Wreckin’ Ball Adventures Review (Nintendo Switch)

Review code used many thanks to Don’t Bite Devs

Wreckin’ Ball Adventure is a physic platformer/puzzle game developed by Don’t Bite Devs and on Steam and Nintendo Switch.

Save the Robot

In this side-scrolling adventure game, it’s up to you to save the little robot ball, K160 from the laboratory and escape from the mysterious SuperCom. Along the way, you’ll discover exactly why the evil SuperCom corporation wants to kill K160. What little there is of the story is conveyed to you as you play through Wreckin’ Ball in the form of text on the screen, there aren’t any cutscenes. It’s a bit of a thin plot, but since it’s a puzzle game that’s not too much of a problem.

Wreckin Ball Adventures LadiesGamers — Text on pictures

In Wreckin’ Ball Adventure you can play solo or in a team of 4. You are K160 and you’ll be rolling, jumping, and swinging your way around sixty story levels. You have a handy-dandy grappling hook to reach new heights with and help you swing from platform to platform by gripping some of the surfaces around K160.

Rolling Along

K160 gatherers blue orbs and stars, that are found in hard to reach places, as it rolls and bounces past them. The blue orbs can be used to make a temporary save checkpoint and stars are used to unlock new levels to play.

I don’t think I’ve ever played a game where I had to option to make my own checkpoints, it’s a great idea but since I’m not used to having that option I completely forget to place my own checkpoints. The game also marks a time for each level’s completion, as well as how many of each collectible you find.

Grappling Hook

You can use the grappling hook that mysteriously appears out of K160 when you press the Y button, using the hook you’re able to swing around platforms. But you can’t use the hook on all surfaces, as the colour of the lines running through a wall or platform edge can determine whether or not you’ll be able to grapple it or get bounced off it really hard.

I must admit it took me a while to realise why K160 won’t hook on to some of the platforms, but once you learn which colours the hook can and can not attach to it, you’ll be swinging from platform to platform with the greatest of ease….most of the time.

You’ll dodge lasers, roll through timed torch ignitions, avoid crushing death traps, navigate lava or fall into lava a lot, and smash through walls. It’s all quite a lot for a small metal ball to manage but K160 seems to manage just fine.

If K160 does end up in a pool of lava or getting scorched, melted, crushed or meeting its end by other means it will re-materialise at the closest checkpoint.

Some of the puzzles require K160 to roll on to a switch. A timer will start and you’ll have to get K160 to an open door before the timer flicks the switch and closes the door. These can be tricky as it is all about timing, much like most of the game. But at no point did I feel that the puzzles such as these or the levels were impossible to complete, they just required a few more tries on my part.

Different Modes of Play

Wreckin Ball Adventures contents a few different modes of play. You have an endless mode that allows up to four players to see how long they can survive within a massive level. Or try out the multiplayer option which allows up to four players to play co-operatively. Since I don’t have anyone in my circle of friends and family interested in games I didn’t get to try it out but I do think it would be a lot of fun to play the multiplayer mode. Finally, you have a playground level which is similar to a training level, though I’m not sure why this is needed as the game has a tutorial at the start that explains the controls to the player adequately.

As for the physics in the game, considering it’s a ball you control which is round and likes to roll, the physics work quite well. I did have the odd occurrence where the ball didn’t stop on the ground when I wanted it to and it does feel at times that you don’t the have as much control over K160 while it’s on the ground. Meanwhile, using the grappling hook is a blast as you swing it around to gain momentum to reach the higher platform.

Visuals and Controls

The visuals have a clean and sterile look about them, they give off that empty laboratory feeling. I really like how the levels are designed with minimalist surroundings.

Wreckin’ Ball Adventures is fully controlled by the joy-cons, and I found that they control pretty well, apart from the tiny problem of stopping the ball rolling.