Balloonatics Reviews

A wacky and zany online battle game with fast-paced action but also reasonably deep mechanics to experiment with and discover surprising strategies. Also, not only allows VR and non-VR players equal access to play, but is even balanced enough that they can both compete on equal footing. Neither hardware method is over-powered. "Think Mario Kart battle mode, meets Guns of Icarus, with the visual style of a Saturday morning cartoon" Pros: - Loads more polish and stability right out the gate than any other Early Acces game I've played - Cute and goofy visual style. Always hilarious looking at other players flailing around inside their balloons - Great variety between levels both aesthetically and functionally - Many weapons deeply satisfying to use (Especially the Saw Slinger, zzzzzzzzzoooom) - Available weapons support a variety of play-styles. Defensive or offensive. Ranged or up-close - Emergent Gameplay: Many weapons can be used in unexpected ways, or even alongside other weapons, to expand the possiblities, and lead to great post-battle stories. Cons: - Needs a few more levels (Early Access though, so watch this concern become out-dated) - The notification that your friends are waiting for you to ready up and start the game needs to be more obnoxious, and harder to ignore, for those of us who get easily distracted playing target practice in the lobby :P - Some physics are frame-rate dependent so ancient/below-requirements computers can get occasional physics hiccups

This is quite an original idea for a super fun game, with amazing graphics and great gameplay. I haven't experienced it in VR but its already quite amusing without it. The game could get better with sounds from the characters to tease each other and such. But it is very polished for an early access one. I really recommend it. Super entertaining playing it with friends.

Good stuff! Nice to have VR and non-VR mix which should keep player base higher than exclusively VR. I've played both VR (HTC Vive) and non-VR. I always prefer VR in the end and the experience is great It's a game where you can keep working at it... I'm straight awful but there is more than just button mashing involved so with a little practice, one can improve which keeps it fresh. PIck er up!

Love how creative this game is - feels like being the captain of a ship while manning the cannons and frantically looking around to be aware of your surroundings and collect all the powerups. Lots of fun in VR!

This game in vr is so hard that i couldn't even kill the bots, after finishing the game, i was the worst bot on the leaderbord, please help

A fun game to play with friends. Multiplayer is the highlight and the hectic pace makes matches really entertaining. It's an easy game to pick up quickly while still rewarding the skill of those who take the time to master the controls. The game runs very well even on lower spec machines. It's nice that there's both a VR and non-VR option. Despite being Early Access I didn't experience any critical bugs. I look forward to seeing how this game progresses as features are added.

This game has a ton a important VR aspects such as hand poses, and the details of how you should be using VR, like down to the steering wheel of your cart. Has a close to nostalgic feel to the old mario cart games. Lots of different weapons and powerups for each different character, which adds to replayability. PC is just as good as VR in my opinion! Active developer to which is always appreciated in the indie titles. The maps are largely different and creative which is nice. Id maybe suggest somehow more indication of how the wind is going to affect your projectiles. Leap and bounds improvements over time which is great. Played a 3vs3 and greatly enjoyed my time!

Disclaimer: I know the developers and was a beta tester for the game prior to early access. First Impressions: * This game is awesome!!! It sort of reminds me of Mario Kart, but with the ability to play in VR as well. It is fast-paced, fun, and easy to pick up and play, but difficult to master. The Pros: * Cross-Platform Multiplayer Support: I originally tried this game for VR, and was surprised to find that it's actually pretty fun to play on PC as well. I love that you can play with your friends on both at the same time. The controls and gameplay are different between the platforms, but they have done a very good job at balancing everything so that there isn't a clear advantage either way. * Smooth VR Controls: One of the things that sets this game apart from other VR games is how smooth the controls and motion are. Every other game I have played that involves much motion has made me queezy, but somehow, even though this game is so quick-paced, it doesn't make me sick at all. * Single Player: I tried out some of the solo challenges and thought I'd blow through them really quick, but the more difficult ones are actually quite challenging to complete, let alone get a score up on the leader boards. They do get repetative though. I'm looking forward to them adding more/different single player modes. * Weapons/Items: I love the weapons and items so far, and I figured out that you can put most of them in the slingshot as well (like an empty rocket launcher). My favorite weapon in the game has to be the box of bees. I love how the buzzing sound instantly instills fear in me, and makes me run even if I'm about to down someone. I can't wait to see what weapons get added next. The Cons: * Slow to find multiplayer match: It takes awhile to find a multiplayer match. I expect this is because it was just released and will get better once a player-base is built up. They are planning to add bots soon, so this should be less of an issue once that's done. * No player progression: There isn't much for player stats, levels, unlockables, etc in the game right now. It's fun to play online with friends, or maybe to load up and show off your VR setup to people, but there isn't much incentive to keep playing solo unless you like seeing your name on top of the leaderboards for the challenges. * Minor Bugs: I noticed a couple minor bugs so far, but they haven't crashed the game or anything like that. Once when I was downed, my basket got stuck on a pillar part way down so I didn't reach the ground. Another time when I used a shield ball, the shield went flying around the map.... come to think of it, maybe it was supposed to be that way... maybe some of the shields are intentionally defective.

silly aiming system, cannot hit the target where you aiming at, and the ballistic trajectory is too vague to see, you can hardly distinguish far or near. Good idea, bad implement, fair price, big pity.

Graphics seem better than other early access games I've seen. I like playing with people but if you die right away you're kinda just stuck waiting for awhile until the match ends. I wish there was one main menu all the time not on the side of the basket as I often miss invites and readying up. Playing in VR is by far the best. Seeing your friends move as the characters is hilarious, so for that reason alone I would recommend it.