Adventure Pop (PlayStation 4) Review

The ocean of bubble titles available on iOS and Android shows that it is, without a doubt, a very popular genre with the customer base of those mobile systems. It is one of those things that, for outsiders, might be difficult to grasp the appeal of, but Adventure Pop seems really eager to show the joy of the genre outside of its comfort zone.

505 Games' title does a wonderful job of showing off many of the strongest parts of bubble shooters. The mechanics it brings to the table are extremely fun to play with and are delivered through the story in a way that makes sense and feels logical. Some of the mechanics added are pretty vanilla, such as certain bubbles needing to be destroyed to beat a level, but others, like the boss fights and special attacks, attach a certain feeling that is sure to make it appeal more to console gamers.

While this is a strong bubble title, it still has some of the aspects console gamers might be iffy about when it comes to the genre. The two greatest problems with bubble games are that their difficulty feels cheap, and that they all play and look far too similar. Adventure Pop does very little to migrate these, sadly. The special attacks help to migrate the feeling of cheapness when RNG makes a stage close to unwinnable by at least giving the player actual options that affect the result, and the boss battles do make it stand out from many of its competitors, but it does still look very much like an identical twin to other games in the genre.

It certainly is one of the best games at what it does, though. The art style, characters, and story deliver a colourful atmosphere that is extremely enjoyable, but it would be unfair to not be critical towards the fact that while it has some pretty clever parts for the genre, it is still little else but another bubble game, even if it is one of the better ones ever released. Those already hooked on the genre are going to love what they see here, but it does not provide enough reasons for those who are not already bubble shooter fans to give it a try.