Ionball 2: Ionstorm Reviews

even though I love Arkanoid-style games, I was frustrated with this game from the beginning... not to talk about the endboss level. Graphics are nice, but overwhelming with all the flash-boom-bang. You cannot distinguish the ball from the rest of the field anymore. Also, the mouse control is not very exact. The angles of the paddle and the physics of the ball are somewhat unclear and thus unpredictable, which makes this game part talent/practics, part luck. Overall, a pass-time, but not worth the money imho

This is what happens when Miss Pong goes on a night on the town with Mr asteroids, take acid and have a quick fling in a gritty back alley somewhere, 9 months later they get a metal headbanging dubstep screaming eyegasming child. 9/10

This Feels So Good! Pure Dopamine! :D* This revitalization of the old classic games like Arkanoid is the very definition of a next-gen game! The best I have ever come across. Amazing job bringing an old game mechanic to a whole new level! * Better go see your doctor before playing it. This game has a strong neuro-active impact on your brain. xD

Unplayable with mousecontrol. Tried different settings but no chance. Somehow it's simulataneously too sensitive and not responsive...

This game looks great and might be fun but it's unplayable because of the dead zone the mouse has in game. It seems the developer abandoned the game even though it probably only needs a little fix. If it ever gets fixed I might consider purchasing it again.

"Patience is a virtue" = really applicable here! I were used to play in 2D environments (e.g. played [url=https://archive.org/details/msdos_Aquanoid_1992]Aquanoid, 1992[/url] a lot) in which it is a lot easier to 'calculate' where the ball hits the ground/paddle. It was a little annoying at first...Besides, the more you progress, the more weapons and other items you can use (depends on amount of XP). That's really fun, nice for the eye, useful and, moreover, it makes a hard level easy if you play tactical enough. This game comes with a lot of 'eye candy' (and has nice 'ear candy' too), but most annoying was and is the graphical (ball) distraction; it's sometimes too much for the eye... Of course I'd recommend this game, but I won't recommend playing this a couple of hours at once, because it's not a relaxation for your eyes. But I do believe it does learn you to improve your focus and responsiveness :) Good for the brain (CPU), bad for your eyes (GPU)! EDIT: from 7.5 (1st hour) to 8.5/10 (completed)! The more you progress, the more beautiful it all looks and with all those so-called 'Active' and 'Passive' items/weapons, it never bored me :) Variation enough! EDIT_2: the Tower Assault DLC is surprisingly great! It's less difficult due to all the (auto) power-ups, but therefore a feast and just sensational to look at :)

Hey everyone and this is my review about the game! This is a "Breakout" game. (search on google what it is) [h1]Interface/Menu/Settings[/h1] I personally find the Main menu Music an annnoyance and disturbing. You can slide the music and sound volume with the bar. The % will tell you how high/low it is. You can play this on fullscreen or windows mode. With multiple graphics quality. it has many resolution sizes. There is a leaderboards, but nobody cares i think. There are 2 game modes. "Endless survival" and Story mode. [h1]About the game.[/h1] This is a breakout game, you move ur bat and you keep hitting the ball and you have to destroy the enemy ships (instead of blocks). The levels will be harder and harder. But you are able to find some upgrades to your balls or bat. Which will be needed ofcourse. The longer the ball is alive. The higher the bonus but the speed is also increased. There are passives and Activatiable upgrades. You are able to upgrade your balls! HA!!.. and your BAT!! HA!!.. with experience. At the right side you will see "Codex". This gives you information about enemies and items. There is a death and a time counter. The ball is highlighted with some Neon Lights. It has Techno/Dance Music. The longer the ball is rolling the bigger your bonus will be. Because the bonus bar is going higher and higher overtime. However the speed of the ball will also be increased overtime. Enemies will drop green chips, which will give you some Experience. So make sure you pick them up with the Bat or you will lose it. If you have run out of lives and you are game over, Your score will be deleted and you get 3 lives again. You get 1 live everytime you beat a level. You get extra bonus score points if you have managed to complete a level without dying. You can choose the level on the current floor, but once beaten you can't redo it. [h1]Other things.[/h1] The game goes quite fast. Im not sure if slower machines would have an advantage coz the game will run slower. I am terrible at this game. The Neon Light from the ball COULD be a distraction or difficult time to follow the ball. ------------------- I Give this game a 7/10

I was going to give this game a big thumbs down and get a refund. I am glad I played it for a little longer then I intended. I used the mouse controls and it was not good. However PRO TIP <> I did try the game with a xbox 360 controller and I found the game to be unplayable with that setup. I do not recommend it. The game doesnt recommend it either and I can see why its terrible. The graphics are nice looking and the sound is very good as well. The game does move fast so I bought a upgrade to my paddle and made it longer. It make the game a little easier. I have the graphics set for fastest. This is a great price for 49 cents on sale. I do think at the start the game is a little to tough. It throws you in the deep end right away. However stick with it and just use the continue button. When you lose all of your lives. It does hurt your overall score but you dont lose everything. UPDATE: The game is kind of annoying because later on you need to upgrade your shields on your paddle. However I spent all my credits on other stuff I didnt need. So make sure you buy shields for the boss battle. Since you cannot go back and play previous levels. Something that I think is a real over sight in the game. UPDATE TO MY UPDATE: Finished the main game. Sort of. The main boss is a dodging game. No seriously it is. NO BALL. Just you dodging laser beams non stop. Not a lot of fun. Power up weapons dont amount to anything for the head boss. I youtubed the ending as I felt sort of ripped off at the bad dodge the laser junk. SERIOUSLY developers? Bad form old chap. I personally would not buy this at the retail price of 5 bucks.

Even at a great discount I found this game not to be worthy of my time. The physics feel wrong, the gameplay area is too constricted, the screen gets too cluttered and, most annoyingly, the ball (the object one is supposed to chase in order to bounce it back) is, more often than not, obscured by either the falling bonuses (of the exact same color) or pieces of the exploding aliens/bricks (of the exact same brightness). I used to have a (free) Arcanoid-clone game on my Win98, I think it was called DX-Ball. It was more fun than this.

[h1]Ionball 2: Ionstorm - First Impressions[/h1] [i]To be totally upfront, when the 90's were over I had pretty much stopped playing 2D games. I couldn't really find enjoyment in them anymore. But this game brought me back to what I first loved about them: Simple layout, skill-based focus & a great time sink.[/i] [b]What's it like[/b]: This game feels like classic Pong-meets-Space-Invaders. You're not so much shooting bullets as 'catching' them via your thrown ball. You need to defend a space tower & destroy some alien vehicles. All the while keeping track of your ionball. [b]Replay[/b]: Replay value is good (so far). I've played around 25 different levels of this game and I've found most of them interesting & challenging. When I lose all my lives & it's "Game Over" I don't feel utterly beaten & ready to quit. Instead, I feel eager to try again. It encourages me to hone my reflexes and peak my curiosity over what the next level might bring. I feel the end-goal is far less about 'winning' the game, although there is a Leaderboard you can compete in if you want to try. [b]Graphics[/b]: Graphics are up to date in this decade, with a 3D-look over a 2D format. There are two viewing/playing options but my fav is Top-Down; in the style of the old arcade shooter/pinball games. I will note that beginner players may easily get confused with all the sparkly bits & lose sight of their fast-moving ball. If you're getting frustrated, turn down the graphics to 'Fastest' & then raise them up later to a fancier setting once you've gotten the hang of the game. Focus first on enjoying & progress, rather than perfection. [b]Controls[/b]: From what I've read this game is not compatible with joystick or controller. It is intended to be used with a mouse, and thankfully it works well. You only need to tilt the mouse side to side & left click to fire your first shot at each new level (or use the menu). The great news is it's also a simple one-handed game; so if you've carpal tunnel in one hand you'll still be able to play with the other. Although playing this game with your off-hand will be a good challenge. :) [b]Price[/b]: I got it during the holiday sale, so it was under $2 for me. It's easily worth $10, however. If you're not sure that it's even worth $10 then add it to your wishlist & wait for a sale. That said, you may end up feeling like I did though; a bit guilty about getting such a good deal. [b]Saves[/b]: This game saves your progress after each completed level, so if you lose all your lives & hit 'Game Over' you can still continue where you left off (although there is a score penalty). You can also opt to start a new game to try to raise your score higher (and reduce your # of deaths.) As said before, the replay value is good. [b]Seizure Warning[/b]: I'm sure nearly every fast-paced game on Steam would have this warning but I'll say it anyways. As the levels progress, the game gets far more flashy & intense. [u]If you're prone to intense seizures then LEAVE THIS GAME ALONE - It's not worth the misery[/u]. If however, you suffer from very mild seizures and still want to try this game then put all the settings down to minimum, take plenty of breaks & stop if you feel strain or headaches. It's fun to play, but it can get very intense, very quickly. [u]Take care of your health, please[/u]. [b]Playstyle Tip[/b]: I personally feel this game is meant to be used with peripherial(rod) vision. Focusing straight on the ball (which most people tend to do) may cause you to lose sight of it very quickly as colours & movement clash together. I recommend instead that you relax your eyes & look 'through' the screen about 1 foot behind it - like you would with the old 3D Magic Eye creations. With a bit of practice, this method will give you a wider field of vision & allow you to react faster to changes. It will also reduce the chance of headaches if you're prone to them. Now if you'll excuse me, I shall end this review & go back to playing... :)