King Oddball Review

In my job, I play a lot of different games. Some are great, some aren't so great, some make the evening vanish because I'm so busy playing them. King Oddball is an example of the latter. It's not perfect but it exudes fun in every way.

With one touch controls, King Oddball is immediately accessible. Playing the bad guy, players must destroy the world by flinging rocks at the various helicopters and tanks in their way. Physics wise, it's kind of like Angry Birds in that the player must line up their shot in order to fling the rock at buildings that can then topple to take out the tanks. It's a little more eventful than that, however, as the rock is consistently keen to bounce and ricochet around the area.

Momentum is built up through King Oddball's tongue which grabs the rocks before flailing from left to right, making it a balancing act to time the release of the rock in order to take out the tanks. It's simple yet effective.

Ricochet off sufficient tanks and other obstacles so that one rock takes out many tanks, and a multiplier is earn leading to extra rocks and making completing the level that touch easier. Not that King Oddball needs to be made easier as it's quite simple anyhow. There's no need to keep an eye on the score or accrue three stars for perfect shots, just complete the level and move on. Indeed, there's no way of replaying levels which is a shame as I'd have enjoyed returning to earlier conquests.

Achievements do keep players interested, however, and can be quite original for such a game, with no need to rely on 3 starring stages. Ultimately though, King Oddball is sufficiently enjoyable that any other purpose isn't really needed. It's simplistic to a near fault (right down to the lack of any proper menus) but when it's this much fun, who cares?