Software:Bust-A-Move Bash!

From HandWiki
Short description: 2007 video game
Bust-A-Move Bash!
North American box art
Developer(s)Happy Happening
Publisher(s)
SeriesPuzzle Bobble
Platform(s)Wii
Release
  • NA: April 17, 2007
  • EU: May 11, 2007
Genre(s)Puzzle
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Bust-A-Move Bash![lower-alpha 1] (known in Europe as Bust-A-Move) is a bubble shooter tile-matching video game released exclusively for the Wii, as part of the Bust-A-Move series. It is the second Bust-A-Move game released on a Nintendo console after Bust-A-Move 3000, released in 2003 on the GameCube.

Gameplay

Bust-A-Move Bash! incorporates the same gameplay principles and premise of prior games in the Bust-A-Move series, as a colorful bubble shooter. Bash features several different modes: puzzle, shooting, endless and a multiplayer mode.

  • In puzzle mode, the player completes levels by eliminating all on-screen bubbles, which is done by shooting a bubble at a cluster of bubbles of the same color. There are also special kinds of bubbles with different game-altering properties, such as star, flame and rainbow bubbles. There is also a bonus round after every 10 levels beaten, which will unlock one kind of the aforementioned special bubbles when completed successfully.
  • In shooting mode, bubbles of four colors will fly in from all sides of the screen and the player must shoot down whichever bubbles match the color of the on-screen cursor, using Wii Remote pointer controls.
  • Endless mode is a survival mode where the player is challenged to destroy as many bubbles and collect as many jewels as possible before an encroaching mass of bubbles crosses a foul line.
  • Versus mode is the game's couch multiplayer mode, where up to eight players can compete to test their bubble-shooting skills on a single screen, scoring as many jewels as possible until time expires. For games involving five to eight players, the first four designated players will use Wii Remotes, while the remaining players use external controllers connected to them (the Nunchuk or the Classic Controller), which cannot be used in single-player modes.

Controls

For all modes except shooting mode, there are three control schemes involving the Wii Remote that are used to control the bubble shooter: baton, gun and easy-gun. Gun and easy gun utilize the pointer to determine the angle of the next shot, with easy gun displaying the pointer's cursor. Baton involves holding the Wii Remote upright and tilting it left or right to determine the shooting angle. The baton control scheme is the only control scheme available for multiplayer contestants using a Nunchuk, and the Classic Controller uses both analog sticks to aim the shooter. Bubble-swapping is mapped to the down button on the d-pad for the Wii Remote and Classic Controller, or a downward flick of the Nunchuk's analog stick.

Development

Ken Gold, the vice president of Majesco marketing, stated that Majesco wanted Bash! to "maximize the intuitive nature of the Wii controller to create a revolutionary offering of the highly popular Bust-A-Move franchise",[1] eventually leading to the idea of leveraging the Wii Remote's expansion capabilities to allow up to eight players to compete on a single screen by having two players share one Wii controller by each holding one of its two individual parts - the remote itself or its external controller.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic53/100[2]
Review scores
PublicationScore
1Up.comC+[3]
Eurogamer4/10[4]
GameSpot4.7/10[5]
GameSpyStarStarHalf star[6]
IGN5.3/10[7]
NGamer50%[8]
Nintendo Power6.5/10[9]
Nintendo World Report3.5/10[10]
ONM59%[11]
VideoGamer.com5/10[12]
411Mania7/10[13]

Bust-A-Move Bash! received "mixed" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[2] IGN's Mark Birnbaum described it as "a step backwards for the series."[7] Birnbaum criticized the game's control scheme as "lack[ing] ergonomic foresight" when playing with the Wii Remote and Nunchuk, its graphics as "lackluster" and too similar to the Dreamcast version, its multiplayer as "devoid of fun due to its emphasis on chaos rather than skill", and shooting mode, which criticisms he directed at the entire game, as "poorly implemented, tacked-on, and lacking inspiration."[7] Despite this, Birnbaum praised its number of puzzles and its faithfulness to the original game.[7]

See also

  • SpeedZone, another Wii game that supports 8-player multiplayer with other controllers

Notes

  1. ↑ Formerly known as Bust-A-Move Revolution

References

  1. ↑ "MAJESCO ENTERTAINMENT ANNOUNCES FIRST OF SEVERAL TITLES FOR NINTENDO Wii CONSOLE: 'BUST-A-MOVE REVOLUTION'" (php). May 16, 2006. http://www.majescoentertainment.com/press/may1606.php. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Bust-A-Move Bash! for Wii Reviews". Red Ventures. https://www.metacritic.com/game/bust-a-move-bash/critic-reviews/?platform=wii. 
  3. ↑ Suttner, Nick (May 8, 2007). "Bust-A-Move Bash!". Ziff Davis. http://www.1up.com/reviews/bust-a-move-bash. 
  4. ↑ Reed, Kristan (May 27, 2007). "Bust-A-Move [date mislabeled as "May 28, 2007""]. Gamer Network. https://www.eurogamer.net/bust-a-move-review. 
  5. ↑ Davis, Ryan (April 24, 2007). "Bust-a-Move Bash! Review [date mislabeled as "June 22, 2007""]. Red Ventures. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/bust-a-move-bash-review/1900-6169641/. 
  6. ↑ Theobald, Phil (May 7, 2007). "GameSpy: Bust-A-Move Bash!". http://wii.gamespy.com/wii/bust-a-move-wii/786138p1.html. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Birnbaum, Mark (April 25, 2007). "Bust-A-Move Bash! Review". Ziff Davis. https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/04/25/bust-a-move-bash-review. 
  8. ↑ NGamer staff (April 24, 2007). "Wii Review: Bust-A-Move Bash [US Import"]. Future plc. Archived from the original on May 27, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080527004513/http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=162548. Retrieved August 12, 2022. 
  9. ↑ "Bust-a-Move Bash!". Nintendo Power (Nintendo of America) 217: 95. July 2007. https://archive.org/details/nintendo-power-issue-217-july-2007/page/94/mode/2up. 
  10. ↑ Pallesen, Lasse (June 29, 2007). "Bust-A-Move Bash!". NINWR, LLC. https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/13726/bust-a-move-bash-wii. 
  11. ↑ East, Tom (June 2007). "Bust-A-Move Review". Official Nintendo Magazine (Future plc): 92. Archived from the original on October 7, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141007235225/http://www.officialnintendomagazine.co.uk/2309/reviews/bust-a-move-review/. Retrieved August 12, 2022. 
  12. ↑ Valentin, Greg (May 22, 2007). "Bust-A-Move Review". Resero Network. https://www.videogamer.com/reviews/bust-a-move-review/. 
  13. ↑ Moore, Cory (June 5, 2007). "Bust-a-Move Bash! (Wii) Review". https://www.411mania.com/games/reviews/55255/Bust-a-Move-Bash%21-%28Wii%29-Review.htm. 
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
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