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Bubble Bobble Evolution (PSP)

B

Blackbird

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Thursday 5 January 2006/... Rising Star Games, the European publishing wing of Japanese Developer Marvelous Interactive, Inc., today announced details of the next iteration in the much-loved Bubble Bobble series, which will be unveiled exclusively at a Rising Star Games press event in London on January 12th.

Bubble Bobble Evolution takes the classic platforming gameplay that defined the originals and expands it into entirely new realms by injecting all manner of innovations, from new bubble types to new environmental hazards and puzzle elements. Its Story Mode retells the classic story of two human brothers trapped in bubble-blowing dinosaur bodies by an evil nemesis, only this time the action takes place in two "Towers of Entertainment", cylindrical sections of which form the game's levels.

The first new feature comes with the level structure itself. Gone is the classic static structure of Bubble Bobble and in its place are three screens on a central 'spindle', which the player can move between at will.

Contained within these screens are the basic elements of Bubble Bobble gameplay: The monsters and the bubbles. However, progress is no longer a simple issue of dispatching the wandering monsters to advance onward.

New puzzle elements now hinder the player, bringing an entirely new dynamic to the classic Bubble Bobble gameplay. By using the basic techniques refined over a decade of Bubble Bobble titles, players must overcome a cerebral challenge in each level. These can take various forms of elemental exchanges, such as finding a source of fire to melt an ice barrier, or watering a seed so it can grow to fill a gap left by a missing platform.

Everything required to solve these tasks is available on the three screens that make up each level. With the addition of these puzzle elements – which can be manipulated in bubbles and nudged along the level's natural air currents – the development team is introducing radical additions to the classic Bubble Bobble design to bring the franchise up to date.

"We wanted to bring something new to Bubble Bobble beyond a straightforward 3D update. With the PSP, we have its raw power and we've channeled that into creating a deeper, more complex take on the Bubble Bobble concept," says Tony Byus, Producer of Bubble Bobble Evolution. "This isn't Bubble Bobble as fans of the series are used to. This is an entirely new game and with these puzzle elements included, it is literally an evolution of the original game design concept."
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Everything required to solve these tasks is available on the three screens that make up each level. With the addition of these puzzle elements – which can be manipulated in bubbles and nudged along the level's natural air currents – the development team is introducing radical additions to the classic Bubble Bobble design to bring the franchise up to date.
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As much as I love Bubble Bobble, and I really, really love Bubble Bobble, this sounds like it has the potential to be more annoying than awesome.
 
OK, so we only get an Evolution on PSP, while the DS gave us a Bubble Bobble REVOLUTION. :|
Can't wait for the boxart btw!
 
Bubble bobble was perfect originally, it can't be made better I don't think.
 
Yeah, the new Bubble Bobbles are totally ass it seems. On the other hand Rainbow Islands DS looks pretty good. :)
 
bbe2dscreenshot163vi.jpg
 
Oh dear god no. Why on earth mess with something that works so well. Bubble Bobble's charm is in it's simplicity, it doesn't need anything added to it.
 
It's good to see they tackled the problem of how dinosaurs could be blowing bubbles. I mean that always spoiled my enjoyment of the game. Totally unrealistic.

But children in dinosaur suits with bubble trumpets! Now it all makes sense!

EVOLUTION!

Fuckwits.
 
Blackbird said:
haven't seen the official artwork yet than?

bubbobpsp.jpg
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So bub & bob didn't get turned into dinosaurs then, they were only asked to wear dino costumes and blow bubbles using a frikkin trumpet.
 
seeing as there's no trace of the word "taito" or any other word or name resembling japanese in that press release, I am incredibly unsurprised.

but boy, am I laughing!
 
shrug. looks good to me, and the description makes it sound like a neat dk94-style puzzle platformer. and while the "kids in dinosaur suits" angle is pretty weird, neither the game nor the artwork is as ugly as bubble bobble new or ds bubble bobble.
 
drohne said:
shrug. looks good to me, and the description makes it sound like a neat dk94-style puzzle platformer. and while the "kids in dinosaur suits" angle is pretty weird, neither the game nor the artwork is as ugly as bubble bobble new or ds bubble bobble.
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But it's still a whole lot uglier than New Rainbow Islands DS. :)
 
drohne said:
shrug. looks good to me, and the description makes it sound like a neat dk94-style puzzle platformer. and while the "kids in dinosaur suits" angle is pretty weird, neither the game nor the artwork is as ugly as bubble bobble new or ds bubble bobble.
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I agree. Though I'm worried that the side-scrolling stages may lead to some annoying instances of "find the bubble" or "chase the bubble across three screens," the shots shown do have a certain degree of charm. At the least, there's potential here.
 
WTF, Bubble Bobble went the EA way and turned extreme!

NOOOOOOOOOOOO! Only a matter of time before hard rock is blasting in the speakers
 
I don't see what's wrong with this game. At least the art. It looks pretty nice.
 
the PSP version looks pretty decent! (not to speak of the DS version)

these covers all look horrible :lol I guess they always hand over the cover-design job to the apprentice!
 
I <3 Katamari said:
.... They're kids in SUITS.
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Supposedly, that was supposed to be the story, that they're kids made dinos. I'm not sure how much storytelling the old arcade game did to explain that, or if that's even true. Still, not sure why they'd be in suits. It's kind of cute, but sure, nonsensical.
 
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