Bubble Bobble DS gets a new dragon
Bubble-blowing critters Bub and Bob welcome Bubu to their world
Having used up our lifetime's allocation of jokes about magic dragons puffing bubbles when talking about the 2005 version of cute retro platformer Bubble Bobble, now we'll just have to get straight down to business.
And the big news in Bubble Bobble Double Shot is the introduction of a third playable dragon, Bubu, who joins longterm favourites Bub and Bob in their seemingly neverending search for their girlfriends in the caves of monsters. Surely it's time for the lads to give up and go speed dating like everyone else?
You'll be able to switch between the three using the DS' shoulder button as each shoot bubbles in different hues which are used to take out certain colour-coded enemies. Also extending the colour gameplay mechanic is the new star bubble, which is used to change the colour of all onscreen enemies.
As with the previous games in the series, your main weapon will be the bubbles you blow out and use to trap enemies, who are then turned into bonus items when you pop their bubble. You'll get points for each monster dispatched too, with the awarded points being multipled if you can trap more than one monster per bubble.
Bubbles are also used to jump and climb around the platformer levels, which span both of the DS' screens. Your goal is to get rid of all inhabiting monsters before the time limit is up. But if you overrun, the invincible Baron von Blubba will turn up to make your job much harder - a case of pop or be popped.
Still if you run out of lives, you will be able to take part in special touch-based mini-games including bubble-based puzzles and a monster chase, where the player has to frantically tap the touchscreen to make Bub outrun his pursuer. Successfully completing one of these will take you back to the main game.
And as well as the 100 single player levels, there'll also be a three-way co-operative multiplayer option.
Like an innercity fountain, Bubble Bobble Double Shot is currently being filled up with washing up liquid by naughty schoolboys. It should be ready for a spring 2007 release.
