn't high enough for you to beat it.
  
  
• MINOR X COMPLAINTS: There are other downsides but they are not game-breaking deals, so I will just briefly mention some here. 1. It would be nice to have some sort of hints in encyclopedia for undiscovered Evolution. 2. Some balls are considerably stronger than their evolved counterparts. 3. The levels could definitely use more environmental hazards, or some big shifts in their structures.

中文小簡評
→將現代roguelite要素與傳統打磚塊的玩法融合，戰球坑洞成功造就出十分令人上癮的玩法！
→好看的像素畫風配上具動感且好聽的音樂，Steam Deck上流暢操作，用來上班偷閒也不錯喔！
→道理很簡單，就是把打磚塊那一點一滴敲壞磚頭的爽感，加上跳動的數字與急速亂撞的球來營造出更加特別的爽快度。
→遊戲主要分為兩個部分：第一部分就是下到深淵戰鬥，面對不斷前進的敵人磚你必須用球將他們打碎，擊退敵人收集經驗就可升級，系統會隨機分配一個養成點到角色數值，玩家也能三選一看是要被動道具或是新的球種，前期角色一次只能有四種球和四個道具，因此要慎選。
→擊殺敵人有機率會掉彩虹裂變，撿起來可以選擇三種強化：球體進化、球種融合、以及隨機升級。進化就是將兩種球融合，創造全新的球，而融合就是從背包裡的球挑兩個起來，將兩著能力融合再一起。這兩種強化不僅能空出空間選新球，更能實驗看看哪兩種球合在一起可以玩出什麼新花樣。
→遊戲也有許多角色可解鎖，每人皆有不同的初始球與被動，讓你可以簡單規劃一下未來球種的選擇與順序。不過最棒的一點莫過於拿到可以帶兩個角色進場的設施，直接讓遊戲的趣味性翻倍，足以玩出許多破格的配置。
→第二部分則是建築迷你彈珠台，身為roguelite就需要一些局外的強化好讓下一局更容易通關，城鎮系統就是個功能。在關卡中會獲取藍圖與資源，需要透過你發射角色撞擊格子蒐集物資、建造強化建築，來解鎖不同設施來強化數值和解鎖新角色，。
→可惜遊戲就roguelite而言過於依賴局外升級，有些增益甚至過強導致後期幾乎跟無雙沒兩樣。
→這點也讓遊戲前期變得很農，角色少且建築費用昂貴的情況下往往導致同一關得重刷個幾次，更有可能因為數值不足而慘遭輾壓。
→希望圖鑑能為隱藏進化球給一些提示，有時侯真的無從猜測，特別是某些高階進化球需要三、四次進化才能取得。
→一些初始球比進化球還強。
→關卡稍嫌乏味，地圖危害不具威脅性，地形也欠缺變化。

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