Paddle Bobble may very well change your life
Though the Bubble Bobble series has been ill-treated on the DS -- suffering everything from terrible packaging to a game-ruining bug -- I've held onto the hope that Taito would one day release a handheld follow-up to 2002's wonderful Puzzle Bobble Online (PC).
The game had it all -- six-player online combat, cooperative mechanics, and even a chat box for griefing other PBO players. Taito's newest announced DS title, Space Puzzle Bobble, won't have all of that, but it still has some interesting features:
- online multiplayer for up to four players
- paddle controller support
- budget price for Japan
- dinosaurs in space (Dinosaucers!)
I'm pretty pumped about all of that. As for why I'm still wishing for the return of a six-year-old Puzzle Bobble game that hardly anyone remembers, there was more to PBO than just its feature list:
"I stole my first kiss from the woman I'd eventually marry [shorly after discovering] PBO. She fell asleep that night with her head on my chest, hours before I closed my own eyes.
I could see everything in my life finally coming together in bubble form. Cannons were angled, balls were shot and bounced down bends into tucked-away corners, and a burst of of confetti rained down with the cleared rows as Bub and Bob hopped up and down in victory."
That explained, enjoy some Space Puzzle Bobble screens!