BALL x PIT

A wildly addictive bullet heaven roguelite that mixes Brick Breaker with Vampire Survivors. The fusion system is great, but the bounce-to-build mechanic sometimes deflates the fun.

Introduction

BALL x PIT is what happens when Vampire Survivors and a brick breaker have a baby, and that baby is extremely fun. You're diving into the pit where balls bounce around automatically destroying hordes of monsters, just like Vampire Survivors but with ricocheting projectiles instead of orbiting weapons. The "one more run" addiction is real here. I kept telling myself just one more dive, and suddenly three hours had passed.

The Ball Fusion System

This is where the game really shines. You start each run with basic balls, but as you level up by collecting gems from enemies, you can add new balls, upgrade existing ones, or grab passive items. The real magic happens with fusion and evolution. Combine two balls into one that has both effects, or evolve balls into more powerful versions. The combinations get absolutely wild, and every run feels different depending on what you find and how you fuse them.

When you pair this with each character's unique abilities, the build variety explodes. It's the kind of system that keeps you experimenting run after run because there's always another fusion to try.

Satisfying Everything

The sound design and visuals nail that satisfying feedback loop. Every bounce, every enemy killed, every fusion has this punchy feel that makes the chaos on screen feel great. When you've got dozens of balls ricocheting around and enemies are exploding everywhere, it's pure dopamine. The pixel art stays clean and readable even when things get hectic, which matters when you're tracking multiple projectiles bouncing across the screen.

Content and Meta-Progression

There's so much to unlock here. Over 60 different balls to experiment with, over 70 buildings for your meta-progression, multiple characters with unique mechanics, and different regions with their own enemy types and bosses. Between runs, you use collected resources to expand New Ballbylon, unlocking new characters, abilities, and power-ups. You can even assign workers to automate resource collection while you're diving back into the pit.

The meta-progression through New Ballbylon offers tons of unlockables - over 70 buildings, multiple characters, and various power-ups to discover between runs.

However, the bounce-to-build mechanic can feel deflating when you want to try new upgrades immediately but have to complete another run first to finish construction.

The Bounce-to-Build Issue

My main gripe is with how the meta-progression works. You spend resources between runs to start constructing a building, but then you have to physically bounce balls off it during your next run to complete construction. It's deflating when you've saved up for an upgrade you want to try immediately, only to realize you need another run just to finish building it before you can use it. The game introduces a mechanic later that helps, but it feels unnecessary.

I found myself reluctantly creating narrow alleyways and placing buildings next to each other just to ensure I could hit them all quickly during runs. It works as a workaround, but it shouldn't be necessary.

Room to Grow

I also wish the game had an endless mode where you could really push your builds to their limits. Maybe give you extra ball and equipment slots after each boss in a single run, with enemies scaling up accordingly. I often beat the final boss just as my build is getting truly broken, and I'd love the option to keep going and see how far I can take those fusion chains.

Verdict

BALL x PIT is an exceptional roguelite that successfully merges brick breaker mechanics with Vampire Survivors-style bullet heaven gameplay. The ball fusion system creates incredible build diversity, the town building provides satisfying meta-progression, and the core loop is addictive as hell. The bounce-to-build mechanic is a bit deflating and an endless mode would be welcome, but these are minor issues in what's otherwise a fantastic package. This is easily one of the best indie roguelites of the year.