auto attack, while you control movement, advancing horde. drops exp gems. gold. uses the same rng powerup system..
My criticisms for it are its not enough like breakout/arkanoid. not enough emphasis on catching/bouncing balls back. getting balls stuck on the top is actually often bad in this, as the enemies progress too quickly, and having your balls stuck in the back row, will often result in you taking damage.
Many powerups will actually totally brick your build as well. like the afore mentioned blackholexsun. Sun is very strong. but if you upgrade sun to black hole. black hole sucks balls. goes from powerful aoe hit, to 1 single target hit on a 7s cd. so there is a good chance of losing, if you upgrade to black hole too early. what you need to is have sun+dark, and then collect fire+light again. and not upgrade to black hole, until you are ready to replace the lost sun, with a new sun.
many fusions are like this. some are godly, some totally brick balls. overgrowth+flicker iirc is another op one. hits everything on screen, stacking overgrowth, which then kills everything on screen.
the item that makes your balls pass through until hitting the back wall can also screw you over as noted. Balls can go to the back row, get stuck there, and suddenly bosses are taking no damage, as new lines appear behind them.
at the same time most of the item powerups are kindof weak. balls are far more important and stronger choices.
end game replay. not quite there yet, but slowing down on unlocks, and the fun is fading. its not like a monster train roguelike, where every run is fun, and a challenge. I think there is too much linear progression here.
I don't think fusions, balls, or items actually being "wrong" choices is actually a totally bad thing. but, I would want the game to lean into that more then. Making ball, and item selection more tactical. like, a "vampire run" where you life steal, but then go melee, or tank all the enemies. current, doesn't REALLY lean into anything like that.
