Bricks Defender 2

Genre: Arcade Brick Breaker

Players: 1

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Review:

Bricks Defender 2 is an Arcade-style Brick Breaker released on Nintendo 3DS in 2020. This game combines elements of Brick Breakers with the classic game Pong to make a competitive game where you’re trying to break all the computer-controlled opponent’s blocks before they break yours.

I should note that this game plays exactly like the original Bricks Defender, just with different levels. As such, since this game basically copies the first game in the series, I will be copying over the contents of my review of that game.

The presentation here is simple, but not bad, featuring colorful, simple 2D visuals and backed by an energetic synthesized soundtrack. There’s nothing here that’s truly memorable, but it works well enough for the game.

Players in this game control two paddles – one with the circle pad and one with the D-Pad, a setup that’s far from ideal, especially since the game doesn’t appear to make use of the face buttons on the right side of the Nintendo 3DS in any way, nor does it use the L and R buttons. In fact, the controls overall here are not great, with the game requiring you to tap the touchscreen to start, in a game that otherwise doesn’t use the touchscreen.

Even worse, the physics in this game are awful. Unlike decent Brick Breakers, the trajectory of the ball is not affected by where on a paddle it hits, but by the direction you’re moving when you hit it, meaning that to make any headway, you’ll need to try to slide the paddle over to the ball as it reaches you. What’s more, all sense of consistent and predictable physics goes right out the window when the ball hits a block or the sides of the screen, with the ball bouncing in seemingly random directions, dragging against the backside of the screen before seeming to be pulled by a sort of gravity, or even pushing its way through multiple blocks rather than bouncing off. Sometimes it even changes direction in mid-air for no reason!

And for a game built around its competitive nature, you don’t even have a multiplayer mode here, instead with only a dumb AI opponent, who is at times too perfect to get past, and at times seemingly unaware that the ball is on its side at all.

Yeah, this game sucks. Between its busted controls, busted physics, busted AI, and lack of multiplayer, this game takes what could have been a decent premise and executes that premise in maybe the worst way possible. Do not buy Bricks Defender 2, it is an absolute disgrace of a game.

tl;dr – Bricks Defender 2 is an Arcade-stye Brick Breaker that has you taking on an AI opponent, trying to break the blocks on their side before they break all the blocks on your side. This game is poorly executed in countless ways, from the terrible control setup to the atrociously bad physics, poor AI, and lack of multiplayer in a game designed to be competitive. You have countless better options on Nintendo 3DS, do not bother with this game.

Grade: F

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