Super Bust-A-Move 2 – PS2 – Review

The newest incarnation of the classic puzzle game
has made its debut.  Taito and Ubi Soft push the envelope by asking how many
times you can remake a classic without making people sick of it.  For those of
you who have never played Bust-A-Move, clear your calendar.  The Bust-A-Move
genre is probably the most addictive puzzle series since Tetris.  However for
people like myself, who have had the pleasure of playing Bust-A-Move when it was
back on Neo Geo or Super Nintendo, Super Bust-A-Move 2 is hardly better than a
nostalgic reminder of the original.

The new additions to Super Bust-A-Move 2 include
a revamped, if totally incoherent, story mode, several new types of bubbles, and
a level editor.  But the overriding gameplay has stayed exactly the same. 
You’re job is to create groups of three or more bubbles of the same color.  You
do this by aiming and then firing multicolored bubbles towards the slowly
advancing bubbles at the top of the screen.  The goal is to destroy the bubbles
before they reach you.  Sound simple?  Add conveyor belts, blocks, and 7 types
of special bubbles and things become a whole lot more complicated.  However,
nearly all of this was included in the last super Bust-A-Move.  As for the new
additions.  The new story mode is a joke, with poor translation, poor video
clips, and poor story line.  The level editor assumes that you can find more
than one person in your area as dedicated to the genre as you.  Making boards is
a tedious process and if there’s no one else to play the ones you make, or make
ones for you, you’re better off just playing the game.

The game boasts two new characters, however the
characters have no story behind them.  I understand the pop art, funny Japanese
style I’ve seen in games such as the original Bubble Bobble, or Namco’s Mr.
Driller but Super Bust-A-Move 2 goes overboard creating a cast of characters
that are so offbeat, their neither cute nor funny, just odd.  Their animations
echo the generally weak video clips and are hardly interesting after you’ve seen
them a few times.

The soundtrack is no different than it was in the
last game…or the one before that.

I don’t want to leave you thinking Bust-A-Move is
a bad game.  It was one of the best puzzle games ever put onto the console. 
However, this is the second incarnation of it on the PS2 and even the first one
was simply a hack job of the original.  In the end Bust-A-Move is Bust-A-Move no
matter how many words or numbers you put around it.  If you’re an obsessed fan
this title is the best thing to happen to you since the last time a Bust-A-Move
title came out.  But for the rest of you who think this game might be your cup
of tea, I’d say pick up a used copy of Super Bust-A-Move 1 or, dare I say it,
dust off the Super Nintendo and play the original.  You wont be missing
anything.

Gameplay: 7
There is a reason it’s been around for so long.

Graphics: 4 
If they took the character graphics and video out I might have given this a
5 or 6.

Sound: 6
It doesn’t bother me that the theme was probably composed on MIDI.  It fits
the game well enough.

Difficulty:  Medium
Requires that you eyeball angles necessary to bank shots and such.

Concept: 3 
I got this great idea…lets take our old game, shine it up, and re-release
it, again!

Multiplayer: 7
Your playing against a CPU most of the
time so having a real person playing against you changes little.

Overall: 5.3