I really enjoyed surreal roguelike Ball X Pit when I —so it's great to hear that it's since gone on to be a huge hit.
According to a post by the developer on Bluesky, it's already sold 300,000 copies just in the first five days of being on sale. For context, that's , which sold 500,000 in its first 10 days and has since gone on to sell in the millions.
300,000!!! in 5 DAYS Thank you all!!!!🏐🏐🏐🎉🎉
— @ballxpit.com ()
In [[link]] that time, it's also hit —again, within spitting distance of Balatro's 45,000, and in less than a week.
I definitely recommend checking out [[link]] for yourself, if that popularity has piqued your interest. As I said in my review, Ball X Pit is "a roller coaster ride of ball-bouncing action that loves to break its own rules". [[link]] It combines Breakout-inspired action with Vampire Survivors-like roguelike progression and even a substantial city-building element between runs, and the result is an absolutely deadly 'one more run' effect.
Does this mean it's on track to be the next huge phenomenon? All things considered, my guess is actually that it probably isn't. Publisher Devolver Digital and developer Kenny Sun will certainly be very pleased with its success already, but I'm not sure the game has the kind of long-term appeal that games like Balatro or Slay the Spire have.
My experience was that it was an absolute blast for about 20 hours, while the flow of unlocks and new levels was steady—but after that, I didn't feel the urge to come back again and again to grind out the New Game+. I think Ball X Pit will ultimately burn brightly and then fade away, rather than becoming the next roguelike people lose hundreds of hours to and keep talking about for years.
But that certainly doesn't diminish its success in the short term, and in an increasingly shaky industry, it's always lovely to see really cool, creative low-budget games get the recognition they deserve. I can't wait to see what Kenny Sun cooks up next with this kind of financial security behind them.