BaD #18: Rainbow Islands

On 02/24/2021 at 10:12 PM by daftman

See More From This User »

Rainbow Islands

Released: 1987

Pitch: Launch rainbows to clear your path of monsters and climb the platforms.

The title screen for Rainbow Islands proclaims that it is "The Story of Bubble Bobble 2" but I don't see the connection. I'm sure Cary knows lol. But I also suspect that I'm going to disappoint Cary because I didn't like Rainbow Islands very much. I think it has to do with character mobility, which is very important to me in platformers. You can run, jump, and create rainbows. If you jump on a rainbow, it falls (which nets you extra points if you've trapped a bad guy under it). But Rainbow Islands is a vertical platformer and it's very easy to fall and lose progress. I'd fall and get frustrated and try to ascend more quickly to make up for it and then fall again from being reckless. Or I'd run into a bad guy in my haste—one hit and you're dead—and they can be hard to avoid at times. I got most of the way through the second world and just was not enjoying myself, so I called it quits. I know a lot of people like this game but it was not for me. Sorry, Cary.

One of my cats, on the other hand, enjoyed the game. There's that in its favor.

Super Step Contributing Writer

02/25/2021 at 01:41 AM

Black cat? Silver Gamecube controllers? Your place is what my dreams are made of.

But your platforming issues sound like the reason I can't get into Bionic Commando. Yup. Exact same thing. Leaving this comment here as is.

Cary Woodham

02/25/2021 at 07:12 AM

My old Russian Blue cat Chekov loved to be with me when I'd play NES games as a kid. He'd either swat at the screen or sit in my lap trying to hit the buttons on the controllers!

Yeah the Bubble Bobble timeline is REALLY confusing! Rainbow Islands has the subtitle "The Story of Bubble Bobble 2" but there is a Bubble Bobble 2 on the NES! There's also a Bubble Bobble 3 and Parasol Stars: The Story of Bubble Bobble 3, too! It's nuts!

Bubby and Bobby in Rainbow Islands are the human forms of Bub and Bob from Bubble Bobble. While I do like the cutness and simplicity of the game, I'm kind of with you, I don't really like Rainbow Islands that much. I do like that in later levels, you go to islands that make reference to Arkanoid and Darius. If you want to play a really good game with Bubby and Bobby, try Parasol Stars. It's like Bubble Bobble with technique!

daftman

02/25/2021 at 07:34 PM

Whew, it's not just me! I will keep an eye out for Parasol Stars. Sounds like the Bubble Bobble continuity is something akin to the crazy Dig Dug/Mr. Driller universe. Okay, maybe nothing is that bad!

KnightDriver

02/25/2021 at 09:37 PM

Interesting use of the rainbow bridge.

Oh, look at that CRT TV. I still have a tiny one but everything else is flat.

Matt Snee Staff Writer

02/25/2021 at 11:07 PM

Nice TV. I wish I had kept an old TV for video games, but I guess I also don't have the space. I don't really have a lot of confidence in buying such a thing used either cause once I got one from a thrift store, and after I used it for a while, smoke started coming out of it.

PixlBit