Parents' Guide to

Bricks n Balls

By Erin Brereton, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 9+

Vague details, pay-to-play pressure make this app a bust.

App iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android Free Action Games
Bricks n Balls Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this app.

  • Bricks n Balls Screen Capture #1
  • Bricks n Balls Screen Capture #2
  • Bricks n Balls Screen Capture #3
  • Bricks n Balls Screen Capture #4

Community Reviews

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age 14+

Based on 1 parent review

Zane Mckinnon
Zane Mckinnon Adult
June 5, 2020
age 14+

Freezes when youre poised to win challenging stages

Had to uninstall this crap today! Stages get tougher and you do get more involved with the game but when theres a hardstage that youve been on for awhile and you do enough to win it, it freezes! Itll go to the screen where you have to watch adds to get more rubies and then it just sits there loading.If freezes yourphone so you have to reboot and lose your position in the game. Dont waste your time with this.
See all 1 parent review

What’s It About?

Players select a projected path and shoot at groups of squares in BRICKS N BALLS. Their score rises as they break bricks, and meeting a point total helps them advance levels. In addition to a fairly simple classic game, the app also features a pinball-like Gravity challenge and a version in which multiple balls are shot at once. The number on each brick indicates the number of times a ball has to hit it for the brick to be eliminated; periodically, special items that provide extra balls and other advantages appear in games.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (1):
Kids say: Not yet rated

While this game can be easy to play, the lack of information and the heavy pressure to buy in-game items ruin any fun that can be had. In Bricks n Balls, players are provided with a visual indication of a launched ball's potential path, which lets them consider different options before firing. Unfortunately, the brief, often unclear descriptions that pop up about bonus items -- such as the Power Up option in the Gravity game, which just returns launched balls to the starting point faster -- don't offer enough information to explain why those items are beneficial.

Rounds often keep going, and new bricks pop up after you've reached the point goal. Unfortunately, the game doesn't provide any explanation about how to advance levels -- or how to play, aside from how to aim the ball. In addition, the playing experience isn't very consistent across the game modes. The basic version moves quickly, but the Gravity game feels much slower, with bricks that can take 40 taps to be cleared from the board. Adding thorough directions would be immensely helpful, but unless the level restrictions that essentially require you to eventually purchase game currency for progress are removed, it's unlikely that gamers will want to finish more than a few levels of Bricks n Balls.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about screen time limits. What would a better use of your time be: playing a game like Bricks n Balls, playing an app designed for learning, or doing something away from a screen?

  • Bricks n Balls doesn't provide detailed instructions, so how can players determine what they need to do? Can you apply these lessons to real life?

App Details

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