The highly enjoyable PSN title, Magic Ball, has received some much needed DLC. The full version received some high praise from the PSLS staff, so as you can imagine we had some high expectations for this expansion pack.
The theme this time around is supposed to be wicked witches, but in actuality there are only a handful of levels that actually contain witches. Most of the levels seem oddly familiar to the knight-themed levels. It adds variety, but it seems like the developer should have stayed more with the theme of the title.
The gameplay though is just as fun and enjoyable as the full title. You use the bumper to hit the ball in order to destroy everything within the 3D levels. All the same power ups are available, as well as some trickier elements, such as the fountain that changes your ball into a crazy ball. The only real change this time around is the positioning of the levels, which are now more diagonal. This doesn’t change the overall gameplay too much, but the new layout is refreshing.
The comedic nature of each level is also well in-tact, so you never really know what to expect. There may be a classroom full of animals, or a witch and a bunch of wolves making trouble. It is really nice to see they’ve still kept this element, as it’s one of the reasons the original game was so enjoyable.
With the new levels, you also get a few cool trophies to add to your collection. Some are extremely easy and some are relatively tough, but overall it’s great that these were included as added incentive. At the same time this DLC pack hit PSN, there also was a patch that added the ability for custom soundtracks, and this alone would have been worth a purchase. It’s not that the original music was bad. But you can’t beat busting apart 3-D castles and destroying witches and dragons while listening to some AC/DC.
There really aren’t any major negatives with the new levels. Some of the same bugs that plagued the original are still present this time. One in particular would be that sometimes, even when your bumper is snug against the wall, the ball still seems to be able to find away through. I am not sure if I was just rusty, but it seemed like this happened a lot more this time around.
Also, be warned that the difficulty level has been increased this time around. It can be frustrating at times depending on how certain items are laid out within the levels, but it definitely provides a good challenge. It goes to show that the developers didn’t just push out new content for the newbies.
Overall, this is a wonderful expansion pack. You get 25 new levels, a new layout, and all the comedic elements that you’ve come to love. It’s a little more difficult than before, but if you’ve played through the original game then this is a good thing, and should keep you engaged all the way through. And at only $2.99, it is the ultimate steal. Anyone who likes the original title will love this expansion pack, and I definitely recommend it.
PlayStation LifeStyle’s Final Score
New layout is a nice change of pace. The difficulty is amped up which is mostly a good thing, but can be frustrating at times. |
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