Current Events > Bubble Bobble 4 Friends - my first impressions.

(+) Yeah! (+)

The basic gameplay hasn't altered much from the 30 year old original. Which is good. Same jumping around, blowing bubbles at enemies, trying to get your score as good as possible. The graphics, however, are very different. In a way, this is good. The main characters and enemies are all 3D creations, and look very nice. There is also something really bad, though, and that's the graphics for the levels themselves. The charm is almost completely gone. The same styles are repeated again and again; the colours used are drab and depressing, with too much blue; there's this science-fictiony glowy look, no doubt designed to make the game look modern and cool.

Music wise, it's fine. At least one remix of the iconic original song, and new music, too. The challenge level is well-done, and although I haven't gotten past level 50, it's already quite hard. Just like the original! The power-ups you unlock have improved what might otherwise have been slightly too simple gameplay, with stuff like lightning bobbles, and long-distance bubbles, but you can only use these things a few times per level, and then it's back to regular bubbles. Quite interesting.

The enemies are good. I thought it might be the return of the original set of enemies, e.g. Monsta, Hidegons, etc. but in glorious HD 3D, but it's a new bunch. They are reasonably interesting. Some run; others run and shoot; some bounce around. They are fun to fight against. There's a boss to fight every so often, which is annoying, and sometimes too hard, but not too bad. Bubble Bobble was never really about bosses, though.

Also included, is a port of the original game, which is (obviously) a good thing. It *appears* to be a direct port of the arcade game, as opposed to various other ports over the years, which tinkered, unwisely, with the elaborate scoring system, and also the graphics. So, if you want to go back and play the original, and try out for a new high score or whatever, you can.

Overall, seems decent. The graphics do bother me quite a lot, with their cold, lifeless feel, but the gameplay is really enjoyable, and you definitely know you're playing a Bubble Bobble game.

Anyone else get this at launch, today?

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Are people only playing FPSs and sandbox games, these days?
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I guess that answers THAT question.
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Very big Bubble Bobble fan as a kid.

How is the completion factor for the game? Like a screen showing everything you finished, potential difficulty in 100%ing everything, etc.?

I feel like the series has a lot of potential. Possible counter-co-op with one player a weak or slower enemy. Rogue-like possibilities, different challenges to accomplish instead of just clearing enemies, etc.

I've only been playing it for a few hours, I'm not sure.
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