LBreakout 2 has the same features as other good Breakout clones: smooth graphics, good bonuses, and dozens of levels (50, to be exact). What sets the game apart from others, however, is the existence of "maluses" - special icons that have the opposite effects to bonuses: they hurt you rather than help. Maluses can shorten your paddle, freeze your paddle, accelerate all balls, and other devious effects. The most evil malus of all is probably the 'malus magnet,' which attracts all maluses on the screen to your paddle. Maluses make the game more challenging, because you have to dodge them while collecting bonuses. There are also plenty of special bricks to keep the game fresh, including growing bricks, explosive bricks, regenerative bricks, indestructible bricks, chaotic bricks, and more. Once you finish all the levels, you can create your own with the easy-to-use level editor, and check out the official site for levels that other players have created.

With a refreshingly innovative gameplay, smooth action, and a very polished interface and graphics, LBreakout 2 belongs to every serious Breakout fan's library. It's definitely one of the best, if not THE best, Breakout games ever made - right up there with DX-Ball 2. You can even play against other human players via TCP/IP. Best of all, this is an open source game, so it has been ported to numerous other operating systems and actively improved by eager fans. A must-have.