A Unique Play
When you think of basketball, do fond memories of Bejeweled come to mind? If your answer is somehow, “Yes!” then there’s a game out there just for you. NBA Ball Stars recently dropped on Google Play and hopes to merge the two very distinct games into one. Created by Netmarble US, the game mixes Bejeweled gameplay with the strategy of creating the perfect team.
From the beginning, the game walks you through a tutorial where you’ll pick a team to represent. The game has a unique style of play. The better you do at the Bejeweled segments of the game, the more likely your players will succeed on the court. Each player on your team is represented by a color. You must match as many of the same colored basketballs as possible. For every colored ball that gets matched, the bigger the chance your player will make or block a shot. You get four chances to do so.
However, there are times when almost no basketballs align with your players’ color. So what do you do then? This is where Player Skills come in. Every basketball player in NBA Ball Stars has their own unique skill they can use on the court. A bar begins to fill on your player’s card for every ball you manage to match up with their color. Once filled, this skill can be used any time in the game to turn things around in your favor.
Dream Team
For every match you win, your team goes up in the game’s rankings. You receive rewards depending on how well you play. With those rewards, you can unlock new players. Similar to a gacha game, you can use in-game or real-world currency to purchase common or superstar basketball players. After you create your team you can play against AI or even pit your teams against other players online. Test just how strong your team is, and dominate the court in this bizarre puzzler. For other puzzlers like this, check out Hardcore Droid’s other reviews on the genre.
