Barrack

Barrack is a 1996 shareware arcade game by Greg Lovette, published by Ambrosia Software. The player walls off a playfield full of bouncing balls into ever-smaller pens, trying to seal off enough territory to clear the level without getting hit. It is openly described as a JezzBall clone with strong Qix DNA, dressed up in Ambrosia's house style of chaotic, abrasive fun.

Subdivide and survive

Each level fills the field with assorted balls bouncing on horizontal and vertical paths. You fire barrier walls that grow outward from your cursor; if a ball touches a barrier mid-extension, you lose a life. Once you've sealed off enough of the playfield as ball-free territory (with a level percentage threshold), you advance.

Ball zoo and power-ups

Beyond the basic ball, Barrack mixes in glass balls that shatter into smaller pieces, nuke balls that detonate when isolated, and the recurring antagonist "Bosco" who cackles "I keel you!" while rampaging across the field for bonus points when killed. Power-ups grant faster shots and limited control over individual balls, and a score multiplier compounds careful play into extra lives.

Versions and patches

The 1.0 line saw rapid bug-fix releases through 1996 (1.0.1 through 1.0.3), then a final 1.0.4 in November 1999 compiled with CodeWarrior Pro 5 to fix a New World ROM bug where balls failed to bounce after creation. A separate "Discretion" patcher from a later contributor mutes the more profane sound bites ("Shiiii" and "Oh My God") for family play.

Compatibility

Barrack is a 68k/PPC fat binary that runs on System 7.0 through Mac OS 9, requires 640x480 resolution, and works under SheepShaver, Basilisk II, and Mini vMac II.