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Bub and Bob, after saving the Rainbow Islands from a fate worse than death, have just sat down for a rest when the "whole world in danger" alarm goes off again. The evil fiend, Chaostikahn, has unleashed a horde of nasty aliens all over the universe, and it's the duo's job to go around even different planets, disposing of all the aliens by thwacking them with their magic parasols, gifts from the Islands' grateful inhabitants.

Well, it's all very silly of course, but then did you really expect anything different from a game like Parasol Stars, a cross between Bubble Bobble and Rainbow Islands? The saga has indeed come a long way since the pair were encased in dinosaur form, jumping around platform after platform in order to break free of the spell.

Once again you get to control either Bub or Bob (simultaneously or separately), taking them through the levels collecting bonuses and killing everything and anything you see. Each stage is similar to that of Bubble Bobble (enemies dropping down from above and roaming around the platforms), with extra bonuses to be found when you pick something up and throw it across the screen.

Once the bonuses are revealed, they're up for grabs: either throw something across the screen, collecting all of them, or run as fast as you can over them, trying not to get killed. A particularly nice touch is that anything can be picked up and thrown, from the smallest of water droplets... to the other player!

The Forest World is one of the levels where the play-area is bigger than one screen. It allows you to wander around from left to right, right to left, collecting the goodies. Bob has been picked up by Bub at this stage: he can be used to either kill an enemy or reveal bonuses; either way, it doesn't do Bob any good. The blue bubbles with lightning inside them can be picked up and thrown: if you collect five on top of one parasol, it turns into a super weapon.

As you clear each world, loads of goodies are dropped down. If you collect the giant pumpkin you're rewarded with 10,000 points. There's a mass scramble to the centre of the screen as both players kill and maim (I thought this was a cutesy game? - Ed) to collect this prestigious prize.

At the end of each world, there's an evil guardian to face. In this case, it's the Grim Reaper dude that wants to do you in. Collect the jars containing the stars and build up the bubbles on top of your parasol to blast him.

This mechanical manoeuvrer is a real pain. Luckily there are loads of bubble stars to collect which should help you out a lot. Lob loads of single bubbles at him for an easier kill.

This evil princess guides her peculiar pony around the screen dishing out light balls. Simply zapping them with lightning should send them back to the stables in no time.

Parasol Stars is obviously going to be judged by the success of Bubble Bobble and Rainbow Islands. It's definitely a great mixture of the two, but that doesn't automatically mean that it's going to be an excellent game.

Parasol Stars is a good game, there's no doubt about that, but it's nothing new, nothing fancy - in short, there are not enough differences between the original game and this one to start making a fuss about.

Jumping around the brightly-coloured platforms is enjoyable, but it also becomes a little tedious after a while (doing the same routine in every level). There are all the usual good points, the graphics are brilliantly done, bright and colourful and the main sprite has been based on that of Rainbow Islands, but re-drawn (so that there are extra expressions on Bub's and Bob's faces). The enemy sprites are equally as impressive, even if they are slightly limited in animation.

A lot of the baddies are recognisable from Bubble Bobble, Rainbow Islands and even other games (like Doh, from Arkanoid)! The jolly tunes that accompany each level give it a very cutesy/arcade feel, which is exactly what it needs.

However, it's still just a collection of mostly similar platform games that doesn't have nearly enough variety in gameplay that something such as Harlequin or Titus The Fox offers.

Parasol Stars deserves to do well as it is a very good game. It just doesn't deserve the many accolades and cries of 'classic' that it's more than likely to get, simply because the first two were so good.