Go Mecha Ball Review (Boo)
A very well polished game aesthetically, and rich mechanically, but with many areas of improvement.
I'll start with the obvious, the game looks and feels incredible. The creator really knows how to sell the animations and game-feel. The action is so satisfyingly punchy.
A not-so-obvious area of strength for the game is the rich mechanics. You alternate between mech and ball forms, where the ball provides mobility and tackle damage, and the mech form provides access to your weapons and abilities. Getting the hand of seamlessly and purposefully alternating your forms, along with switching your weapons, is the start of the "getting good" part of the game that's so satisfying to achieve, which the game rewards good play with a higher combo counter that yields more coins upon defeating enemies. Coins you can use to purchase items in the shop.
But herein lies my main issue with the game. It explains too little. There are two main parts that require mastery, mastering the mechanics, and mastering the builds, and the game does not provide adequate information to be able to master either of them.
The game does not explain how the combo counter works; what increases it, what resets it, how long it lasts, how to maintain it, nothing.
But it also does not put enough information on the various upgrades, abilities, and weapons. Something like "Increases critical hit chance", how much does it increase it? What was the chance initially? What will it be after the upgrade? How much is the Critical damage? It tells you nothing. Expand this principle to the rest of the items.
I final thing I want to mention is the level design. The variety is low enough that you can spot the templates, but it still provides enough variation that you have to scour the stage to understand and make better approaches. However, whether intentional or not, the stages can create weird scenarios where you have to propel yourself in a janky ways to reach specific enemies. And sometimes, the path is so long to reach a certain place that your combo is all but gone. Might be an intentional design, but unfavorable in my point of view.
Overall, the game still delivered a great experience. I was able to defeat the game on the initial run / difficulty. But the lack information barred me from delving further into higher difficulties as figuring out the intricacies of the mechanics and elements proved too troublesome.
But a very enjoyable experience nonetheless.