Sketch Ball review

At times the appearance of games completely fool me. Some games might look like they are made by mad children, but still play like a dream. In the case of Sketch Ball it has that look, but sadly it lacks in the gameplay department.

The controls in Sketch Ball are all touch based. You select one of the three line types available, and simply draw a line. The normal line is the most usable, as it changes the direction. The fast and slow simply affect the speed. I usually use one fast alongside the normal line to speed it all up. Once you have the lines as you want them you start the ball, and sit back and watch it bounce about. To retry you simply press reply, and to erase there is a nifty button to clear the entire level. I would have like to have control over the amount being erased, or a sequential undo feature instead of the wipe all available.

There are two game modes available: puzzle and destroy. In puzzle you have to get the ball to the finish. Black surfaces lets the ball bounce, and white kills it. The challenge comes from the limited ink supply. In destroy you have to smash the objects completely before time runs out. A fast line, and a couple of normal lines are usually enough to complete the levels without problem.

I have a big issue with one aspect of the game, and that is the fact that it is not consistent in how it interprets lines and physics. If I retry the same setting five times I will get the ball bouncing around in at least three different ways. This inconsistence is hurting the experience quite a lot since everything starts to feel random. I generally solve all puzzle levels the same way. I draw some diagonal lines in the corners, a couple of lines to cover white objects and a fast line. Then I retry the layout until the ball reaches the goal in puzzle more, or smashed everything in destroy mode. To me this is something that more or less breaks the game, and my interest in it. When planning or skill isn’t needed I don’t see the point of playing.

The presentation is supposed to look like a sketch drawn by a child, and it succeeds quite well in that aspect. Compared to other physics puzzles it lacks a lot of finesse, and graphical flair. The music is nice, and memorable loops of glitchy electronica. You can play your own music as well, but make sure to turn off the in game music as it keeps playing otherwise.

With 75 levels Sketch Ball comes with quite a lot of content, but as the gameplay remains more or less the same random ball bouncing it fails to entertain long enough to warrant interest in that many levels. There is no online functionality built in, and no achievements available.

Sketch Ball looks like a simple line drawing, ball smashing game and well it is. The randomness of the physics involved gives little room for planning, or trial and error gameplay. In the end I was left unimpressed, and the only thing that stuck with me was the catchy electronic soundtrack. Give the lite version a go to sample the developer, but I would not recommend the full version at this time.