On the Ball (SNES) Playthrough - NintendoComplete
281A playthrough of Taito's 1992 action-puzzle game for the Super Nintendo, On the Ball.
On the Ball is a port of Taito's 1989 arcade puzzler Cameltry. Using rotary stick controls like those found in Arkanoid, the object of the game is to move your ball through each maze as quickly as quickly as possible, and there are various traps in each of the mazes that reduce your time or impede movement, as well as bonus crates that can be broken open for time and score bonuses.
The ace-in-the-sleeve here is that you don't actually control the ball - it merely responds to its surroundings, and that is where you, as the player, comes in. You control the maze itself. The stage freely spins around the center of the screen, and you have to provide the ball as clear of a path as possible to the goal. It's a bit like Irritating Stick, but backwards. Or like Marble Madness... at least in that the focus is on blue balls.
Sorry. I couldn't resist that one.
If it sounds simple, that's because it is, but it is this simplicity that gives On the Ball its timeless appeal. There is little in the way of gimmicks or fancy bells-and-whistles, but the game's core mechanic is used to create something that's endlessly playable without ever being convoluted. It's an excellent example of how to do more with less, and a fine example of Taito's understanding of how to create something that remains endlessly playable, regardless of how much time passes or technology changes.
If you recall Arkanoid, released a few years earlier, you'll probably notice much of the same design philosophy in play. Taito even adapted the control scheme from Arkanoid's. Of course, the SNES didn't have the Vaus controller like the NES had for its Arkanoid port (which really would have been perfect for On the Ball!), but the gamepad controls do he job just fine. However, if you must have true analog control, the game supports the SNES mouse, and a bit of twitchiness aside, does an excellent job of approximating the smoothness of the dial controls.
Except for the password/name entry screen. Probably the hardest part if the whole game (lol!) because the controls are waaaaay to slippery to use when entering text. Grumble grumble.
The graphics and sound hold up well, too. The Taito F1 hardware that the arcade version ran on was hardly a powerhouse, but the SNES's Mode-7 rotation effects replicate the original's (occasionally nauseating) animation nigh flawlessly. The excellent Zuntata soundtrack also makes the transition intact without too much loss in fidelity, which is a big plus. There are a number of references to older Taito games, too, that fans will surely notice - I got a real kick out of the Darius-themed stage.
I absolutely loved On the Ball. It flies super-low beneath most people's radars, but you'd be hard pressed to find another arcade-style puzzler as playable or as addictive as this on a 16-bit machine, even if it is missing Joe Camel on the US packaging ;)
I've also noticed that there is little coverage of it on YouTube, and all of the videos that claim to be longplays only cover the first "phase," making it look like a super short game. There are actually four of these phases, though, and they are unlocked with the passwords you get upon clearing all of the stages of the current phase. This video shows the entire game, including the ending and final credit roll. Hope you all enjoy it!
_
No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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