Spaceball: Revolution (Nintendo DS) Review

There are cases where unfortunately there is a great game hidden away under an absolutely awful soundtrack and shoddy visuals. However, Spaceball: Revolution most certainly does not fall into that trap, as Virtual Toys has come out swinging once more, after its impressive debut on DSiWare with Yum Yum Cooking Jam. A futuristic funky tune complements the space setting, looping in the background whilst players attempt to crack the puzzles in front of them. The main playing field takes place within a 3D box where a 4x4 'Noughts and Crosses' style layout can be found at the base.

Various shapes will appear at the bottom of the screen, and the aim is to launch energy balls at the appropriate squares to change their colour to match the pattern. Hitting an incorrect square does not result in a penalty, but does mean you have to hit it once more to change its colour back, thus wasting precious seconds. Obviously the game is not as simple as this, with Virtual Toys throwing in various obstacles in later levels (moving/rotating blocks, stationary objects, and so on).

When faced with such obstructions, the way to get round them is by picking the right vertical panel to bounce the energy balls off in order to get them to connect with the correct panel on the lower section. Should you not manage to complete the required shape in sufficient time, the action will zoom out slightly, making it trickier to judge each ball launch using the stylus. To help break up the fifteen levels of increasingly intense action, some bonus stages have been included, with players throwing as many energy orbs into the screen as possible in an effort to hit all the flying saucers that zoom around. For 500 Nintendo Points, Spaceball: Revolution is an extremely engaging experience that will test your reactions and work your mind.