If you ever played Bubble Bobble, you will instantly recognize the little dinosaurs at the bottom of the screen. Those cute little dinos are the ones that move your balloon gun back and forth. But this game is not a Bubble Bobble clone or sequel, they merely make an appearance. This game is more akin with a Tetris or any of the other numerous clones. The gameplay is simple, extremely simple! You have to take the balloon at the end of your gun and shoot it at balloons that match the color. Do this and they disappear. Do it enough times and you will clear the screen. Do this fast enough and you will get bonus points and go to the next screen. Get it? Good!

As you can already see, the point of the game is to clear the screen and clear it as fast as possible. If you clear the screen in 5 seconds or less, you get 50,000 points, and the amount goes down until it reaches zero for too much time (usually over 60 seconds). So you better get precise with your aim and take down those balloons or bubbles or whatever they are.

Where the game gets tricky is learning to use bank shots. It is both possible and necessary to bounce the balloons off the way at an angle to get balloons. The faster you master this skill, the better you will become. It becomes quite necessary as sometimes this is the easiest way to clear a screen. But put the piece in the wrong place and you may end up covering a potential move. Also, make sure not to let the pieces drop too far. If they reach the bottom, your game is over.

While one player is great, this game really shines in two player mode! Grab a friend, spouse or whoever and get ready for some serious playing! As you clear space on your side, balloons will end up on your opponent's side which will result in some serious aggravation for them (and a possible snide remark or punch in the arm as my wife is known to do). Nothing is more pleasant than hearing them complain loudly how you just messed them up.

Puzzle Bobble is an extremely addictive game and one that you will get your money's worth. Whether it is a cart, at the arcade or on emulation, you need to find and play this game. It is worth it! Just don't blame me for the time.

This is just a review of the arcade machine.  If you are looking for the actual arcade machine, you may want to check out ebay.  Click below to see if you can find this game.