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I'll spare you the usual spiel about the name of this game, and get directly into the meat
and potatoes: WHAT THE HELL IS ACCLAIM'S NAME DOING ON THIS THING? Was Taito in such a stage
that they had to throw the former House of NBA JAM into this mix? I haven't the slightest
idea. But crazy-*** branding aside, It's almost impossible to screw up a Bust-A-Move game.
All you need is a playfield, a weird bubble cannon thing, a number of candy-colored bubbles
at the top of the screen to aim at, and maybe some cameos by the cast of Bubble Bobble.
That's it. That's all you need. And this arcade-ported version gives you... well, exactly that.
This isn't the kind of game that's going to sit you down and tell a story about a fanciful
island where two kids got turned into dinosaurs once and then they fixed that and learned
how to wield rainbows... nuts to that. Most you're going to get is a strange (but decently-animated)
introductory pantomime, and then BAM. Straight into the action. The primary challenge in
this Arcade Edition involves head-to-head matchups against a slew of computer opponents,
who - even on normal difficulty - are really good at this game. I mean, really good. It
becomes kinda obvious kinda quickly that this very direct port still has its unflinching
determination set on opening your wallet and depleting your supply of quarters... problem
is, this is a home version, and there aren't any quarters involved. (I'd try jamming some
into my Saturn, but that would be stupid.) No, instead you're simply presumed to have
a stock of nine credits, with which to pound your way through robotic cats and girls who
materialize out of cotton candy.
But what's a puzzle game without a solipsistic, single-player puzzle mode? Preferably one
that involves having to land carom shots off the side walls, enough to make Minnesota Fats
revolve in his grave. As has become the trend for Bust-A-Move titles, the puzzle mode branches
out in a lattice fashion to include an alphabet's worth of different puzzle packs. These tend
to be less fixated on rushing down an opponent in bubble-to-bubble combat, and more about
getting the most out of each bubble fired. (Though it is worth mentioning that you're
still working on a time limit.) In both modes, the playfield shrinks every so often, so you've
gotta keep your stack low - preferably by severing large stacks of bubbles from the
top of the screen, thus optimizing your output - in order to survive. This Saturn version,
along with the PC version, also features an Edit Mode for creating your own bubblestacks
to destroy, as well as a strange quirk of the audio mix where the pleasant "You win"
jingle sounds like it's being played from another room or something. But I can tolerate
a strange audio mix. Not like I can hear it anyway. My ears are filled with loathing resentment
for that puff-wearing jungle girl and her bubble-bursting antics. Friend-of-the-show
Jeanie in PA, sorry, I'm monopolizing this thing until she tastes bubbly defeat.