Antonball Deluxe is a brick-breaking platformer with a variety of unique phases and silly dialogue. Antonball Deluxe, developed by Summitsphere and published by Proponent Games, offers a diverse cast of characters to unlock, including a brawny rooster named Cooper, and the aptly named Ant On Ball.
There are partly fleshed-out stories that go along with the two main modes, and the graphics have a nostalgic art style with modern humor. Antonball Deluxe draws inspiration from classic games like Super Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong.
In Antonball, new characters can be unlocked in the Extras menu by going to the Lottery and spending 50,000 chips to drop a random prize from the machine. Prizes also include stages and catchy music tracks that can be listened to in the Rec Room. Chips are earned in each game mode, based on the corresponding player's score. There are some characters that are unlocked by beating the various game modes in one run, or by completing bonus phases. Antonball Deluxe has a variety of stages and 3 unique game modes that vary in difficulty.
Antonball and Vs. Antonball
The Antonball mode opens with Anton leaving Brulo's and falling into a sewer. Antonball Deluxe's gameplay really doesn't have anything to do with the story, but it's still entertaining, and it adds much-needed atmosphere. In this mode, a hybrid game combining Breakout and Super Mario Bros., players must hit the ball by jumping, super jumping, or dashing into it. The tutorial also advertises that players can control the direction of the ball with directional buttons; unfortunately, it didn't seem to work in any phase, including the tutorial, but this is the only function that doesn't work properly.
There are also power-ups to add variety to the gameplay, such as Triball or Blaster (which shoots bricks and enemies.) In certain phases, there are enemies that have to be hit with the ball, shot with the Blaster, or dodged until they walk off-screen. The levels range from mildly difficult to nearly impossible, and players aren't able to select individual levels, only stages. A lot of time spent in the game will be getting back up to the last played level.
Versus Antonball has the same mechanics as the classic mode, but there are two brick walls on either side of the screen. Players will go head to head in teams of one or two (up to four players total) and try to take out each other's wall. The first one to break the other team's bricks wins. This mode is a fun, leisurely break from the difficult, sometimes frustrating, stages in classic mode.
Punchball
The second game type is Punchball, which shows Annie entering and winning a fighting contest for a lifetime supply of Brulo's Ballba Tea. Again, the story is mostly unrelated to actual gameplay, but Annie's vicious, competitive nature is still entertaining. Punchball is a modern game with a retro style where the player is given a medicine ball to pick up and throw at incoming enemies. The phases vary in structure, how many enemies there are, and which types they are. Punchball has 5 different enemies with unique abilities such as the fast-moving seal or the glove that can catch the ball and throw it back. Players need to hit enemies to stun them, then run into them to knock them out before the stun wears off.
Punchball is a welcome change from Antonball. There are some harder phases where enemies surround the player, but it is, overall, a much easier game mode than Antonball. Beating Punchball can be quick and strategic, where players jump over enemies and throw the ball frequently, or they can camp out in a single spot. In most of the levels, the enemies will come to the player, and there's no time bonus for this mode, so there's no downside to lying in wait. Punchball is a good way to rack up chips for the lottery as it's a quicker playthrough than Antonball.
Antonball Deluxe is a fun, addicting, and mildly frustrating arcade-style game with witty writing and great sound effects. The character voices and background music fit in with the iconic soundtracks of classic games. There are 69 unique phases that challenge players with varying levels of difficulty. Even with the minor control issues, the diverse gameplay and nostalgic atmosphere make Antonball Deluxe a fun and addicting retro-style game.
Antonball Deluxe releases today, September 28th, 2021 for Nintendo Switch. Screen Rant was provided a digital Nintendo Switch download code for the purpose of this review.