I’ve developed a new interest in Naraka Bladepoint, and it’s so enjoyable that it prevents me from actually standing in queue for the battle royale game. With the release of the Fairyland Penglai update in July, Naraka Bladepoint added a magnificent new lobby area chock-full of activities to commemorate being free-to-play. However, one of these in particular has given me an excessive amount of happiness.
Naraka Bladepoint is now free, and has seen a huge surge on Steam following its transition to the new model. If you’ve jumped in to find out what all the fuss is about, you might’ve spent some time wandering around the gorgeous Fairyland Penglai zone to see what’s happening. There’s parkour races, instruments to play, all manner of custom emotes and gestures, and a rather robust photo mode.
All of that pales in comparison to the real entertainment, however. That’s right, it’s time for balls. Dotted around the map are several squishy, yellow balls with goofy faces painted on them. Run up to one and interact with it, and you become a giant ball yourself, letting you roll and bounce around the area in delightful fashion.
The real delight, though, is that in ball form you can send other players tumbling in the air, flying booty over elbow, and that makes you a veritable wrecking ball of chaos. And I can’t stop doing it. Perhaps I’m just being childish, but there’s a simple joy to bouncing around like a sentient bowling pin and pinging everyone else about the lobby.
You can get a glimpse of this in action at the 1:35 mark in the trailer above, but trust me that it’s even better when you’ve got a full lobby to play around with. I promise I’ll queue for some more games again soon, but for now you’ll catch me in Fairyland Penglai just being an absolute menace.
Remember that if you’re a subscriber to PC Game Pass or Game Pass Ultimate, you’ll also get an upgrade to the deluxe edition of Naraka Bladepoint as part of your subscription.
We’ve lined up all the best free PC games if you’re looking for more great games to play but don’t want to break the bank, and we’ve also highlighted the best multiplayer games if you love a spot of friendly competition.