The Ball

Developer: Toltec Studios

Publisher: Toltec Studios
Release Date: Oct. 26, 2010
System: PC
ESRB Rating: M
Official Web site

In a nutshell: Weighted Companion Sphere

0:00 I know practically nothing about this game, but the press materials that came with this beta compared it to Portal, so my expectations are quite high.

0:02 I’m not including the time it took to download this massive game from Steam, but I am including the two minutes or so it took to “perform first time setup” when I launch the game.

0:03 A few minutes spent tinkering with the settings: increasing the resolution and learning the default controls. The title screen features a shiny metal ball on a platform, with a few glowing circular sections on its face. Flies buzz around inside a cave filled with large gears, as figures shamble in the background. Atmospheric!

0:04 I start the Campaign and get to read a bit about the premise. “Separated form your friend you find yourself trapped in a cavern.” The rest of the text introduction spoils some surprises, actually, so I’m not even going to retype it here.

0:05 “Pico Del Medio, Mexico, 1940.” Zoom on a mountain peak and a dig site against an orange sky. Then cut to a view up from down the bottom of a 50 foot shaft. “Hey, are you all right?” calls a guy from the surface. “That was quite a fall you took. Listen, the crane broke down, we have to fly in a replacement and that will take some time. Go on and explore the area. We will meet up with you later.” The voice acting is borderline atrocious.

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***-->AT GAMERONI<-***

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