Lets all be on the same page: This game's kinda stupid, yeah? Its a complete novelty of a game made to experiment with a new gimmick in a really weird way. Its not aiming to be some paragon of solid game design or emotionally invigorating, masterclass game, I'm sad to report. Its a stupid game at its core, and thats exactly what drew me to buy it for the five bucks I found it for. A platformer with no jumping, controlled with whats essentially a trackball? I HAD to see what the hell this even was, and if there's anything to be gained from its gimmick.

And, I mean, kinda?

It feels like a game that taps into knowing how inherently fun it is to interact with its systems, like how Mario 64 was made so open ended to make its fully analog controls really feel natural and worthwhile. What you get here then is a bunch of ramps, slopes, straightaways and seesaws that all highlight the simple joy of Being Ball, but unlike Monkey Ball its not made to be ballbustingly challenging and demanding you master its physics: Rather, it just asks you to have fun with them.

Honestly the vibe of the game in general feels extremely N64, not just with the aforementioned "lookit our cute gimmick" game feel that stuff like Glover or Chameleon Twist had but also just its visuals and sounds. Its a lot more vibrant, yet simple compared to Pac-Man World. It has that very specific "5th gen 3D game" kind of design where it kind of has objectives and escalating challenges, but it feels more interested in just letting you faff around, not really endangering you until way late in the game.

And sure, there are collectibles, much like the Pac-Man Worlds, which are more traditionally structured "escalating challenge" 3D platformers, yet it doesnt feel like Pac N Roll is all too interested in you getting 100% completion. (Though, having unique Time Attack layouts for all levels is a nice touch)

And, well yeah, the game does honestly feel quite nice to control to where I wouldnt have been opposed to 100%ing this if I was a kid. The Pacster stops with a still tap of the screen but otherwise rolls with the momentum you give him, mixed with whatever the slopes are up to. There's a level near the end of the game thats all just one big slide a la Mario 64, except here due to the great sense of Ball you have it feels really intense and satisfying to get through, but you still are able to stop yourself at any time. Its such an interesting setup! The last two worlds in general are when the gloves come off and the game actually starts doing stuff with its insane setup, having stuff like multiple seesaws in a row you need to manipulate carefully to move across, bumpers that send you careening off stage, etc

For as middling as the experience can feel theres a kind of charm to seeing them try to add depth to such a gimmicky setup. Like, the speed burst move you get by stopping the stylus at the very edge of the screen, or the power-up hats that make you lighter or heavier. Silly stuff for sure, and they dont really ever test your prowess in Gaming, but theyre there just to add a little more sauce to the weird meal you're having. Same kinda goes for the bosses, theyre not really that hard but just toss you about in a new way from before.

All around, yeah, its a pretty ho-hum game--EXCEPT that the final boss, I shit you not, is a 5-phase GAUNTLET that is as big in level design length as the game's actual levels. Its genuinely insane but it has some of the most creative concepts in the game. Controlling the ball in a pinball machine? How about controlling the ball on a platform thats teetering all kinds of wild directions unpredictably! How about controlling one in a funnel, where taking any moment to rest sends you rolling toward the pit in the center?

Its this kind of variety, paired with the game's unreplicateable control setup, that makes me sad we'll probably never get a game like this again. These kinds of medium-budget, "hey this idea seems funny" games just don't happen anymore outside of...idk, mobile? VR? Its sad, but we should appreciate the quirkiness we got. Go hunt down those weird games! Concept seem ridiculous? Try it!

Typing of the Dead, Yoshi Topsy-Turvy, DK Jungle Climber, Sonic & the Secret Rings...Are all of these games great? No, not really! But their attempts at the bizarre concepts nobody else dared to try are worth experiencing, remembering, and learning from

Playtime: 10 Hours
Key word: Silly