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It's not an easy life, y'know. Take Bub and Bob, for example. One minute, they're their normal selves, the next they're bubble-blowing dinosaurs! Who could have performed this dastardly deed? Only the not-very-nice Baron von Blubba, that's who. To regain their human forms, the two dayglo dinos have to travel through 100 levels of madcap platform action, then confront and destroy the Baron himself!

This is by no means an easy task, though, as the Baron has hid hordes of minions waiting to dispose of any bronto that might get too big for its bubbles, and each has its own way of dishing out the devastation.

The bad guys don't have it all their own way, however - they can be blatted by blowing a bubble at 'em, then butting the bubbled beastie (try saying that after a few barrels of Old Flatulence Bitter)!

As the dinos progress through the game, the screens get tougher and tougher, and the enemies increase in speed and intelligence. So you'd better give your bubble-fingers a work-out!

Baron von Blubba has foolishly left a variety of items scattered around each of the levels, which bestow the two brontos with special abilities:

1. Bubblegum: Either longer lasting, long range or faster, short range bubbles which allow Bub or Bob to blast baddies better!
2. Teapot: Gives "Super Bubble Up", an instant version of all bubblegum power-ups.
3. Umbrella: Teleports one or both players several levels. Handy on sticky levels that would otherwise be nigh on impossible to complete.
4. Water Bubble: Burst this to give you a water-ride you won't forget in a hurry - and it takes out baddies too!
5. Lightning Bubble: When burst, this releases a blast of lightning which flies across the screen. Any baddy that stands in the way gets fried, and turned into a diamond!

What a weird and wonderful piece of software! It might look all cute and cuddly, but don't be misled - this is one tough game. There are 100 screens to clear, and things start getting hard by level 20!

Fortunately, there's a password system to let you go back to later levels - but the real challenge (and the way to get big scores) is to go through all the screens in one go!

The inclusion of the coin-op's simultaneous two-player option is a real boon, and adds to the overall appeal.

With great graphics (although they get a bit flickery when there are loads of bubbles floating around) and one of the catchiest soundtracks I've heard, Bubble Bobble is a thoroughly addictive and enjoyable game which would be a great addition to your software library.

Bubble Bobble was a real hoot in the arcades, and the computer versions were pretty good too, but there's something different about the NES version... it's too hard!

The difficulty level is way too hight - but there is a handy password option to leap straight to later screens. The overall playability is weakened by this, but not so much as to put you right off.

The graphics are very nice, a bit plain in places, but again, they don't exactly follow the coin-op to the letter, and the sound is a jolly tune which gets a bit annoying after a while.

Overall, a fun game which takes a bit of practice getting into, but once you've got is sussed, you'll be stuck to your screens for many an hour.

Presentation 88%
Excellent, with one or simultaneous two-player options and a neat password system.

Graphics 83%
Nice, chunky and colourful, if a bit flickery at times.

Sound 67%
A cutesy tune that is nice to listen to, and even cuter effects!

Playability 80%
Flippin' difficult at first, but almost as much fun as taking a bubble bath.

Lastability 87%
With 100 levels, this is certainly one game that you won't complete overnight!

Overall 85%
A very cute, and highly addictive, arcade conversion that'll keep you playing for ages!