Having never ventured into the world of Peggle, I was always a bit skeptical about its passive gameplay, which seemed more about watching than playing. But then, Peglin made an unexpected debut on the Nintendo Switch during a Nintendo Direct, and it piqued my curiosity. Maybe it could hook me like an idle game does. My appreciation for pinball-esque mechanics was growing, so I figured Peglin might strike a balance between the two. While it didn’t completely sway me toward a pachinko-like passion, I found myself frequently drawn back to the game’s central mechanics of launching balls at foes.
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Peglin is an indie roguelike that tasks you with defeating waves of enemies while gradually upgrading your arsenal and abilities, eventually facing off against tough bosses. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel but lays its cards on the table from the start. The game’s art style has a sort of simplistic charm reminiscent of Microsoft Paint; it might not be my cup of tea, but it’s functional. A varied array of enemy types and settings keeps the experience fresh as you journey through Peglin’s world.
The real heart of Peglin, though, lies in its gameplay. You launch orbs at pegs, and each peg hit boosts the damage your orb inflicts on enemies. Your primary input is determining the direction of your shot. Some pegs are special, granting you coins, increasing damage, triggering critical hits, or adding other attack properties. After each skirmish, you can opt to purchase new orbs or enhance existing ones, with your lineup getting randomized in every encounter. There are tons of enjoyable combinations and power-ups to discover that enhance your orbs’ effectiveness. The game maintains a good balance, whether it’s through items like the multiball feature, which doubles orbs but restricts firing direction, adding layers of challenge and excitement to combat, particularly when battling bosses who can alter the board by introducing sticky lines or spawning new adversaries.
My experience with Peglin sits somewhat in the middle. On the one hand, I relished the thrill of launching orbs and racking up high damage, akin to a game of pinball. On the other hand, the game’s passive aspect left something to be desired. Post-launch, there’s limited strategy to engage with; choosing your orb’s target is critical, especially against bosses, but that’s about it. At times, I found myself more engaged in planning moves than in the action itself, partly due to the lack of clear tutorials on game mechanics. Late into my playthrough, I learned that discarding orbs could speed up the appearance of more strategically advantageous attacks—crucial for elemental damage. This need for constant strategizing sometimes felt like a hurdle.
With Peglin’s roguelike nature and inherent randomness, I often found myself stuck in skirmishes that I technically could have won, only to falter due to difficulties in healing or failing to hit those crucial pegs. After each run, you’d start over without maintaining permanent upgrades, making progress feel a bit reliant on luck. The furthest I reached often felt more like serendipity than skill. This hit-or-miss dynamic might turn some players away, and it occasionally caused me to step back from the game. Yet, there was something undeniably addictive about seeing if I could push further with each attempt.
Ultimately, Peglin isn’t a game for everyone. Its roguelike framework and the element of randomness require patience and persistence. While I found the mechanics often underexplained, and sometimes felt powerless on the board, there’s an engaging core game that kept pulling me back. Landing a powerful combo to swiftly dispatch a boss was exhilarating. Although the initial barrier felt steep, once I got the hang of it, I was hooked. Peglin might just be one of those engaging background games that people keep revisiting. While I can’t predict the future, it seems to me that Peglin has the potential to stick around for quite some time.
