Some 29 years since its initial arcade release, the latest in a long line of Puzzle Bobble titles lands with Puzzle Bobble EveryBubble!. Featuring Bub, Bob and a whole host of pals to bring order to an out of control bubble epidemic on Rainbow Island.
Bringing familiar puzzle gameplay we’ve come to love since the early 90’s, Everybubble features a wonderfully wacky Story Mode, local 2v2 battle and four-player co-op modes, on top of this you’ll delight in the all-new on-line multiplayer and the ever-so-fun Puzzle Bobble vs. Space Invaders bonus game.
My time was mostly spent in story mode, which is divided up over a map, on which the stages sit (250 to be priciest). Each stage has three stars to earn, each being dished out based on the speed at which you clear any given level, and once you’ve earned all stars, you can replay the stages at “EX” level – the “EX” meaning “EXtra Hard” supposedly!, again attempting to get the top reward.
Clearing stages throws up numerous challenges, each combated with different special power-ups. These come in all sorts of flavours, like those which clear a particular colour type, or bomb bubbles which clear all surrounding it. The key to 3-starring any level is knowing when and how to use your arsenal to its fullest and most effective, and this is where much frustration can occur. A lot of the game is based around trial and error, and this extends well beyond when you think you’ve mastered the game. There is plenty of luck at play with colour rotation of bubbles etc, so strategising is a key part of EveryBubble!.
I found that when coming back to the game after a stint away I would often forget what special bubbles actions were, and whilst there is a help section on the main menu screen which provides this information, there appears to be no in-game guide to help, a seemingly glaring over-sight meaning you must know what everything does prior to playing a game.
There are an array of cosmetic character customisations at hand in the game to busy yourself with, and no DLC / Store shoved down your throat, which honestly in 2023 feels so very refreshing. Coupled with the wonderfully cheery overall aesthetic and bouncy music accompanying the game, this really is proving to be my go-to game for Summer 2023.
The bonus game Puzzle Bobble Vs Space Invaders is incredibly enjoyable, mixing the gameplay mechanics of each classic arcade smash into one would seem like a bonkers idea which surely couldn’t and shouldn’t work, but my word it works. And it is incredibly enjoyable. Watching the bubbles inch their way along the screen, dropping lower, row by row as you fire off bubbles trying to demolish it in time, all the while trying to avoid enemy fire – simply genius, however, again a quite glaringly obvious omission – this mode has no scoreboard, either local or online. I’d be sat on this mode until the cows came home if it did. Yet it doesn’t. So I don’t.
With so much on offer here Puzzle Bobble EveryBubble! is actually a great purchase. It can get very frustrating at times, but equally is such good wholesome fun and rewarding when overcoming a seemingly impossible challenge. There is a little bit of luck at play at times, but with the game being so delightfully charming this can certainly be overlooked. Puzzle Bobble remains a brilliant arcade classic which hasn’t changed a whole heap, nor does it need to. It’s greatness is in its simplicity.
You can pick up the game right now on Nintendo Switch either digitally or physically via Strictly Limited Games .
Developer: Taito Games
Release Date: May 23, 2023
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Publisher: Inin
Genre: Arcade / Puzzle
TGS would like to thank the publisher for the review code supplied for the purpose of this review. For more information please e-mail [email protected]
Puzzle Bobble EveryBubble!
£34.99
Pros
- On-line Modes
- Loads of Content
- Excellent Arcade Fun
- Puzzle Bobble Vs Space Invaders
Cons
- Lack of Scoreboard
- Lack of In-game Manual