Reverse Scrowdriver 2

For this Scrowdriver I decided to change the mechanics of a classic NES game that some people may or not be familiar with, Balloon Fight. In Balloon Fight , you play as a man attached to balloons who tries to disarm other pilots and enemies by popping their balloons and hitting them out of the air. This is done by flying up above your enemy and colliding your feet into their balloons. It's an incredibly simple game that only requires the D-pad and one other button. The A and B button both do the same thing. The game is extremely fast paced though and it is multiplayer. In the multiplayer, players compete with one another cooperatively to get a high score and  defeat the enemy waves in order to move onto the next round. They can also battle against each other to try and defeat one another by popping each others 3 balloons.

My new mechanic has to do with the controls. The game has one input for both the A and B button. I think that utilizing one of those buttons would make the game more intense and more enjoyable. I think that the B button should lay down a mine (that floats in the air) or a bomb that drops below their feet. Having an attack other than just your feet would add new strategy and ways to play. This mechanic would be great for co-operative play and vs mode. In the co-operative mode the mines could be laid down in strategic ways so that enemies that are programmed to simply just chase, can get off the players backs more easily. I think this attack would shine better in the vs mode though. The controls to the game are really fun but they are also extremely floaty which makes it hard to be accurate on what you want to do. Having a droppable mine would make obstacles for players and make them fly more cautiously. If it was a bomb that drops down, the players would have a longer range of attacking enemy players and it would make their aggressive attacks seem more controlled and responsive.

Of course, I think this mechanic would need to be balanced. Perhaps their could be an item select screen before the match so you could choose to either use the bomb or the mine. This would add a customization aspect to the game that players could really enjoy. To further balance it I think each item would have their own specific number of times it could be used in a round. After playtesting the new mechanic it would be easier to see how limited a player should be. Perhaps you can only use the bomb twice per round since its more of an aggressive item where the mine could be used 3 times because its more defensive.


In conclusion, I think that instead of having the B button do the same thing as the A button, Balloon Fight should implement battle items.