''Space Bust-A-Move'' is a puzzle video game developed by Lancarse and published by Taito in Japan, and

Square Enix is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and ''Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game ...

worldwide for the

Nintendo DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tan ...

. It was first released in Japan under the title on December 18, 2008. It was later released in North America under the title ''Space Bust-A-Move'' on July 28, 2009, and in Europe under the title ''Puzzle Bobble Galaxy'' on August 28, 2009. As with ''

Arkanoid DS ''Arkanoid DS'' is a breakout video game developed by Taito and published by Square Enix for the Nintendo DS. It was released on December 6, 2007. Gameplay ''Arkanoid DS'' has 2 modes: a traditional Clear mode and an objective based Quest mod ...

'', ''

Space Invaders Extreme (stylized as ''SPACƎ INVADERS EXTRƎME'') is a re-vamped incarnation of the classic arcade game ''Space Invaders''. The DS and PSP versions were released to mark the 30th anniversary of ''Space Invaders'' which saw its original arcade release i ...

'' and ''

Space Invaders Extreme 2 (stylized as ''SPACƎ INVADERS EXTRƎME 2'') is the sequel to ''Space Invaders Extreme (stylized as ''SPACƎ INVADERS EXTRƎME'') is a re-vamped incarnation of the classic arcade game ''Space Invaders''. The DS and PSP versions were released ...

'', the game is compatible with Taito's paddle controller.

Gameplay

As with the previous games in the ''Puzzle Bobble'' series, the player controls a pointer on the bottom of the screen (with either the gamepad or Taito's paddle controller) that shoots differently-colored bubbles upwards. The object is to shoot bubbles at other bubbles of the same color at the top of the screen. When a group of three or more bubbles that touch each other are formed, then that group disappears. The objective is to clear the screen of all bubbles. Players can pick up various

power-up In video games, a power-up is an object that adds temporary benefits or extra abilities to the player character as a game mechanic. This is in contrast to an item, which may or may not have a permanent benefit that can be used at any time chosen ...

s during the course of gameplay, such as stars that clear the playing field of all bubbles of a specific color or a flame that destroys a group of bubbles, regardless of color, within a certain radius. The

level Level or levels may refer to: Engineering *Level (instrument), a device used to measure true horizontal or relative heights *Spirit level, an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal or vertical *Canal pound or level *Regr ...

s remains the same, with some levels containing

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, a ...

battles. The game includes a story mode, in which players go through eight "worlds" that reveal a story. It also includes a mode in which players can compete against other users via a Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

Reception

The game received above-average reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. It received some criticism for its controls, which Daemon Hatfield of ''

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

'' described in its Tokyo Game Show review as "slow and clunky", and for its continue system that makes players unable to continue directly at the stage they failed at. In Japan, '' Famitsu'' gave it a score of three eights and one seven for a total of 31 out of 40.

References

External links

*
Space Bust-a-Move (YouTube)
{{Bubble Bobble series 2008 video games Bubble Bobble Lancarse games Multiplayer and single-player video games Nintendo DS games Nintendo DS-only games Puzzle video games Square Enix games Taito games Video games developed in Japan