Super Bubble Pop

"A flawed, yet fun entry in the puzzle genre."

Super Bubble Pop is the first game from Runecraft that I’ve had the pleasure of playing, and judging by this effort, I hope that their next title is as well-done as this one. This is a bubble-based puzzle game, and is kind of like Puyo Puyo, only with a 3D playing field, and without much of what makes games in that series enjoyable.

It really saddens me to have to say that, as the game tries so many things, and deserves credit for them, but the execution is just too flawed to not make mention of them. For one thing, the game’s perspective causes massive problems with lining up the colored bubbles, as you will aim for a line of them with two, hoping to get the third, and find that, due in part to the camera shifting suddenly, you’ve missed your mark, and have now either started a new row, or screwed up an existing line of bubbles. Those are just two examples of what can happen when this particular problem occurs, as there are quite a few more that can occur depending on how your playing field has been organized. This flaw can really mess up the flow of play, and probably will cause you to lose quite a few times. In time, you can compensate for it to a certain extent, but it shouldn’t be there in the first place.

Another key flaw in the gameplay lies in that far too much is happening on-screen in relation to what you’re doing. On the left-hand site, for example, you’ve got the usual area designated to show you what bubbles you’ve got coming up next, this wouldn’t be such a huge problem if the multi-colored background was just black for this portion, as the colored stuff in the backdrop just ends up moving around a lot, and causes the colors of the bubbles to blend in with it, which will frequently force you to take a second or third glance to see what you’ve got, and you still have to try and look at the vast playing field. By the time you‘ve completed just one check of both the forthcoming bubbles area, and the playing field, new lines of bubbles could be forming, and once they get from one end of the playing field to the other, the game is over.

It’s kind of like a conveyer belt, think of the bubbles as say, chocolate, and you are Lucy and Ethel, when the stuff comes at you too quickly for you to manage, due to having to take multiple glances at the different areas of the screen, you might be too late, and too many bubble lines will be formed towards the end for you to eliminate, leaving you out of luck, and with the proverbial chocolate all around you.

Yet another key flaw in the game’s design lies in there being nothing in the way of combo play, beyond some assorted power-ups, which tend to fly by far too quickly for you to really notice what they are, let alone what role they play in the game. In a nice twist, you have five characters to choose from in total (with three being available from the start), and each one has their own power-up, which does make the gameplay different for each character. While this makes up for the lack of combo play to some extent, the game would be more rich in depth, and feel more fulfilling to play if there was at least some sort of combo system in place. I’m imagining it with the combo system of Puyo Puyo, and the results, in theory at least, would be fantastic, as you would have the great play of the Puyo Puyo games combined with a third-dimension, which, given the play style here, would actually add some depth. Without a real combo system, the gameplay is kind of hollow, yet still enjoyable to a certain degree, which is a testament to the hard work put into making the game.

The game’s controls are flawed as well, not to the same degree as the gameplay, thankfully, but still enough to hinder play. While the button control for firing off the bubbles into the lines is fine, the directional controls for aiming them aren’t so hot. The d-pad tends to feel kind of weak, to use a Married…With Children analogy, it’s like a regular toilet. While the analog stick tends to be too forceful, like the almighty Ferguson toilet. This leaves the player with no truly acceptable way to control things around the playing field, as one method doesn’t do the job well enough, leaving you to do double the d-pad taps to get the job done, while the other does it a bit too well, and can leave you going two lines over when you only want to move one. This, much like the flaws in the gameplay, really drags the game down, although this can be compensated for to a certain degree, much like my first big issue with the game.

Visually, this is a very snazzy-looking game. Everything looks nice, with sharp visuals that bathe the screen. Of course, as I mentioned earlier, the graphics can get in the way of the gameplay, as the animation for stuff tends to go overboard, and the camera, which presents your view of the graphics, causes some issues in it‘s own right. When those issues aren’t present though, you will be able to really enjoy the visual treats that this game provides. I came into expecting rather bland visuals, as that is par for the puzzle game course, but I am rather pleased at how great everything looks. Some of the visual flair could have been toned down though, as this is the Liberace of puzzle games, visually.

If the game succeeds in any one area, it’s in the audio. Much like with the visuals, I came into it with kind of low, yet realistic expectations. Here though, unlike the graphics, the game doesn’t really have any flaws with the audio. Everything works out well here, with the music complimenting the fast pace of the gameplay, and the rapid-changing sound effects nicely. The music of the game is a blend of salsa, with some dance and electronica in there for good measure. What’s better, you can customize your playlist using the in-game jukebox, a feature that I’ve never seen outside of the Xbox (and yes, I’m sure that version of this game supports that feature, and probably custom soundtracks as well., the lack of which doesn‘t hurt this game one bit) Runecraft deserves some kudos for putting the jukebox in, as it’s quite a nifty feature, and adds something to the game. The sound effects, while not as dazzling as the music, are done well. The sound of the bubbles popping is realistic, and the rest of the sound effects have a realistic edge to them. I do wish they were a little more boisterous though, as they sound kind of muted behind the music.

Super Bubble Pop’s replay value is decent when compared to many games, although it doesn’t fare as well when compared to most puzzle games out there. The gameplay offers up some new things, which are a joy to play until the buzz wears off, and the cracks in the gameplay start to surface. The lack of a combo system probably does more damage to the replay value than anything else, as it makes it look horrible by comparison to other puzzle games, and due to that, it lacks enough depth to really be worth playing consistently. If you’re the type of puzzle game fan who just plays them every now and then, and for abbreviated gameplay sessions, this game might suit your fancy. As someone who tends to play in that style for this genre, this game does hold up nicely when I’m not going for two-three hour play sessions, but if I am, the gameplay starts to unravel quickly.

All in all, I appreciate the effort that Runecraft put into this game, they obviously wanted to try something new in the genre, and I applaud them for it. The sad part is that the end result doesn’t quite work out all that well, with some gaping holes throughout the game that really kill it. Thankfully, the game does manage to persevere through some of them by being fun to play in spite of them, which counts for something. The stuff done with the audio is rather clever, and adds some enjoyment to the game. Being able to choose multiple characters is neat, and it actually affects the how the game can be played with each character, which is neat, and doesn’t hinder the game like it easily could. Normally, a game with these kinds of flaws would be a rental only, but since this version (and most, if not all of the others) run for around $10, just buy it. You’ll get $10 out of it in no time, and who knows, maybe you’ll end up really loving the game.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/25/04, Updated 03/25/04