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Twelve bouncing-ball video ideas, sorted by ending

· 2 min read

The hardest part of making a bouncing-ball loop is often the blank page. The trick is to start from the ending, because almost every watchable loop is a countdown to one satisfying moment. Here are twelve ideas grouped by the kind of payoff they build to, each with a Bounceloop mode that fits.

Escape endings

The viewer wants to know whether the ball gets out.

  1. The classic escape. A ball hunts for the gap in a spinning ring. Ring Escape is the free starting point, and the step-by-step guide covers it in detail.
  2. Rings inside rings. Each ring has its own drifting gap, so the ball has to get through them all. Try Nested Escape.
  3. A moving exit. One exit circles the wall, and every ball that gets out changes the game. See Moving Exit.

Build-up endings

The screen fills up and the viewer waits for it to overflow, complete or fall apart.

  1. A web of lines. A growing geometric web is drawn between the ball's impacts. Weaver is a calm, hypnotic option.
  2. A rainbow ribbon. A growing ball paints a long coloured trail across the ring. Prism Trail is free to use.
  3. Matching balls merge. Same-colour balls combine into bigger ones until a single giant remains. That is Merge Cascade.

Impact endings

Everything is a countdown to one moment.

  1. A slow-motion collision. Two balls race toward each other for a single impact. Head-On is free and very short to set up.
  2. Shattering the ring. The ring breaks piece by piece until the ball is free. Try Demolition.
  3. Tiles shatter. Rings of coloured tiles break with every hit until the ball breaks out. See Dartboard.

Counting and competing endings

The viewer picks a side or watches a number climb.

  1. Teams fighting over a web. Teams weave webs and cut each other's strands, and the last web standing wins. See Web War.
  2. Painting territory. Coloured teams race around the ring and paint everything they cross. Territory War rewards a bright palette.
  3. Multiplier gates. Balls get flung into bowls marked from ×1 to ×10, and every landing changes the total. See Multiplier Gates.

How to choose

If you only have time to try one idea, pick the ending you would enjoy watching to the end, then work backwards. A few rules of thumb:

  • One idea per clip. A single clear payoff beats three half-built ones.
  • Match the length to the payoff. If the ending arrives at twelve seconds, do not export thirty.
  • Give it sound. Every bounce can play the next note of a melody, which changes how the same mode feels. The music guide shows how.

Browse all of them on the modes page, and open the studio to try one. Every run is determined by a seed, so when you find one you like, you can recreate it exactly.