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''Bubsy 3D'' (also known as ''Bubsy 3D: Furbitten Planet'' or ''Bubsy is 3D in "Furbitten Planet"'') is a
platform Platform may refer to: Technology * Computing platform, a framework on which applications may be run * Platform game, a genre of video games * Car platform, a set of components shared by several vehicle models * Weapons platform, a system or ...
game developed by Eidetic and published by Accolade. It is the first 3D game in the ''
Bubsy ''Bubsy'' is a series of platforming video games created by Michael Berlyn and developed and published by Accolade. The games star an anthropomorphic bobcat named Bubsy, a character that takes inspiration from '' Super Mario Bros.'' and '' So ...
'' series, and the fourth game in the series overall. The game was released for the PlayStation on November 25, 1996, in North America, with a later European release in August 1997. ''Bubsy 3D'' follows the series' titular character, an orange bobcat named Bubsy, who travels to the planet Rayon to stop the alien Woolies, and return safely to Earth. After the disappointing commercial performance of '' Bubsy II'' and '' Bubsy in: Fractured Furry Tales'', both of which were released in 1994, Accolade asked the original ''Bubsy'' creator and designer
Michael Berlyn Michael Berlyn (born 1949) is an American video game designer and writer. He is best known as an implementer at Infocom, part of the text adventure game design team. Brainwave Creations was a small game programming company started by Michael Ber ...
to return to the series, who decided to revitalize the series with a transition to 3D. ''Bubsy 3D'' would become one of the first platform games to fully enable 3D exploration. However, the team's unfamiliarity with 3D technology created development challenges. Late in the game's development, Berlyn saw a preview of '' Super Mario 64'' at the 1996 Consumer Electronics Show, and became concerned that ''Bubsy 3D'' was an inferior game. As Accolade insisted on releasing the game on time, the team aimed to make the best game they could under the circumstances. A version for the Sega Saturn was planned and ultimately canceled. ''Bubsy 3D'' initially had a mixed reception. Although some reviewers did praise the game upon release, it has been universally panned in retrospect. Heavy criticism has been directed at the controls, environments, and voice acting. Several publications have ranked it among the worst video games in history. The game's legacy has also been affected by unfavorable comparisons to other early 3D platform games from the same year, ''Super Mario 64'' and ''
Crash Bandicoot ''Crash Bandicoot'' is a video game franchise originally developed by Naughty Dog as an exclusive for Sony's PlayStation console. It has seen numerous installments created by various developers and published on multiple platforms. The series c ...
''. ''Bubsy 3D'' was the last game in the ''Bubsy'' series for nearly 21 years, until a new team released '' Bubsy: The Woolies Strike Back'' in 2017.


Gameplay

''Bubsy 3D'' is a 3D platformer in which the player controls Bubsy, an anthropomorphic orange bobcat, in order to stop the alien Woolies and escape their planet, Rayon, by collecting atoms. The player must also collect rocket parts to build a transport back to planet Earth, and defeat the two Woolie queens, Poly and Esther. Bubsy's actions include running, jumping, gliding, swimming, and even piloting a rocket car in certain levels. The actions can trigger the character's signature catchphrases. The player can also control Bubsy's running speed, and the position of the camera. Bubsy defeats enemies by shooting atoms, as well as using his jump and glide abilities to pounce on them. Bubsy has limited lives and hit points, which can be extended by collecting atoms, reaching a high score, or by attacking clams who offer random prizes. After each level is a potential bonus round, unlocked when Bubsy collects at least 150 atoms. There are also jumping puzzles where Bubsy must activate four platforms or switches in the right order, which unlocks either a rocket or a power-up that grants temporary abilities. The game has 18 levels. Three of them take place underwater, where Bubsy must manage his oxygen supply, and his gliding action is replaced with a jetting dive. Bubsy passes most levels by touching a goal, except for two levels that are designed as
boss Boss may refer to: Occupations * Supervisor, often referred to as boss * Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier * Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization * Fire boss, ...
fights. There are two rockets in each non-boss level, and there is a different ending if Bubsy collects all of them. There is also a two-player mode, where players contest each other to collect as many points as possible and achieve a higher score.


Plot

''Bubsy 3D'' takes place on the planet Rayon, the home planet of the series' recurring enemies, the Woolies. The story follows the central character, an orange bobcat named Bubsy, whose goal is to escape the planet by building a
rocket ship A space vehicle is the combination of a spacecraft and its launch vehicle which carries it into space. The earliest space vehicles were expendable launch systems, using a single or multistage rocket to carry a relatively small spacecraft in p ...
from a collection of atoms and rocket pieces. The story begins with the Woolie queens, Poly and Esther, invading earth and kidnapping Bubsy, intending to steal all of Earth's yarn. However, Bubsy escapes his kidnappers when there is a malfunction on the Woolie ship, creating a panic across their planet. The Woolies fail to understand why Bubsy is collecting atoms and rocket parts, but nonetheless see him as a danger and call for a military campaign to stop him. The game's ending depends on how many collectibles the player is able to gather. If Bubsy collects fewer than the 32 rocket parts needed to escape, his rocket will ultimately become stranded in outer space. If the player successfully collects all 32 rocket pieces, the rocket rips through the
space-time continuum In physics, spacetime is a mathematical model that combines the three dimensions of space and one dimension of time into a single four-dimensional manifold. Spacetime diagrams can be used to visualize relativistic effects, such as why differ ...
due to the density of the atoms that Bubsy has collected, stranding Bubsy in the Stone Age. In both cases, the Woolies go through with their plans and invade Earth.


Development

''Bubsy 3D'' was developed by Eidetic and published by Accolade. The game was designed by mainly
Michael Berlyn Michael Berlyn (born 1949) is an American video game designer and writer. He is best known as an implementer at Infocom, part of the text adventure game design team. Brainwave Creations was a small game programming company started by Michael Ber ...
, the original Bubsy creator, with a team that included fellow Eidetic founder and industry veteran
Marc Blank Marc Blank is an American game developer and software engineer. He is best known as part of the team that created one of the first commercially successful text adventure computer games, ''Zork''. Career Blank first encountered Don Woods and Will ...
(of ''
Zork ''Zork'' is a text-based adventure game first released in 1977 by developers Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling for the PDP-10 mainframe computer. The original developers and others, as the company Infocom, expanded a ...
'' fame). Blank also programmed the game. According to Berlyn, Accolade asked him to return to the series in hopes of revitalizing it, after the disappointing performance of the second and third installments of the series. Berlyn agreed under the condition that the game would not be a rehash of the original game, and set out to make one of the first 3D
platform game A platform game (often simplified as platformer and sometimes called a jump 'n' run game) is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are charac ...
s. Development of the game started in April 1995, with a team of approximately eight people. The team paid particular attention to Bubsy's body language, taking inspiration from
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
cartoons. Some art direction was overseen by
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
animator Chuck Jones. Programmer Christopher Reese described development changes due to the team's lack of experience with 3D technology. Due to console limitations, the environments were created with flat shaded polygons instead of textured polygons, which was less typical of most console games of the time. Still, the characters were Gouraud shaded and texture mapped. Berlyn said he chose this unusual combination because it made the characters stand out, ensuring the player's attention would be on Bubsy rather than on the environments. At the time, ''Bubsy 3D'' was one of the few PlayStation games that ran in high resolution. The cutscenes between stages were animated by hand in 2D, and the 3D polygonal models were then made to mimic this animation. Sprites were used for the
HUD Hud or HUD may refer to: Entertainment * ''Hud'' (1963 film), a 1963 film starring Paul Newman * ''Hud'' (1986 film), a 1986 Norwegian film * ''HUD'' (TV program), or ''Heads Up Daily'', a Canadian e-sports television program Places * Hud, Fa ...
, menu items, and power-ups. Sound effects, music and voice lines for the game were implemented with
ADPCM Adaptive differential pulse-code modulation (ADPCM) is a variant of differential pulse-code modulation (DPCM) that varies the size of the quantization step, to allow further reduction of the required data bandwidth for a given signal-to-noise ratio ...
as separate layers. The voice of Bubsy was done by actress
Lani Minella Lani Jean Minella (born July 28, 1950) is an American voice actress, voice director, and producer mostly working in the games industry. She is also the founder and owner of the voice-acting agency, AudioGodz. Career After college, Minella starte ...
. Berlyn attended the January 1996 Consumer Electronics Show to help demonstrate the ''Bubsy 3D'' beta personally. While wandering the floor he saw the demonstration for '' Super Mario 64'', another 3D platform jumping game, but one built with Nintendo's best resources in order to serve as the flagship title for a new gaming console (the
Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo. The successor to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, it was released on June 23, 1996, in Japan, on September 29, 1996, in North America, and on March 1, 1997, in Europe and ...
). Berlyn realized that ''Bubsy 3D'' looked greatly inferior to ''Super Mario 64'', but as Accolade was already committed to releasing the game, it was too late to do anything except make ''Bubsy 3D'' as good as possible within the remaining time. In Europe, distribution was handled by British publisher Telstar Electronic Studios under their budget label "Telstar Fun & Games". Accolade planned to release a version for the Sega Saturn, and announced plans to take advantage of the more sophisticated movement of the Saturn's analog controller. However, the Saturn version was ultimately cancelled.


Reception

''Bubsy 3D'' received a wide range of reviews upon release, but the majority were mixed to negative. Retrospective reception of ''Bubsy 3D'' turned more vehemently negative, with several sources citing the game as one of the all-time worst.


On release

The game holds an aggregate score of 51% at GameRankings based on five reviews. Reviewers did praise the levels' vast size, with more reviewers highlighting the game's two-player mode. However, most reviews criticized the camera for being disorienting, the environments for their blandness, and Bubsy's voice. Most of all, journalists were critical of the game's
tank controls Tank controls are a control system used in video games whereby players control movement relative to the position of the player character, rather than the perspective of the game camera. Mechanism In a game with tank controls, pressing up (f ...
, a control style they felt was more appropriate for other games, unlike the efficient timing required for a platform game. There were some positive reviews for ''Bubsy 3D''. ''PSExtreme'' gave the game a 93% and an editorial "Gold X Award", comparing the game favorably to a Warner Bros. cartoon. Three reviewers in ''
GameFan ''GameFan'' (originally known as ''Diehard GameFan'') was a publication started by Tim Lindquist, Greg Off, George Weising. and Dave Halverson in September 1992 that provided coverage of domestic and import video games. It was notable for its ex ...
'' gave ratings of 80, 79, and 80 with E. Storm commenting that he found ''Bubsy 3D'' refreshing for its peculiarity, uniqueness, and addictiveness. ''NowGamer'' credited ''Bubsy 3D'' with being the first genuinely 3D PlayStation game, and said that "younger players will be enthralled by its bright colours and simple gameplay, even if adults reach straight for the sick bucket." Martin of ''Absolute PlayStation'' felt that Bubsy's voice acting would appeal to younger players, and that the difficult game would attract challenge-seeking players. Brazilian magazine ''
Ação Games ''Ação Games'' was a Brazilian magazine specialized in video games that circulated from 1991 to 2002. History Released as a special edition of the sports magazine ''A Semana em Ação'', which replaced '' Placar'' at Editora Abril in August ...
'' was critical of the graphics and sound, but felt that the levels featured many fun gameplay and design elements. On the other hand, ''
GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
'' was critical of almost every aspect of the game, especially the voice acting: "Thank god the programmers included an option to turn off the sound bites Bubsy spews during the game; after having to endure that lispy, grating voice two or three times, the player may be tempted to kill his or her television." Crispin Boyer stated in ''
Electronic Gaming Monthly ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' (often abbreviated to ''EGM'') is a monthly American video game magazine. It offers video game news, coverage of industry events, interviews with gaming figures, editorial content and product reviews. History The m ...
'' that he could have excused the "lackluster" visuals had the game played well, and later clarified it does not. N. Somniac of '' GamePro'' found the single-player mode repetitive, slow, and predictable, and concluded that while Bubsy fans ought to rent this game to see him in 3D, action fans might prefer ''
Crash Bandicoot ''Crash Bandicoot'' is a video game franchise originally developed by Naughty Dog as an exclusive for Sony's PlayStation console. It has seen numerous installments created by various developers and published on multiple platforms. The series c ...
''. Describing the controls, Mike Salmon of '' Ultra Game Players'' wrote that ''Bubsy 3D'' does not give what he described that a 3D platform game should — complete control over a character. Victor Lucas of ''
The Electric Playground ''EP Daily'' (formerly ''The Electric Playground'') is a daily news television show that covers video games, movies, TV shows, comic books, collectibles and gadgets. Created and executive produced by host Victor Lucas, and his Vancouver, British ...
'' criticized both the visuals and the controls, explaining that "as disappointing as the visuals of ''Bubsy 3D'' are, it is the game's lack of speed and sloppy control that really make it a pain to play." Mark Skorupa of ''Gamezilla'' gave the game an overall score of 81, but similarly felt that the controls prevented the game from reaching its potential. He explains that "platform games require precise actions and split second decisions nd''Bubsy 3D'''s controls are very prohibitive to this type of gameplay."


Retrospectives

Retrospective reception of ''Bubsy 3D'' was more negative than reviews made shortly after release. Less than a year after they reviewed ''Bubsy 3D'', ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' listed it as the seventh worst console video game of all time. Note: Contrary to the title, the intro to the article (on page 100) explicitly states that the list covers console video games only, meaning PC games and arcade games were not eligible. In 2010,
Seanbaby Sean Patrick Reiley (born June 15, 1976), better known as Seanbaby, is an American writer and video-game designer best known for his comedy website and frequent contributions to video game media outlets ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' and 1UP.com, ...
ranked it 17th in his 20 worst games of all time, criticizing the game's controls, the character's personality, and the graphics. ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' also included it on their list of the 30 worst video games of all time. '' GameTrailers'' was another publication that named ''Bubsy 3D'' the eighth worst video game ever made, criticizing the voice clips, the tank controls, and comparing it unfavorably to ''Super Mario 64''. Josh Wirtanen at ''Retrovolve'' blamed ''Bubsy 3Ds negative legacy on such comparisons to ''Super Mario 64'', saying that ''Bubsy 3D'' reflected the quality of most 3D games at the time, compared to the exceptional quality of ''Super'' ''Mario 64.'' ''IGN'''s Levi Buchanan cited the game as a failure to transition from 2D to 3D, criticizing the character design compared to previous ''Bubsy'' games, as well as the game's controls. ''Game Revolution'' suggested that the negative reception for ''Bubsy 3D'' may be why developers are reluctant to make another 3D game in the series. In an article dedicated to the now-defunct publisher Accolade, magazine ''
Retro Gamer ''Retro Gamer'' is a British magazine, published worldwide, covering retro video games. It was the first commercial magazine to be devoted entirely to the subject. Launched in January 2004 as a quarterly publication, ''Retro Gamer'' soon became ...
'' listed ''Bubsy 3D'' as one of the three games to avoid and used the game as an example of the "rushed, near-unplayable misfires that damaged the company's reputation badly." In a 2015 interview, Berlyn called ''Bubsy 3D'' " isbiggest failure". Still, he also felt that his team had no precedent to follow and that the end product deserves praise in light of that. Following the game's release, Berlyn opted to take a couple of years off from designing video games to "rethink things". Actress Lani Minella cited her voice work on the game one of her least favorites, describing the voice as irritating.


Legacy and impact

''Bubsy 3D'' is remembered as one of three 3D platform games released in 1996 that established the template for the genre, along with ''Super Mario 64'' and ''Crash Bandicoot''. In 2013, indie developer Arcane Kids released a sarcastic tribute to the game titled '' Bubsy 3D: Bubsy Visits the James Turrell Retrospective''. In the game, the player guides an effigy of Bubsy through a nightmarish simulation of the
James Turrell James Turrell (born May 6, 1943) is an American artist known for his work within the Light and Space movement. Much of Turrell's career has been devoted to a still-unfinished work, ''Roden Crater'', a natural cinder cone crater located outsid ...
exhibition at the
Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is an art museum located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (George C. Page Museum). LACMA was founded in 19 ...
. A remaster of the game was released by Arcane Kids in 2017, featuring an additional epilogue to the story in which Bubsy reflects on the events of his experience. ''Bubsy 3D'' was the last game in the series for nearly 21 years. In September 2017, a new team released '' Bubsy: The Woolies Strike Back'' for the PlayStation 4 and PC.


Notes


References


Citations


Primary sources

*


External links

*
''Bubsy 3D'' website promoting Saturn version (archived 1996)
{{Bubsy series 1996 video games 3D platform games Accolade (company) games Bubsy Cancelled Sega Saturn games PlayStation (console) games PlayStation (console)-only games Video games developed in the United States Science fiction video games Video games set on fictional planets Multiplayer and single-player video games Video games with alternate endings