Lunch Freebie: Berserk Ball 2
For today's 'free game you can play RIGHT THIS MINUTE', we have an old favorite: Berserk Ball 2. How far can you hit a nerd? (No, really.)
This article first appeared on USgamer, a partner publication of VG247. Some content, such as this article, has been migrated to VG247 for posterity after USgamer's closure - but it has not been edited or further vetted by the VG247 team.
While Berserk Ball 2's political correctness (when is it ever okay to make fun of a demographic?) may be a point of contention, there's something about its unabashedly over-the-top presentation that makes it appealing, nonetheless. Crazy-looking, heavy metal-themed characters that spend all their time smacking people across a monstrosity-riddled stretch of land? Sure! Why not?
The basic conceit behind Berserk Ball 2 is a familiar one: it's a launcher game, the kind that requires you to repeatedly knock an object (or, in this case, a person) as far as it can go in attempt to earn money, upgrade your avatar, and do it all again. Like all launcher games, Berserk Ball 2 is weirdly addictive in spite of its rudimentary mechanics. In the beginning, you'll be asked to select from six, face paint-wearing characters. My personal favorite is the no-nonsense VP whose catchphrase involves demanding sandwiches be made for her. After that, you'll be allowed to customize your geek. Now, funny as your corpulent quarry might end up looking (I gave my rotund friend Cloud's haircut and a dinosaur costume), it's a bit disconcerting to level such consistent abuse on what is essentially mainstream media's perception of a gamer.
Still, if you're willing to excuse that and take the game at face value, Berserk Ball 2 offers a pretty sizable diversion. We have the ubiquitous 'punt-someone-across-long-distances' bit, a Blacksmith that called upon to forge new items (and sell you existing ones), a mini game or two and a whole gamut of customization options to obsess over. Berserk Ball 2 might not be a definitive cornerstone of our industry or the reason people take video games more seriously, but it certainly can be fun to bring the beatdown to know-it-alls, anyway.