BALLZ’N Review

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All in for BALLZ’N? Introducing the perfect party game for Tipsy adults or family fun. It’s an all-in ball-bouncing race to the highest score loaded with offense and defense moves. Bounce your balls in the top two bowls to score the most points and collect your opponents’ balls as they miss and bounce them in the bottom bowl to take their points away. Practice your trick shots and get the ball in the top tube for the instant win. But watch out! If you knock the stack over it is an instant loss. Easily stacks and stores with a lid for portability and on-the-go fun. Each game comes with three stacking bowls, 12 balls (6 teal, 6 green), lid, and instructions. This is the perfect game to play one on one or in teams.

Disclaimer: The publisher provided the copy of BALLZ’N. The opinions expressed in the review are completely my own.

Review:

Overview:

If you are looking for an easy to set up, fast paced, and all around fun family or party game, BALLZ’N will work. The game is easy to transport, easy to set up, and easy to play. Explaining the rules takes just a few seconds, and the fun begins just as fast. It’s just as fun to play one-on-one and as teams. Because the balls can bounce almost anywhere, it gets you up and moving, creating lots of excitement. So, if you’re looking for a quick game the whole family can play, then BALLZ’N should be a choice.

The rules take up one standard 8 ½ x 11 inch sheet of paper, which includes Game Setup, How to Play, and some strategy tips. The rules are very simple, each tier has a different point value, and you gain or lose points based on where your balls end up.

Setup is simple and straightforward. You stack the bowls up in tiers and give each team a set of colored balls (basically ping pong balls). That’s it, you’re ready to begin.

BALLZ’N doesn’t really have a theme, you are simply trying to get your team’s balls in the highest tier for the most points.

The Mechanic is fairly simple, teams stand an equal distance away from the bowls and try to bounce the team’s balls in, but you can also collect balls that don’t go in, including the other team’s balls, and try again. You play until all the balls are in, or someone gets a ball in the Instant Win tier.

Gameplay has been described previously, but there are 2 teams with an initial set of 6 balls each. Once everyone is set, all players simultaneously try to bounce balls into the tiers of bowls. The bottom bowl is -1 point, the next bowl is +1 point, the next bowl is +2 points, and if you can get a ball in the center tube, it’s an instant win for the team whose ball went in, so try to make sure it is your team’s ball. As balls miss or bounce off the bowls, plays collect the balls and keep trying to bounce them in until all the balls are in one of the bowls, or until someone Instant Wins. Then you add and subtract points and the team with the most points is the winner.

The design of game storage is done well. The game packs up into what looks like a single bowl with a lid. All of the game pieces fit inside, making it easy to store and transport. It is also designed well for easy setup and tear down.

It is not super simple to get a ball in a tier, it takes a little bit of skill, so some younger players may get a little frustrated at this. Encourage the skill building. Also, since it isn’t so easy, the balls will likely bounce off the bowls sending them flying. This means players will need to do a fair bit of running around gathering stray balls, so those who don’t want to be active may not like this part of the game.

We’ve had a blast playing this game; playing individual contests of winner takes all as well as teams. I feel like I spent most of my time chasing after balls, but to me that was half the fun; the game would be over too quick if everyone simply bounced all their balls into a bowl. So, if you need a quick game for family nights or parties, this is one you should consider. I am happy to add it to my lineup of games.

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Thomas Shepherd- Reviewer

I grew up loving to solve puzzles, play games, and have fun.  In my younger years I had fun playing pencil games, enjoyed the creativity of playing Dungeons and Dragons with my friends, and generally hanging out with others. My favorite thing to do was to make puzzles of all kinds, mazes, word games, picture games, etc.

Sadly my career took me in a different direction, solving computer problems rather than gaming problems.

Gaming came back into my life, though, in a big way about 15 years ago, and I have held onto it since. I still enjoy designing games and have 9 published titles, which I did through my own game publishing company, Toresh Games, prior to the Covid pandemic. Sadly I was not able to sustain the company through the pandemic.

I highly encourage people to play games, make friends, and have fun. As a game enthusiast, I would love to see a return to games as the best social media platform for the masses.

All of Thomas Shepherd’s reviews can be found HERE.