ININ Games and Ratalaika Games have teamed up once again for a modern release of a retro game, and this one is handled very well. Parasol Stars: The Story of Bubble Bobble III is once again a single screen game, where you move on after clearing the screen of enemies, and it is good to see that the game has a good level of challenge to it. This time, instead of blowing a bubble in front of your enemies, you will use parasols in a variety of ways to attack enemies and get items.
You cannot go about this the same way as you would in Bubble Bobble or you will fumble repeatedly. You need to take the time to orient yourself and adjust to the new mechanics, such as using water bubbles to take out scores of opponents, protecting yourself from overhead enemies, and learning how best to navigate the stages. There are quite a number of touches here that make this the game in the original trilogy with the most depth, and once you understand everything that Parasol Stars: The Story of Bubble Bobble III has to offer, you will have a great time.
As you go through the game, the levels start to become more involved and creative and it becomes apparent that TAITO experimented a lot more with this game. This is especially true when you go against the bosses which are quite unlike the previous entries in the series. It feels like TAITO finally was free to do different things once the games were not being developed for the arcade first.
As with previous Ratalaika handling of re-releases, there are a number of quality of life improvements such as save states and more. There are five different cheats available from the start, that will let you play the game with unlimited lives, credits, invincibility, or free jumping. and there is also an option to unlock the secret door in each of the game’s worlds and thus get to the final boss much more easily. The rewind functionality returns here as well, and you will no doubt make copious use of it to get through the game.
Ultimately,Parasol Stars: The Story of Bubble Bobble III is a great game and this re-release from ININ Games and Ratalaika does a great job preserving the game and bringing it to modern systems. There is a lot to enjoy here and appreciate and with a good challenge involved, players cannot go wrong here. Parasol Stars: The Story of Bubble Bobble III is highly recommended.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided
