Having never dipped my toes into Peggle, I always found the passive style of gameplay—where you’re mostly just watching—a bit off-putting. But when Peglin suddenly dropped on the Nintendo Switch after a Nintendo Direct, it piqued my interest. Could this game offer an intriguing blend, perhaps akin to those idle games, but with a compelling twist? I’ve warmed up to pinball-like games over time, so I wondered if Peglin might be the perfect bridge between these two worlds. Well, Peglin didn’t fully convert me into a fan of pachinko-type games, but the core mechanics did draw me back multiple times, each time eager to launch those balls at adversaries.
Let me know if you’ve heard this one before: Peglin is a roguelike indie game that challenges you to conquer all the foes in a given area, gradually upgrading your weapons and movesets until facing off against a daunting boss. It’s not breaking new ground here; the game lays out its premise straightforwardly from the get-go. The art style? It reminds me a bit of something you’d whip up in Microsoft Paint—not exactly my cup of tea—but it does the job. Thankfully, the variety of enemy types and diverse locations help keep your adventure through Peglin’s universe engaging.
The real crux of Peglin, however, lies in its gameplay. Essentially, you launch an orb onto a board dotted with pegs. Each peg you hit ramps up the damage that the orb will dole out to the hovering adversaries. There’s not a ton of interaction; you mainly choose the direction to shoot your orb. Some pegs offer goodies like extra coins, damage multipliers, critical hits, or other attack buffs. At the end of each round, you have the option to acquire new orbs or enhance your existing ones. This refreshes every encounter, adding a layering of strategy. There are plenty of fun combos and power-ups to discover on your journey, often balanced with some trade-off. Like when I stumbled upon an item granting me multiball action, duplicating every orb I launched—though at the cost of restricting my firing angles. This push and pull manner make some battles, especially boss fights, thrillingly tough. Bosses might clutter your board with sticky obstacles or summon new foes, adding a thrilling challenge to the equation.
Personally, my Peglin experience is somewhere in the middle of the road. There’s sheer joy in launching orbs and stacking damage, reminiscent of pinball antics. But, admittedly, the game can feel a bit too passive at times. After you send the orb flying, there’s not much strategizing apart from selecting which target to aim your attack. This choice becomes crucial during boss battles or large enemy groups, but otherwise, the game’s engagement level dips. To add to the mix, the game lacks comprehensive tutorials, which leaves players stumbling into discoveries—like realizing you can discard orbs for faster access to specific attacks much later than ideal. Even as a pick-up-and-play title, I found myself strategizing more than playing, which seemed a barrier rather than an aid.
Since Peglin is a roguelike, it inherently involves a fair share of randomness. There were moments when I’d get stuck, unable to pass a fight I knew I could’ve conquered, simply due to the scarcity of health recovery options or missed critical chances. At the end of each run, all upgrades vanish as you start anew—progress often feels more like lucky breaks than acquired skill. This aspect can deter some players, and I’d occasionally step away for long stretches of time. Nonetheless, Peglin’s addictive nature kept drawing me back, compelling me to try my luck with launching orbs at those pegs time and again.
While Peglin may not cater to everyone, its blend of roguelike elements and the sprinkle of luck required to progress slowly grew on me. The mechanics, which aren’t thoroughly explained, and the limited board influence could be irksome. Yet, beneath these layers, there’s a solid game that’s undeniably captivating. Landing the perfect combination of attacks and elemental damage to swiftly dispatch bosses is immensely satisfying. Despite a slightly steep learning curve, once you find your rhythm, it’s tough to stop playing. Ultimately, Peglin feels like one of those fantastic background games you’ll find yourself returning to endlessly. While I can’t predict the future, it seems like Peglin could hold its ground for quite a while in the gaming world.
