Rainbow Islands is a 1987 arcade game developed and published by Taito. The arcade version was licensed to Romstar for North American manufacturing and distribution. The game is subtitled "The Story of Bubble Bobble 2" and is the sequel to Taito's hit game Bubble Bobble from the previous year. It is the second of four arcade games in the Bubble Bobble series. The game was ported for numerous home computers and game consoles.
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A somewhat confusing sequel to Bubble Bobble, but a good platformer with nice colorful visuals.
(English review below)
Rainbow Islands es un juego lanzado originalmente en 1987 que se lanzó en MUCHAS consolas, emulé la versión de Game Boy Colour. En este juego utilizas los arcoiris como ataque y como plataformas con las que avanzas por los niveles verticales. Este concepto fue muy divertido, me gustaba la mayoria de los niveles pero los jefes son terribles. Juge todo el juego en una hora, lo recomendaria si quieres un juego corto.
Rainbow Islands is a game originally released in 1987 that has been ported to A LOT of consoles, I emulated the GBC version. In this game you use rainbows as an attack and as platforms to advance through the vertical levels, this concept was very fun. I liked most of the levels but the bosses ranged from okay to terrible. I beat the entire game in an hour, I would recommend it if you want to play a short game.
Rainbow Islands es un juego lanzado originalmente en 1987 que se lanzó en MUCHAS consolas, emulé la versión de Game Boy Colour. En este juego utilizas los arcoiris como ataque y como plataformas con las que avanzas por los niveles verticales. Este concepto fue muy divertido, me gustaba la mayoria de los niveles pero los jefes son terribles. Juge todo el juego en una hora, lo recomendaria si quieres un juego corto.
Rainbow Islands is a game originally released in 1987 that has been ported to A LOT of consoles, I emulated the GBC version. In this game you use rainbows as an attack and as platforms to advance through the vertical levels, this concept was very fun. I liked most of the levels but the bosses ranged from okay to terrible. I beat the entire game in an hour, I would recommend it if you want to play a short game.
Bubble Bobble's name becomes immediately apparent upon pressing the action button: a bubble shoots out of the dinosaur-lookin'-character's mouth.
Rainbow Islands: The Story of Bubble Bobble 2's name becomes apparent after maybe the first level.
"Oh yeah. This plays like Bubble Bobble."
I like the original Bubble Bobble a lot, but this one might actually be the better game. The way the rainbows function for trapping and attacking enemies while climbing up a level and avoiding obstacles works incredibly well. Real good stuff.
Rainbow Islands: The Story of Bubble Bobble 2's name becomes apparent after maybe the first level.
"Oh yeah. This plays like Bubble Bobble."
I like the original Bubble Bobble a lot, but this one might actually be the better game. The way the rainbows function for trapping and attacking enemies while climbing up a level and avoiding obstacles works incredibly well. Real good stuff.
Wanted to write something organized and well thought out but this game just makes me feel good, it's just so charming and full of surprises.
The rainbow is such a genius idea, lets the player experiment and be creative in how they approach the levels (which can be quite challenging too), it can be used as a shield, a platform, a step (or stairs!), a projectile, a melee attack, you can get items and points with it, and even trap enemies or stop them from getting close.
Collecting all the diamonds to get to the final levels and the true ending is quite a hustle, and I think makes the game worse by taking the focus away from the platforming until you get all the diamonds in a specific world.
But even then I feel like it might be one of my new favourite games.
The rainbow is such a genius idea, lets the player experiment and be creative in how they approach the levels (which can be quite challenging too), it can be used as a shield, a platform, a step (or stairs!), a projectile, a melee attack, you can get items and points with it, and even trap enemies or stop them from getting close.
Collecting all the diamonds to get to the final levels and the true ending is quite a hustle, and I think makes the game worse by taking the focus away from the platforming until you get all the diamonds in a specific world.
But even then I feel like it might be one of my new favourite games.
Bubble Bobble, while being a fantastic arcade classic that still holds up very well to this day, was also very successful, and of course, sequels are abound to happen after said success. However, just like with Double Dragon, it seemed that Taito couldn’t help but make plenty of sequels that just so happened to be called Bubble Bobble 2 in some way, or if they wanted to make things even more confusing, like with what Shinobi and Gradius did, they also made sequels that were called completely different things. Seriously, what is it with video game companies back in the day and naming sequels completely differently then the original game? Definitely made things a lot more confusing, but thankfully, Taito was better about this trend, as for the first sequel they released, it would come to be known as Rainbow Islands: The Story of Bubble Bobble 2.
When it came to the Bubble Bobble series, I had only really played the original game for a good while until the thought of actually playing the sequels came to mind. So, over the past couple of years, I played through several of the others, and in terms of this game, it is also just as fantastic as the original Bubble Bobble was. In fact, I may even say that the game is somewhat BETTER then the original. Not sure how much of a hot take that is, but I really did enjoy this one a lot, and yes, it does still have some problems that the original had, along with some minor new ones, but I don’t regret checking this game out at all.
The story is bare-bones, but then again, so was the original, so it works, the graphics are just as appealing, bright, and colorful as the original game, the music is once again pretty great, even if there is still only a couple songs, but more then the original, the control is about the same as the original game, still just as easy to pick up and figure out, and the gameplay is pretty different from the original, yet similar enough to still be pretty fun, and to still feel like a Bubble Bobble game.
The gameplay is a 2D platformer, where you travel up through plenty of levels, shoot rainbows to take out enemies (because… they now have rainbow powers?), as well as using rainbows to get items and as platforms, collect many treasures and items along the way that will give you points and powerups, and in a change from the original, fight plenty of bosses along the way, instead of just one right at the end. It feels very familiar with what came before, and carries the same amount of fun as the original game did, while changing enough elements to make it feel like a fresh new experience, which I greatly appreciate. Not to mention, plenty of elements from the original are improved upon, such as, again, more bosses to fight that also give you a challenge if you aren’t quick, plenty of personality portrayed through several cutscenes and dialogue boxes, numerous endings that you can get that are pretty funny, while also giving plenty of replay value to the player, and more to do then to simply just “defeat all of the enemies” to progress.
Not to mention, it fixes one of the problems that I had with the original game: getting to the extra endings and content. In the original, if you wanted to get the true ending and the password for extra levels (without looking it up, you fucking cheater), you had to grab a crystal ball in the second to last level, which isn’t that bad of a task, but it feels really out-of-place, and you can miss it if you aren’t careful and quick enough to get it. Here, instead, you collect various gems from enemies when you take them out, spelling out the word “Rainbow”, and getting a big diamond. Do this for each of the main seven islands, and you get access to three whole new islands, while also leading to the true endings. This method of getting extra content and more endings feels much more satisfying, like you earned it, rather then just being like “oh, just pick up this random thing on your way out”. Now, this does come with its own problems, such as the drop rate of the gems from the enemies, as well as which gems they do drop when you kill them, but all in all, it is a much better system.
With all that in mind, the game does still have several small issues. First off, there is no more simultaneous co-op, which is pretty lame, and the game can drag on for a bit, and while it doesn’t have as many levels as the original Bubble Bobble, or as much repetition, it is still quite a bit, which could turn some away from the game. And speaking of which, people may not get behind the versatility of your abilities like I can. They may prefer the long range of shooting bubbles from the original, but not care for needing to go take the enemy out after catching them in it. They may not like the short range and arcing of the rainbow from this game, but they appreciate how it takes out the enemy immediately whenever it hits. Again, it is all a matter of preference, with both being on the same level as effectiveness for me, but some others may not get behind, which is understandable.
Overall, this is a fantastic follow-up to the original Bubble Bobble that I would definitely recommend for those who loved the original game. Sure, it does have several small issues, and some may not like the changes present in this game, but as for me, I had a great time with it, and I now know what rainbows are truly capable of.
Game #223
When it came to the Bubble Bobble series, I had only really played the original game for a good while until the thought of actually playing the sequels came to mind. So, over the past couple of years, I played through several of the others, and in terms of this game, it is also just as fantastic as the original Bubble Bobble was. In fact, I may even say that the game is somewhat BETTER then the original. Not sure how much of a hot take that is, but I really did enjoy this one a lot, and yes, it does still have some problems that the original had, along with some minor new ones, but I don’t regret checking this game out at all.
The story is bare-bones, but then again, so was the original, so it works, the graphics are just as appealing, bright, and colorful as the original game, the music is once again pretty great, even if there is still only a couple songs, but more then the original, the control is about the same as the original game, still just as easy to pick up and figure out, and the gameplay is pretty different from the original, yet similar enough to still be pretty fun, and to still feel like a Bubble Bobble game.
The gameplay is a 2D platformer, where you travel up through plenty of levels, shoot rainbows to take out enemies (because… they now have rainbow powers?), as well as using rainbows to get items and as platforms, collect many treasures and items along the way that will give you points and powerups, and in a change from the original, fight plenty of bosses along the way, instead of just one right at the end. It feels very familiar with what came before, and carries the same amount of fun as the original game did, while changing enough elements to make it feel like a fresh new experience, which I greatly appreciate. Not to mention, plenty of elements from the original are improved upon, such as, again, more bosses to fight that also give you a challenge if you aren’t quick, plenty of personality portrayed through several cutscenes and dialogue boxes, numerous endings that you can get that are pretty funny, while also giving plenty of replay value to the player, and more to do then to simply just “defeat all of the enemies” to progress.
Not to mention, it fixes one of the problems that I had with the original game: getting to the extra endings and content. In the original, if you wanted to get the true ending and the password for extra levels (without looking it up, you fucking cheater), you had to grab a crystal ball in the second to last level, which isn’t that bad of a task, but it feels really out-of-place, and you can miss it if you aren’t careful and quick enough to get it. Here, instead, you collect various gems from enemies when you take them out, spelling out the word “Rainbow”, and getting a big diamond. Do this for each of the main seven islands, and you get access to three whole new islands, while also leading to the true endings. This method of getting extra content and more endings feels much more satisfying, like you earned it, rather then just being like “oh, just pick up this random thing on your way out”. Now, this does come with its own problems, such as the drop rate of the gems from the enemies, as well as which gems they do drop when you kill them, but all in all, it is a much better system.
With all that in mind, the game does still have several small issues. First off, there is no more simultaneous co-op, which is pretty lame, and the game can drag on for a bit, and while it doesn’t have as many levels as the original Bubble Bobble, or as much repetition, it is still quite a bit, which could turn some away from the game. And speaking of which, people may not get behind the versatility of your abilities like I can. They may prefer the long range of shooting bubbles from the original, but not care for needing to go take the enemy out after catching them in it. They may not like the short range and arcing of the rainbow from this game, but they appreciate how it takes out the enemy immediately whenever it hits. Again, it is all a matter of preference, with both being on the same level as effectiveness for me, but some others may not get behind, which is understandable.
Overall, this is a fantastic follow-up to the original Bubble Bobble that I would definitely recommend for those who loved the original game. Sure, it does have several small issues, and some may not like the changes present in this game, but as for me, I had a great time with it, and I now know what rainbows are truly capable of.
Game #223
É raro encontrarmos um jogo de plataforma pós-Super Mario Bros. que não tenha sido influenciado por Super Mario Bros. - o clássico da Nintendo logo virou sinônimo do gênero e mesmo os games que não seguem sua fórmula são, em muitos casos, negações explícitas de seu design, ainda o usando como um parâmetro para tentar fazer algo "diferente". Nesse contexto eu acho Rainbow Islands duplamente surpreendente: a Taito não apenas criou um platformer com convenções realmente diferentes daquelas padronizadas pelo bigodudo, mas fez isso pela segunda vez *e* invertendo ou negando quase tudo o que fez da primeira. Porque, vejam bem, a sequência de Bubble Bobble poderia muito bem seguir os passos do primeiro jogo fielmente e ainda seria um game bem original. Mas não, Fukio Mitsuji decidiu provar para todo mundo que não lhe faltava criatividade e criou uma sequência deliberadamente diferente em quase tudo - menos no espírito frenético e enganosa profundidade mecânica que torna Rainbow Islands um típico devorador de fichas que toda empresa de arcade gostaria de ter.