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I decided to split the review between the main campaign (my review for “Metroid Prime: Federation Force” can be found here) and “Blast Ball” to avoid a wall of text (a bad habit of mine) while grading them as their own respective games.“Metroid Prime: Blast Ball” is a futuristic sports game that comes with the full game and as a separate demo. While the functionality of the demo remains a little unclear after online support is removed let’s go over game.

“Blast Ball” is essentially football (soccer for Americans) with Mechs running around the field. And in this 3 versus 3 player (Team Indigo vs Team Gold) game players must blast the ball into the goal and win with a total of three goals. As they score the opposing goal area will shrink down to add more difficulty. And if there is a tie after the time is up, then it’s Sudden-Death time with the goals full area open. However, if it’s still a tie after Sudden Death then the game ends with a draw (which would result in having some points removed from the player’s ranking). It’s a very simple and fun game though it’s one of those “difficult to master” titles.

metroid prime blast ball eyes on the ball

Be sure to lock onto the ball at all times, but watch who you’re rolling it into.

The Blast Ball itself works like a cue ball. Because you´re shooting it in the right spot, the ball will move in that direction. Using Charge Beams will charge the ball and launch it from the direction of getting hit. Charging can also attract the ball towards you, and after getting hit a number of times power-ups will release. These power-ups are the Shield to prevent damage from both the opposing team and Blast Ball, adrenaline to speed up movement, energy recovery (for the arm cannon), and projectiles, and Eject to force all members of the opposing team out of their Mechs. The Blast Ball will also take on different forms, such as a fiery ball that looks like a Red Dwarf Star. The important detail to remember about the ball is that it will cause serious damage when it hits, which can be used as an advantage against the opposing team.

I think it´s time to play Queen´s “We are the champions” song now.

As with “Federation Force” multiplayer features for “Blast Ball” include Solo (with bots to fill the teams), Local, and Online. However, unlike the main game, it also has Download Play (which allows players to join in with just one copy of the game). With all of these options, there are two game modes: Versus and Challenge. Versus is the standard competitive mode where six players face off against each other. Challenge Mode is an elimination tournament where the players’ team go head-to-head with the computers as it becomes more difficult as the mode progresses. There really isn’t much variety, but at least you can find some players one way or another.

I may have bots on my side, but that’s not stopping me from scoring.

MP: BB´s style goes for a sort of futuristic sports theme. The Mechs looks like their military-grade siblings but designed for easy access after someone used the Eject power-up. They also have paint jobs that are unique in this game (all of which can be unlocked after certain conditions are met). Furthermore, they retain the detailed mechanical animations from the main game. However, the Mechs body animations have more personality to them. And during scenes, they show a competitive side, displaying humanistic gestures for victory or defeat. The stadium is part of the G.F.S. Aegis herself and only herself. There’s not much variety for location but the layout is simple to follow, between team colors and how the goals adjust themselves. There are plenty of light shows, especially fanfare when scoring.

This paint job looks great, but it doesn’t take up five screens.

There are a few tunes in the soundtrack, and they sound like the dramatic music used in “Federation Force.” The player will constantly hear sound effects from Charge Beams, the Blast Ball, and the HUD’s system since the action is ongoing until the goal, which could fade out the music. “Blast Ball” uses Nintendo’s Voice Chat but unlike “Federation Force” it works slightly better. The reason for this is that it’s a sports game with strategies like Defense and Offensive where with missions you need more to say.

The Motion and Circle Pad Pro controls are also in this part of the full game. The Motion has all the bindings on the face and shoulder buttons with the Circle Pad used for moving. Motion aiming is done with holding down the right shoulder button. However, the problem with using the Motion scheme is that it is difficult to aim at the ball keeps moving (even when locked on). So the Circle Pad Pro controls (which uses the Argonaut Control method found in the modern home console FPS games) suffers from the same issue. Nevertheless, with some effort players could still roll into victory.

Pros:
+ A fun FPS Sports game to wind down with
+ Easy to pick up and play
+ Download Play gives more accessibility to the multiplayer aspect of the game
+ Features a couple of different game mode

Cons:
– Stadium is limited to the G.F.S. Aegis when there were three planets that could have one
– Nintendo’s Voice Chat may work a bit better, but it’s still not the best method
– There are not all that many game modes to play with

Gameplay: 3.5/5
Graphics: 3.5./5
Sound/Music: 3/5
Controls: 3.5/5
Replay value: 3.5/5

tgg grade 3 out of 5

Verdict: 3/5
“Metroid Prime: Blast Ball” is a fun side game that uses assets from “Federation Force.” So (in my oppinion) MP: BB is a good enough distraction if you need a break from the main campaign (or if just want to play a sports game with some Mechs). Furthermore, if the MP: BB Demo is still around after the online feature is discontinued, then the game is worth downloading to trying out for sure.

Title: Metroid Prime: Blast Ball
Developer: Next Level Games
Format: Nintendo 3DS
Genre: First-Person Shooter, Sports
Resolution: 800 x 240/320 x 240
Release date: 2016-08-19
Difficulty: Easy to Difficult, depending on online player skill and options
Spent time: 2+ hours
Average grade internationally: 65.88% Gamerankings.com (Full Game)
PEGI/ESRB age rating: PEGI 12+/Teen
Price: $39.99 (Full Game), Free (Demo)