The Ball
First-person puzzle adventure using a metal ball in ancient ruins
Teotl Studios · Published by Tripwire Interactive · Released Oct 26, 2010
- Reviews
- Mostly Positive
- 74% of 1,156
- Recent reviews
- Not enough recent
- Players
- 1
- daily peak, Nov 7, 2026
- Steam Deck
- Playable
- Last update on Steam
- Unknown
- no patch notes on Steam
Metacritic: 68/100 (critic reviews)
What is The Ball?
You play an archaeologist trapped in ancient ruins beneath a volcano in Mexico in this first-person action-puzzle adventure. Across eight campaign levels, you move a large metal ball to solve physics-based puzzles, navigate traps, and fight creatures. A separate Survival mode has four additional levels.
For you if...
- +you like physics puzzles built around one main tool
- +you enjoy exploring ancient ruins and finding secrets
- +you prefer approachable puzzles over demanding challenges
Not for you if...
- −you want fast movement and frequent action
- −you expect varied tools and complex puzzle mechanics
- −you avoid combat in your puzzle adventures
What players say
74% of 1,156 reviews are positive
Players praise the ball-based puzzles and exploration, and some find the mechanics easy to grasp. Others find the pace slow, the puzzles too simple or repetitive, and the combat uninteresting.
How many players finish The Ball?
8.7% of Steam players have unlocked «Archeologist Supreme», the achievement for finishing the main story.
Share of everyone who owns the game on Steam, including those who barely played it. Updated weekly.
Screenshots and trailer
The Ball system requirements
Minimum: SM3 Compatible (GF6800 mi…, 1 GB RAM, 1.5 GB of disk space.
As published by the developer.
Can my PC run The Ball?
The published requirements do not name a graphics card we can compare.
Set up my PC →Minimum
- OS
- Windows XP SP2, Vista, or Windows 7
- Processor
- 2.0+ GHz or better (dual core recommended)
- Graphics
- SM3 Compatible video card (GF6800 minimum - GF8800 or higher recommended)
- Memory
- 1 GB (2 GB recommended)
- Storage
- 1.5 GB
Does The Ball have co-op or multiplayer?
No: single-player only, no multiplayer modes declared.
Does The Ball run on Steam Deck?
Playable Playable: it runs on Steam Deck with some adjustments.
- Default controller config not fully functional
- Sometimes shows mouse, keyboard or non-Deck controller icons
- Some in-game text is small and may be hard to read
- The native resolution is not the default one
- Default graphics settings perform well on Steam Deck
- External controllers are not supported for the primary player
PC version details
- DRM
- None declared on Steam
- Controller
- Keyboard and mouse
- Platforms
- Windows
- Achievements
- 17
- Steam features
- Family Sharing
- Age rating
- 17+
- Languages
- Text only: English, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Spanish - Spain, Swedish, Russian.
Does The Ball use AI-generated content?
No AI-generated content is disclosed on the game's Steam page.
Self-reported by the developer under Steam rules: it covers AI content that ships in the game, not tools used to make it. Steam page checked on Oct 25, 2026. How to filter AI games on Steam
