At first glance, this looks like a double dip. Taito's original NES edition of has been on sale in Virtual Console form for about a year and a half already, and this newly-released WiiWare rendition starts off by offering the exact same set of 100 classic arcade levels. But, thankfully, this remake doesn't just stop there -- it justifies the 'Plus' part of its title by supplementing the classic 'Standard' mode with several more gametypes, all of which add up to be worth well more than the single extra dollar it'll take you to own this one over the VC version. Bubble Bobble is an arcade action design where you control a bubble-spitting dinosaur descending through a series of single-screen levels filled with enemies and point-scoring collectible items. It's one of Taito's most notable classic designs, and has a following of fans who've been faithfully playing its many editions on a variety of platforms for over 20 years now. It's a game with appeal that spreads to cover all types and ages of gamers, and has been particularly praised for its cooperative two-player mode, which has dinosaur brothers Bub and Bob teaming up to tackle the titanic task together.!, then, wisely doesn't try to fix what isn't broken.

Its Standard mode is a direct remake of Bubble Bobble, with the same control scheme, level layouts and two-player support. Its only alteration to the arcade original is a new visual style, which renders Bub, Bob and all their foes in 3D here on Wii. Probably could have pushed the graphical overhaul a bit further and still satisfied longtime fans, but the result looks pretty good and is certainly faithful to the spirit of the original design. That was last week. Virtual.com port usb.

Playing Bubble Bobble is a two-step process -- first you have to trap your enemies in bubbles, and then you have to pop those bubbles to eliminate the foes completely. It takes a bit of practice to get used to, and could feel a little archaic for players who've never previously experienced the game. Taito seriously kept the same control scheme, to a tee -- so you're only getting as much flexibility in control as the arcades of the late '80s allowed. The bubble-then-pop, one-two attack strategy is simple enough for the first few stages, but then things get more complicated -- enemies become more vicious and more mobile, and the layout of each screen's set of platforms demands more careful attention be paid to how you're moving your dino around. An extra jumping technique, where you hold down the jump button to bounce off the tops of bubbles instead of bursting them, becomes essential. And you can't let your little prehistoric hero get even slightly grazed by an unbubbled enemy, because one hit's all it takes to lose a life here.

!BLOCK SIZE 281! This is a review of the Nintendo Wii Ware title Puzzle Bobble Plus, available to download on the Nintendo Wii Ware Service. For Bubble Bobble Plus! On the Wii, GameFAQs has 2 reviews, 8 critic reviews, and 1 user screenshots.

Bubble Bobble is fairly fun as a single-player experience, but the game doesn't really shine until Player 2 joins in on the fun. That's when things get a bit easier, as you can each take half the workload of dealing with the waves of baddies, and you can have a bit of extra fun running ahead of your friend to collect the fruits and bonus items that appear. (And there are a ton of those.

You might play for days and not see all the different varieties.) You haven't played Bubble Bobble at its best until you've partnered with a friend. So that's Bubble Bobble. Remade and just as accessible as always, if just a bit stiff after 20 years. Now, on to the Plus part. Like the support for two new, additional players.