Bubble Shooter FX

Genre: Match-3 Puzzle

Players: 1

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Review:

Bubble Shooter FX is a family-friendly Match-3 Puzzle game released on PC, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch in 2021. This game is the follow-up to the 2019 game Bubble Shooter DX, which I named as a runner-up in that year’s eShopperReviews Game Awards in the category of Laziest Copycat, and Bubble Shooter FX looks to pull a page from the same book – like its predecessor, this game is also a shameless copy of the gameplay seen in Puzzle Bobble AKA Bust-A-Move. However, I make it a point to say there’s nothing wrong with a copycat so long as it’s a good copycat. So the question is whether the developer has succeeded in making a good copycat this time around.

The “FX” in the title seems to be pointing to this game’s visual presentation, though saying this game’s graphics are impressive would be greatly overstating things The bubbles in this game have a reasonably high resolution, and there are now some nice lighting and shadow effects, giving the game the appearance of being in 3D. However, the backgrounds are still a flat color, and as a result even with the improved visuals the game is a tad on the bland side. It’s not bad, just nothing memorable or noteworthy. These visuals are backed by a decent, relaxing synthesized soundtrack that’s not especially memorable, but still adds to the experience rather than detracting from it.

There are a few gameplay additions here too, such as new types of bubbles that react differently to your shots, or even ones that will cause you to lose if you hit them, a nice addition. And this is all on top of decent core gameplay that works well.

However, this game is still lacking quite a lot – there’s no multiplayer, no leaderboards, no endless mode, no support for the touchscreen in handheld mode. In short, Bubble Shooter FX gets the core basics of this style of gameplay down well enough, but doesn’t build on it to make a compelling package overall.

Still, while it’s feature-poor and still lacking a bit in the personality department, Bubble Shooter FX is a solid Puzzle Bobble clone, and for $4 it’s not a bad choice for Puzzle game fans. Just don’t expect anything especially noteworthy – this is just a decent but not great Puzzle Bobble clone, nothing more, nothing less.

tl;dr – Bubble Shooter FX is a family-friendly Match-3 Puzzle game in the style of Puzzle Bobble, and while it does a decent job with that formula, it doesn’t do anything especially new or exciting with it either. On top of that, the game is a bit on the bland side, and it is woefully lacking in its features. Still, for $4, it’s a decent enough Puzzle Bobble clone, and if you’re a fan of the genre, you may find this game to your liking.

Grade: C

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