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Bubble Bobble: Difference between revisions
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{{quote| ''{{smallcaps|Now, it is the beginning of a fantastic story! Let us make a journey to the cave of monsters! Good luck!}}''}}
'''Bubble Bobble''' is a classic arcade game made by Taito and released in 1986. It features two cute bubble dragon critters named {{color|green|Bubblun}} and {{color|blue|Bobblun}} who [[Bubble Gun|spit/blow bubbles]] to trap and pop a wide variety of weird but also cute enemy creatures (including wind-up toys) that [[One
But here's [[Late Arrival Spoiler|something people should already know]]: They're really two ''human boys'' named {{color|green|Bubby}} and {{color|blue|Bobby}} who are cursed with a transformation into bubble dragons and they have to rescue their human girlfriends (Betty and Patty, respectively) from a green-hooded giant named Super Drunk.
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* [[All There in the Manual|All There In The Flyers (and Manual)]]: The storylines are not explicitly stated in the first game itself.
** Exceptions: The Story heading in the Bubble Symphony flyer is misleading ''and'' self-contradictory; a plot point on the inside left of the flyer has also been contradicted by the [[Precap]]. Also, don't just rely on the NES version's manual.
* [[All There in The Script]] / [[Who Is This Guy Again?]] - Character names are barely stated in the game itself. One must look at flyers or credits. In the case of Pab and Peb, the ''Bubble Bobble Plus'' Title Operations Guide on the Wii Shop Channel was consulted.
* [[Ambidextrous Sprite]]: A lazy example in ''Bubble Symphony''. When the {{spoiler|human characters}} die and spin out, three of their sprite frames are flipped, making it seem like, while they are dizzily spinning out dead, they hop to their other foot and then back, twice, before they fall backwards and poof away into magic dust. {{spoiler|The bubble dragons' deaths aren't like this.}}
* [[American Kirby Is Hardcore]]: For no apparent reason, the boxart of the [[Sega Saturn]] version of Bust-A-Move 2 has a bald guy ''[[Eye Scream|shoving matchsticks into his eyelids.]]''
* [[Animorphism]]: A [[Curse]] turns protagonists Bub and Bob into ... bubble dragons? Yup. (Throw in some [[Super Deformed]] [[Incredible Shrinking Man]] for ''Bubble Memories'', because Bub and Bob as humans are proportional in that game.)
** [[Canon Dis Continuity|Implied]] [[Voluntary Shapeshifting]]: '''Part''' 2 (NES)'s intro shows the protagonist seemingly turning himself into a bubble dragon after his girlfriend is captured.
* [[Attack of the 50 Foot Whatever]]: Bosses. But hey, in ''Memories'' players can find an item that [[Invincibility Power
** [[Giant Mook]]: Some enemies in ''Bubble Memories''. Also, in ''Bubble Bobble'', the captured-in-bubbles girlfriends get escorted by Giant Mooks throughout the levels.
* [[Baleful Polymorph]]
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* [[Big Eater]]: Player characters, judging solely by the amount of enemies they turn into food by bubbling them.
** [[Serial Escalation]]: ''as well as that [[Random Drop|random-chance-of-dropping]] TALL hamburger, and then a HUGE honeycomb in '''Part''' 2/Junior (Game Boy). Gone in one gulp.''
* [[Bland
* [[Bonus Stage]]: Getting a certain item in ''Bubble Bobble'' to make all enemies disappear and put the player(s) in a race against the clock to get all or most of another type of item.
** [[Brutal Bonus Level]]: Those in the NES version of '''''Part''' 2'' (after a world boss is defeated) are outright stated as bonus games along with the word "bonus" in the font of ''Bubble Bobble'''s secret rooms. However, they're excruciatingly hard [[Mini Game|Mini Games]].
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** In ''Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move 4'', Bub/Bob gets dizzy and falls forwards.
* [[Color Coded for Your Convenience]]: In the ''Bubble Bobble'' series, root for green and blue! And magenta. And orange. Also, each bubble in the ''Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move'' games is sorted by color like in Tetris.
* [[Color
** However, in ''Bubble Symphony'', players can choose which of the four they want.
* [[Continuing Is Painful]]
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* [[Covers Always Lie|NES Covers Always Lie]] / [[Dinosaurs Are Dragons|Dinosaurs Are Cute Bubble Dragons]]: [http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/bigboxshots/2/563392_62678_front.jpg These two are definitely not] [[Adaptation Decay|brontosauruses.]]
** Well, it does help fit in with the [[Added Alliterative Appeal|alliteration thing they've got going there.]]
* [[Cryonics Failure]] - Having a hexagonal ice block forming around the character, via [[Instant Ice, Just Add Cold|contact with a snowball]], in ''Bubble Symphony'' kills him/her right after the ice shatters shortly afterward only because touching anything is fatal.
* [[Cursed With Awesome]]: Blow bubbles to turn enemies into food! How cool is that?
** [[And Your Reward Is Clothes|Considering in Bubble Symphony you can do this even as humans]], and, [[Weaksauce Weakness|in general, once cursed you die too easily]], there isn't really any advantage to being dragons. Especially because any other person who is transformed (other than the protagonists) is so scared or is outside of the [[Competence Zone]] that he/she [[How Do I Shot Web|doesn't even know how to or if they can use such a cool weapon.]]
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* [[Easy Mode Mockery]]: Sort of. There is a three-level-''only'' mode in ''Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move 2'' and ''PB/BAM3'' (arcade, Game Boy). This is the only mode that the pointer line stays throughout.
* [[Everything Fades]]: the eight outward facing lines when a dizzy-dead protagonist or an item that's been left alone disappears. The protagonists poof away into magic dust and items poof into a cloud of dust that quickly dissipates, as shown in ''Symphony''. Maybe it's because the 8 outward facing lines in ''Bubble Bobble'' and its remakes as well as the Game Boy games are [[Wild Mass Guessing|so ambiguous.]]
* [[
* [[
* [[
* [[Everything Trying to Kill You]]: Or: Everything is out there trying to walk into you. And kill you by doing so.
* [[Evil Albino]]: Baron von Blubba, aka the skull(s).
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** Played straight with the red magic cross: Getting it and blowing fireballs will not affect the other player character.
* [[Garfunkel]]: Unfortunately, Bob(blun), the blue bubble dragon, has not been in as many games and ports as Bub(blun), the green bubble dragon, is.
* [[Generation Xerox]]: no one in the protagonists' families is safe from becoming cursed into [[One
* [[Gimmick Level]]
** There is one very open level in ''Symphony'' after getting the required [[Plot Coupon|Plot Coupons]] where players must carefully bounce on bubbles across certain wind currents from one tiny platform on one side to another on the other side. They also have to avoid falling or touching any enemy.
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*** The wall-of-text intros upon starting the game (in either Normal or Super Mode). What does "supplicating" mean anyway?
** Most Gratuitous English examples in the games can be found at [http://zanyvgquotes.com/ ZanyVGQuotes.com] under "Bubble _________" and "Puzzle Bobble 3" and "Bust-A-Move 4" (the latter two are in the same series).
** Puzzle Bobble 4 / Bust-a-Move 4 gets overloaded with bad translations especially when comparing the [[Attract Mode]] how-to-play screens of PB4/BAM4 with earlier installments, which were [[They Changed It, Now It Sucks|perfectly grammatically fine before.]] Bubblun and Bobblun are named Bubbl'''e'''n and Bobbl'''e'''n, effectively (re)naming one of them after the [[Giant Mecha]] Boss of PB2/BAM2.
** The end-of-level boss for one of the ''Rainbow Islands'' was a spaceship called... Electric Fan!
* [[Grievous Bottley Harm]]: Super Drunk throws a [[Spread Shot]] of beer bottles forwards. The smaller Drunk enemies have a beer bottle that acts like a ''boomerang''.
* [[Guide Dang It]]: In ''every single game''. Please memorize a strategy guide before starting.
* [[Hair Decorations]]: Coro and Kulu (in their human forms) respectively wear purple twin orbs and a green bow. On the other hand, bows on bubble dragons are necessary for [[Tertiary Sexual Characteristics|distinguishing character genders]].
* [[Harmless Freezing]] is ''subverted'': in ''Bubble Symphony'', the same events happen with the freezing and ice shattering, but since [[One
* [[Hijacked By Ganon]]: In the VS CPU modes of Puzzle Bobble/Bust-a-Move 2, 3, and 4, a enemy named Drunk (the green hooded beer-drinking enemy) has been inside, respectively, a giant robot Mecha named Bubblen (one letter shy of Bub's long bubble dragon name), a giant fake bubble dragon named Debblun, and a spaceship face named Madam Luna.
* [[Idle Animation]]:
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* [[Improbable Weapon User]]: Bubbles, rainbows, and parasols.
* [[Inexplicable Treasure Chests]]: A huge chest drops down at the end of each level in ''Rainbow Islands'' and after defeating a world boss in ''Bubble Symphony'' and ''Memories''. Another chest is the basis of one of ''Symphony'''s bad endings.
* [[Instant Ice, Just Add Cold]]: In ''Bubble Symphony'' upon contact with a snowball, a hexagonal shape, rather than an ice block, forms around a Cursed protagonist.
* [[Invincible Minor Minion]]: The floating skull named Skel-Monsta/Baron von Blubba that comes with [[Stalked By the Bell]]. He has been promoted to [[Sequential Boss|Sequential]] [[One
** The [[Secret Level|Secret Rooms]] have their own minion(s): A gray jelly bean face guy named Rascal (named Rubblen in Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move SNES, VS CPU mode), who appears without the "Hurry up!" warning.
* [[Invincibility Power
* [[Jaw Drop]]: Bubble Memories normal mode good ending; Space Puzzle Bobble when Bob(blun) is used and the board is almost full. Both are used in conjunction with [[Blank White Eyes]], mainly used in death sprites in ''Memories''.
* [[Kawaisa]]
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* [[Kill It With Fire]]: Fire bubbles kill enemies and stun protagonists, enemy fireballs incinerate protagonists. ''Obviously, don't touch the latter!''
** [[Playing With Fire]]: The red cross allows a protagonist to blow fireballs for the current level. Which thankfully [[Friendly Fireproof|don't incinerate the partner.]]
* [[Kill It With Ice]]: The player characters via contact with a snowball. See [[Instant Ice, Just Add Cold]].
* [[Kill It With Water]]: Water bubbles kill enemies and carry (and/or visibly stun) protagonists. The blue cross item in ''Bubble Bobble'' floods the room and drowns all enemies. However, in ''Rainbow Islands'', water kills protagonists. However again, in ''Bubble Memories'', [[Super Not
* [[King Mook]]: The ''Bubble Bobble'' series has many bosses based upon the Mighta and Monsta enemies, not to mention the Super Drunk at the end of the very first game (a giant version of a regular Drunk), and the Hyper Drunk from ''Bubble Symphony'', and also the [[True Final Boss]] of ''Rainbow Islands'': a gigantic Skel-Monsta.
* [[Lamarck Was Right]]: the characters in ''Symphony'' are just as capable of action as the characters in ''Bubble Bobble'' are.
* [[Late Arrival Spoiler]]: Arcade sequels to Bubble Bobble show that {{spoiler|the characters are humans}} in their Attract Mode or first round. {{spoiler|They were ''already'' humans in the first place}}, but the game writers use...
* [[The Law of Conservation of Detail]]: If a person's just going through an arcade somewhere and sees the first [[Bubble Bobble (Video Game)|Bubble Bobble]] and chooses to play it, they wouldn't know Bub and Bob are really human and have girlfriends to rescue. Especially if "it is [the] beginning of a fantastic story! Let's make a journey to the cave of monsters!" Well, about 20-30 or so levels later in the arcade (never the NES/Virtual Console), the two captured girls are screaming for help while being escorted by [[Giant Mook|Giant Mooks]]. That's one plot revealed.
** Game Boy version(s): What is Bub supposed to help his brother Bob from? [[Sick Episode|Is Bob sick?]] {{spoiler|Because a river outside is dried up? What? Really?}} If Bob's sick and [[I Coulda Been a Contender|can't participate]], why would he be transformed? [[Fanon Discontinuity|Or not.]] And anyway, what the heck is the [[Chekhov's Gun|Moon Water]]? [[Yes but What Does It Do|What is it supposed to do?]] Does it turn out to be an [[The Un
* [[The Many Deaths of You|The Many]] '''[[What Do You Mean It Wasn't Made On Drugs?|Exaggerated]]''' [[The Many Deaths of You|Deaths Of You]]: A bubble dragon or their human form can die by:
** Touching anything, which (arguably completely) numbs them out causing them to gain a literal black line across their eyes and die
** total incineration to dust from a small laser bolt when it should cause a small burn
** getting [[Instant Ice, Just Add Cold|INSTANTLY frozen from a snowball]] when it should just feel cold at the impact point (''Bubble Symphony'' only), or
** getting [[X
* [[Match Three Game]]: ''Puzzle Bobble aka Bust-A-Move'' and its own sequels.
* [[Mirror Match]]: They're not fighting against themselves, but in the first ''Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move'', twin Bubs or Bobs blow-shoot and carry bubbles, and turn the crank respectively. <small>And if you lose... one spins out and dizzy-dies as in ''Bubble Bobble'', the other gets stunned.</small>
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* [[No Final Boss for You]]: ''Bubble Symphony'' and ''Bubble Memories''.
* [[Nostalgia Level]]: See Shout Out below.
* [[Not Quite Back to Normal]]: The [[One
* [[Ominous Latin Chanting|Ominous Chanting]]: ''Symphony'''s [[True Final Boss]] theme.
* [[One
** Subverted in '''''Part''' 2'' (NES) because the player only has one heart per life, but can find more hearts.
** Avoided in '''''Part''' 2/Junior'' (Game Boy) and ''Revolution'' (DS) because the player has three hearts per life.
** [[Weaksauce Weakness|Even after they turn back into humans, they still die by touching anything.]] ''Rainbow Islands'' and ''Parasol Stars'' take place after ''Bubble Bobble'', and there's turning into humans {{spoiler|in the middle of the game}} in ''Bubble Symphony''. Such may be the way of The Curse.
* [[One
** In '''Part''' 2 (NES)'s final level, according to [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeQ8jnfLWlI this], {{spoiler|of the three skull brothers, the one channeling [[Hellfire]] is invincible at first. Once the other two are defeated, he then unexpectedly grows giant and gains a skeleton body.}}
** There is also a case in ''Rainbow Islands'' and ''Bubble Memories'' in which the final boss will reveal his true form after being defeated once.
* [[Parasol of Pain]]: in ''Parasol Stars''.
* [[Parasol Parachute]]: in ''[[Parasol Stars]]'' {{spoiler|and the good endings of ''Bubble Memories''}}.
* [[Pink Girl, Blue Boy]]
** Coro and Bob (respectively) who are always beside each other in ''Symphony'''s cutscenes. Extended with green boy Bub and orange girl Kulu.
** Likely subverted in the DS game ''Bubble Bobble Revolution''. An unlockable character, Lovelun, is pink, and his ''[[Ambiguous Gender|gender is unknown]]'' but he doesn't wear a bow.
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* [[Rule of Cute]]: Players ([[Plot Tumor|and game developers]]) prefer bubble dragons over [[Late Arrival Spoiler|their human form counterparts]].
* [[Ryu and Ken]]: Bub and Bob, once just mere [[Palette Swap|Palette Swaps]]. They soon underwent [[Divergent Character Evolution]], being fleshed out with different personalities and abilities later on. The personalities are only stated in the ''Symphony'' arcade flyer and the ''Memories'' [[Attract Mode]]. Abilities are only featured in ''Symphony''.
* [[Secret Level]]: The secret rooms in most (if not all) ''Bubble Bobble'' games. [[One
* [[Selective Gravity]]: Characters fall slowly. Also, in ''Bubble Symphony'', players can very slightly alter their falling speed by holding up or down.
* [[Shock and Awe]]: Lightning bubbles regardless of size (compare giant lightning bubbles in ''Bubble Memories'') used by protagonists will kill enemies but can also stun themselves. Lightning of any size summoned by enemies can simply-kill (''BB Part 2'' NES) or [[X
* [[Shout Out]] (these result in [[Nostalgia Level|Nostalgia Levels]]). It's one of the first video game series with massive shout outs scattered throughout the levels.
** ''Bubble Bobble'' [http://application.denofgeek.com/images/m/lambie/Chack_N_Pop.jpg recreates] [http://www.adamdawes.com/retrogaming/bbguide/images/round29.gif a stage] from an earlier game, ''Chack'n Pop''. It also features the title character on the [[Invincibility Power
** ''Rainbow Islands'' features worlds based on Arkanoid, {{spoiler|Fairyland Story, Darius, and Bubble Bobble itself}}.
** ''Bubble Symphony'' [http://www.vazcomics.org/mamend/png/bubl0135.png features character cameos from] [http://www.vazcomics.org/mamend/png/bubl0136.png other Taito games] as well as base some of their [[Adventure Towns]] off them. The aforementioned ''Chack'n Pop'' level appears again.
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* [[Spelling Bonus]]: E-X-T-E-N-D for an extra life.
* [[Spikes of Doom]]: '''''Part''' 2'', NES: Several levels have them. Also, when a protagonist walks above a certain enemy, it shoots its needle hat onto him, causing him to over-inflate, then deflate to normal and then die.
* [[Spin
* [[Spread Shot]]: In ''Bubble Symphony'', each character has their own spread pattern when blowing bubbles, but only after it has been charged up.
* [[Sprite Polygon Mix]]: ''Bubble Bobble Plus'' uses 2D graphics for the foregrounds and 3D graphics for the player characters and enemies.
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* [[Super Deformed]]
* [[Super Drowning Skills]]: The protagonists in ''Rainbow Islands''.
* [[Super Not
* [[Super Title 64 Advance]]: ''Bubble Bobble '''D'''ouble '''S'''hot''.
* [[Sweat Drop]]: Flying sweat drops when anyone is stunned or killed. More apparent (both flying and dripping sweat) in ''Symphony'''s cutscenes, which are Anime-styled.
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* [[Wingding Eyes]]: In an exaggerated variant, characters die (or get stunned) with their eyes getting ''crossed off by a literal black line'', except in ''Bubble Memories''. Aside from that, Bob ''is'' shown with + eyes on ''Bubble Memories'''s game over screen.
* [[Wingdinglish]]: The secret rooms in ''Bubble Bobble'' and ''Bubble Symphony''.
* [[X
** ''Bubble Symphony'': Only... '''little''' voltage is required to kill a protagonist.
** A cutscene in ''Puzzle Bobble 2'' (arcade)'s VS CPU mode before facing off against a giant lightbulb thing has the player character getting fried.
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