At GDC I got to try out Pool Party, a cute little party game you might want to wishlist if you have the friends for it. The game supports four-player couch co-op. You take control of the cutest pool ball character that you can customize. There are only six game modes, but they have more planned for the future. The game modes include Sumo, Tennis, Pool, Football, Jinxed, and Free For All. Each game is based on a sport and has been adapted to fit the pool theme, and it works brilliantly.
The developers wanted Pool Party to be skill-based. Each game relies heavily on physics. Although each round erupts into chaos, you need to put thought into the moves you make to complete the objectives. The devs also wanted the focus to be on the mini-games, so they eliminated all the boring bits you would find in games like Mario Party. Instead of waiting through boring animation, you spend your time between rounds voting on the next mini-game.
The mini-games are a lot of fun, but I loved football (soccer) the most. Having to recalibrate my approach for each game mode kept me engaged, and the chaos had me focused. You have been warned, this game might destroy a couple of friendships.
The biggest draw to this game is its appearance. This game is super cute, and the maps are vibrant and fun. The developers plan on releasing multiple maps to give the game its variety.
If you are looking for a party game and have the friends to play with, you should at least wishlist Pool Party on Steam. They also plan to release it on the Nintendo Switch, but there isn’t any information on that release yet. There is also a demo you can download and try before you commit.
I want to thank the devs who joined up to play and answered all my questions. I didn’t win any of the matches, but I had a lot of fun regardless. Make sure you follow them on their socials to stay up to date on all the news. You can find them on Discord, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, and Instagram.
Game Review: Pinball Wizard
I want to start by saying that I was sent this game as a review code. While I am grateful for the opportunity, I will not let this sway my opinion. This will be my honest review of the game.
Pinball Wizard is a cute little pinball game with a few extra steps that I am sure you will enjoy. You can play it on the Nintendo Switch, PC, and IOS devices. This review will be on the Nintendo Switch version.
There is no story mode for this game. Instead, you choose from two game modes: Tower mode and Dungeon mode. In tower mode, you progress through different tables with increasing. Dungeons are larger tables that you can play with as long as you don’t die. Both modes offer a calm and relaxing experience as you try to clear each room, get your loot, and level up your wizard.
This game plays like a pinball. Instead of a ball, you bounce around a cute little wizard. Each table is themed as its own dungeon room with its set of roaming monsters. As you play, your wizard will level up, and you use the loot you collect during each run to level up your abilities and spells. There might be a way to min-max your wizard, but I suggest you unlock the skills that fit your playstyle. You’ll have more fun that way.
My only complaint about this game is that it can be slow as you wait for the wizard to finish traveling. It is only a problem in earlier levels where you don’t have any spells, but it isn’t a huge spell as the tables aren’t too big. Once you get your spells, there is always something to do, but it never gets overwhelming.
Pinball Wizard is worth the $8. This is a great game to pick up if you want something relaxing to play that isn’t a huge commitment. The art is cute, the gameplay is solid, and you can come back to it anytime without feeling lost. If you like pinball and magic, check this game out. You can pick it up from Nintendo, Steam, and the App Store.
