[Review] Senran Kagura Peach Ball

The biggest thing to focus on during these games, however, despite all the missions, is mainly hitting the girls repeatedly, with each body part and position giving its own set of points to the player. Once these happen, you can initiate Sexy Challenges which transition into huts and you get to partake in quick but fun mini-games. Sometimes you hit the girls directly, but other times you could have a set amount of balloons to pop in ten seconds or aim to hit a target as much as possible before the timer reaches zero. Doing well on these can give a massive point boost but also successfully initiate the next phase of the cleansing process. Three overall phases are needed to be cleared, each with their own set of challenges and PEACH points needed to trigger the next, and once all of the important objectives are complete, you’ll successfully win the game and clearing the stage. Following a Stage Clear, you’ll be met with a screen providing stats and whether or not you achieved some optional but rewarding objectives. Completing these, while not necessary, gives you bonus costumes, accessories, and the like.

Pinball can be fun when you’re always reaching for that next big high score within Story Mode and Free Mode, but if there’s anything series creator Kenichiro Takaki has made certain with each entry, it’s that he wants these experiences to be personal during your “off time”. Intimacy mode is back in Peach Ball and gives players some one on one time, dressing them up in whatever you’ve acquire or bought through the in-game store and story mode. Much like Reflexions, use of the HD Rumble is incredibly well done in and out of pinball, with each smack, bump, tap, and more feeling distinct and, as they like to put it, sensational. Say you’ve put together a nice outfit and want to flaunt it – Diorama allows you to get any or all of the characters you choose in a photo together and pose them, with a multitude of accessories and poses available that can be all stacked on top of each other for extremely unique photos. The shinobi are equal parts badass and beautiful, so you can make all kinds of great moments crafted from hand and take photos with the screenshot feature of the Switch.

One thing that is not available, however, is the video capturing feature, which has been disabled for Senran Kagura Peach Ball. This is likely due in part to having the game run as best as it could, and to be fair the game is quite sharp and visually appealing in both handheld mode and TV mode, with no stutters whatsoever running at seemingly perfect 60 frames per second even during the more complex animations that tend to happen between transitions. Load times are the biggest issue of Senran Kagura Peach Ball, though, having to wait upwards of 30-45 seconds to jump into some games, and even going between menus can have its fair share, albeit at a much quicker load time. Even so, as someone who’s pretty patient, I do find myself going, “So are we doing this or not?” as each game gets prepared. At the very least, the loading screens are quirky and cute – which you’ll notice as a big theme throughout the game – but it’s still a bit inexcusable to be waiting that long when at a glance, though detailed, it’s not exactly asset-heavy.

Senran Kagura Peach Ball can be a goofy but enjoyable time if you enjoy both pinball and Senran Kagura. With DLC predictably on the way, tons of more accessories and costumes allow the shinobi to get even more stylish, though it’s certainly not necessary to grasp its full potential. It’s a quirky spinoff but still works in its own right, and while it’ll be a fairly niche market picking up this game, I feel there’s a lot to squeeze out of this for the asking price. Senran Kagura can be pretty expansive and flexible, and while I maintain players should at least give some of the core titles a chance first, the spinoffs available on Switch have been decent games in their own right that most certainly “fit” within the Senran Kagura IP, even if it feels like they shouldn’t. The ecchi and Senran Kagura aside, Peach Ball is a solid pinball game that gives enough variety and freshness on a centuries-old game to keep it inventive and engaging.

While Senran Kagura: Peach Ball is zany and the story is dumb, it’s all done in a cute way and genuinely has one of the most fun pinball experiences I’ve had in a long time. Fans of the series can choose between favorites like Asuka, Haruka, and Yumi to play with (in more ways than one) with tons of customization options for not only the shinobi, but the pinball machines you play on as well. With tons to unlock and plenty of missions and high scores to achieve with each shinobi’s respective campaign, it’ll leave players with plenty to do so long as they enjoy a little bit of pinball, but even those that may not have ever associated themselves with Senran Kagura before have a decent visual novel and pinball experience here to look forward to. If anything, for longtime fans of the series, Peach Ball’s biggest issue is trying not to get its title confused with Peach Beach Splash. It may seem hard to justify $40 for pinball and may be seen as a bit excessive when there are much cheaper – and even free – alternatives out there, but the entire game’s fluidity between animations and all the excitement that happens on the pinball machine itself is immensely entertaining and gives a breath of fresh air to an arcade classic, while also giving something unique and enjoyable for fans of the series.

Senran Kagura Peach Ball review copy provided by XSEED for the purposes of this review.