My imagination of what Hell could sound like has changed a lot throughout the years. I’ve imagined it as nothing but agonized screams preceded by flesh-carving slices. I’ve imagined it as the cadence of a river or creek, where lava, blood, acid, or any other liquid cruelty flows instead of water. I’ve even imagined it as raucous laughter — the annoying kind that preludes disaster and misery for everyone excluded from the joke. But for the last few days, I’ve imagined Hell sounds like a bloodthirsty army of monsters, chanting in dreadful unison, thanks to Ball x Pit.

From its diverse array of ball combinations and enemies that make each run feel unique, to its base builder elements that make New Ballbylon feel like your own creation, there’s quite a bit to appreciate about Kenny Sun and Friend’s brick-breaking, ball-fusing roguelite. With a cast of treasure hunters who have unique abilities at your disposal, Ball x Pit has you face off against wave after wave of monsters flowing out of the pit where Ballbylon used to reside before a meteor strike. While the gameplay is engaging on its own, what helps elevate the experience is the hellish atmosphere built around it. The art has a colorful, old-school flair that feels appropiately grungy regardless of the area. The names and art for ball combinations, like Sacrifice, Holy Laser, Wraith, and Mosquito King, add a sense of dark fantasy that pairs well with the absurd horrors you fight. 

My favorite contributor to this eerie atmosphere is the sound design. I’m especially a fan of the chanting orchestrated by enemies as their numbers rise on screen. It’s an element that helps sell these monsters as an army, not just a loose coalition of different toxic mushrooms, armed skeletons, gigantic snakes, and other nightmares. Chants are great unifiers, turning short phrases or simple sounds into ways of recognizing an ally and feeling like a part of something bigger than any individual. From football stadiums full of team jerseys to invading armies brandishing the emblems of empires, there’s just something about raising your voice with a crowd that electrifies the air and, when done well, chills the blood of those unfortunate enough to be on the other team. Moreover, the chanting in Ball x Pit adds personality not just to the enemies generally, but also the individual biomes that they reside in. This is in part because the chanting, while present in each level, sounds different from barbaric monster to barbaric monster. 

“Each enemy type has their own chant sound, which is spatialized based on where the enemy is on screen,” shared Ball x Pit creator Kenny Sun with Exalclaw over email. Bringing my Nintendo Switch — my console of choice for a game that seems perfect for handheld devices — closer to my ears confirmed this. It’s a nice touch that makes an already fast-paced game feel more alive. The Pit is no longer just a stage that hosts dramatic ball-bouncing action, but an underground world that’s writhing with all manners of hostile beasts and sick bosses.

Sun gives a special shoutout to the game’s sound design on his blog, stating that he was “very proud” of it and “wanted to elevate the audio to a level that matched the production value of everything else.” It’s a worthwhile read for anyone interested in the process and assets used to achieve Ball x Pit‘s various soundscapes, especially if anyone suspects they’ll need to learn the fundamentals of audio production in the near future. Sun shares several of the YouTube channels he used to improve his basic understanding, including Audio University (which I’ve visited a few times myself for microphone research in the past) and Marshall McGee (“Lots of interesting videos specific to game sound design,” as the blog puts it).

In the same post, Sun shares how this project was the first time he had a budget set aside for sound design, meaning he didn’t have to rely on tools he used for previous projects like Audacity and freesound.org. “It gave me the freedom to use professional-level tools and libraries that I otherwise wouldn’t. The libraries especially were really important in elevating the sound design to a level I don’t think I would’ve been able to achieve just using free sounds,” Sun told Exalclaw. For a game that features dozens of ball combinations and several environments, each of which received a unique sound and set of sounds respectively, it’s understandable how these libraries helped keep things diverse without sacrificing quality, not to mention save time.

Despite each enemy type having a unique sound effect, the process behind making this chanting sound effect was “usually the same.” For example, sharing how he created the chanting for the skeleton enemies, Sun said he “took a grunt sound effect, used Zynaptiq morph to blend it with some bone sounds, and added some reverb.” As for the idea to include chanting altogether, Sun credits Ball x Pit composer Amos Roddy for coming up with it. In addition to this, Sun shared that Roddy “also had some good tips about keeping the mix readable, and did some experiments to help figure out some guidelines for the length/tail of each sound effect.” 

Much like finding the right ball synergies for clearing out a screen full of approaching pit-dwellers, the sound design process for Ball x Pit seemed to be a balancing act. An act that I’d call successful, considering how frequently the chanting echoes in my mind even once I’ve finally stopped saying “One more round” and turned off the game. It’s a standout feature that manages to cut through the game’s intense visual noise, somehow pulling off the trick of prodding at my concentration without disrupting my immersion. I’m not very confident in stating what Hell sounds like, and am much less confident in thinking it exists, but Ball x Pit delivers something for the imagination to chew on with its chorus of chanting, monstrous voices.