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One of the greatest feelings found when playing an open-world game is that of getting distracted by every little thing around you. Huge cities in the GTA worlds deliver new experiences at every turn and that Elden Ring universe is one that batters you with multiple side-quests and shiny things.
It’s fair to say that Bang-On Balls: Chronicles wouldn’t be the first choice when comparing to the likes of Elden Ring or GTA. But it has a brilliant mechanic and multiple elements within every level that there is so much going on you forget the real reason you are there.
The most innuendo title for a game ever, Bang-On Balls: Chronicles is a game that could easily have been released in the late 90’s and wouldn’t have looked out of place. It’s a 3D open-world platformer, much like many from back then; the 3D Mario games or the Banjo-Kazooie franchises. It took me back to those times as I started the opening segment.
Bang-On Balls: Chronicles has a brilliantly fun setup, dropping you into a TV studio. You play a ball visiting the studio, left to customize your little guy with many different choices and styles. The narrative is fun, silly, and mad but the world-building has an amazing sense of fun and pleasure in it. You have four different worlds to explore all with different themes, complete with a big ball boss to defeat in each of these worlds. What could be easier?
The gameplay is simple to pick up and as addictive as fancy crisps. You control your ball like you would in any other normal platformer; jumping, double jumping, and utilising a special dash. You can roll fast, but you can also go banging off other balls to your heart’s content. There is combat involved in this dynamic and at certain points, you get a shield to use. Hell, you even get a gun at one point.
Left with objectives to take in across each of these four different worlds, in Bang-On Balls: Chronicles there are just so many different things to do, to find and to get lost in. It’s also very funny, with great pop culture references in all its themed worlds. The worlds are pretty massive, filled with content throughout. For example, in one world with a pirate theme, there are loads of mini islands to explore as well as the ocean to ride around in. You find yourself just exploring, experimenting with what you can do. Suddenly you find a secret passageway and then another hour has been lost on this adventure.
It’s sometimes nice to have a more focused gaming experience, and some may well have an issue with the explorable sandbox and level designs in Bang-On Balls: Chronicles. But personally I only got a little frustrated a couple of times, mostly as it’s a hard game to hate upon; it constantly turns any frown upside down.
Bang-On Balls: Chronicles is helped by the fact that there are an absolute ton of collectibles and more customisation opportunities for your little ball than you could ever imagine. What’s more, you can even drag in some friends and spend time in the world with online support.
And it’s safe to say that Bang-On Balls: Chronicles lives up to what it aims to do visually as well. The colours and world-building are amazing and even though it has that retro feel it is a completely modern game in terms of graphics and the amount of stuff on the screen. However, occasionally the camera does get stuck behind things – but then, there are a lot of things onscreen for it to attach itself to! In terms of the audio, the sound is excellent and the effects are superb.
Bang-On Balls: Chronicles is a beautiful platformer that you will have a ball with. It provides some fantastic gameplay and exquisite ball-on-ball action. The humour is absolutely spot on and the various huge worlds are a delight to bounce around and explore.
There aren’t too many games like it on Xbox, especially not with such high standards, and whilst some may not like the sandbox feel, there’s no doubt that Bang-On Balls: Chronicles is a clever, exquisite, and beautiful-looking game. And that is quite rare.