#103 - Bubble Bobble Part 2

Yup, that just about sums it up.

The story of Bub and Bob actually takes place in ancient Greece

 Back in the Eighties and Nineties, the concept of a sequel to a piece of entertainment – whether it be book, movie, or game – was really solidifying into something marketable and profitable. Case in point: all the Eighties horror movies or early successful Nintendo games. Thanks to these previous decades, in the Aughts and the Tens, sequels are now expected from any movie, game, or book that turns a profit; whereas once a sequel was something hoped for, now they are shoved down our throat repeatedly ad nauseum. Bubble Bobble Part 2 is a curious piece of gaming. For one thing, it was released five years after the original near the tail end of the NES' lifespan, basically relegating it to a cult classic. For another thing, it's called Bubble Bobble “Part 2,” instead of simply Bubble Bobble 2. This makes me wonder whether it was supposed to be a companion piece to the first game, and simply wasn't released until later in America. Or if Taito simply held the Bubble Bobble franchise to loftier standards, deciding that a snooty “Part 2” was more befitting. Who can tell and, in the end, who really cares. Bubble Bobble Part 2 is the exact same game with a fresh coat of paint.

I suppose if you pick up the sequel to a simple game like Bubble Bobble, you're not looking for ingenious new game design with mind-bending levels and skull-crushing enemies. You want to blow some cutesy enemies into bubbles and pop them, possibly with a friend, and more power to you. Some variety in the gameplay might be nice, though. The changes I could discern were the unfortunate and confounding loss of the password function, and the addition of bosses and mid-bosses every few levels. The bosses seemed like a nice touch, until I realized that there's no technique or strategy in destroying them. Simply blow an insane amount of bubbles at their weak points and they die. Everything else remains the same, which is great if you have an extra person by your side willing to bobble while you bubble, but if not, prepare to be bored.

Like most games released later in the NES' lifespan, Bubble Bobble Part 2 looks pretty good. It's fun, bright, and colorful, and Bub and Bob are a lot easier to control than the first game. Instead of simple black backgrounds on top of pixelated goofy/clever level designs, the backgrounds are bright and contain trees and clouds and all sorts of fancy free images. The stages all seem to have themes, i.e. the first ten stages have a woodsy theme, with the levels constructed out of branches. The themes switch the farther you progress – level 11 had a “fall colors” motif – and I think, as you descend down to the “Cave of Monsters,” things get darker. I never found out because I wasn't about to waste hours of my life blowing and popping only to get a bad ending, because I'm not popular enough to take on the game with a friend.

Once again, as a solo gamer, I can't recommend these games. They're tedious and repetitive and the only real joy I get from playing them is wondering how quickly I'll beat the next level. I can't fault the overall game, though. For what it is, it's well-constructed, and it's meant to be played with two people. A time trial would have given this game an extra injection of beef – see how fast you can beat the whole game or just various levels, compare scores with your friends, etc. - but that would have required more effort on Taito's part, and in 1993, there was no point in exerting extra effort for a game about to be released on a half-dead system. Oh Bubble Bobble Part 2, you so crazy!

C