Software:Touhou Spell Bubble

From HandWiki
Short description: 2020 video game
Touhou Spell Bubble
Developer(s)Taito
Publisher(s)
Director(s)Mayu Kikuchi
Producer(s)Tomoyuki Sawada
Designer(s)Hidetake Iyomasa
Composer(s)Yu Shimoda
SeriesTouhou Project, Puzzle Bobble
Platform(s)Nintendo Switch
Release
  • JP: February 6, 2020
  • AS: October 15, 2020
  • WW: October 29, 2020
Genre(s)Puzzle, rhythm
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Touhou Spell Bubble is a rhythm based competitive arcade puzzle game developed in 2020 by Taito as an officially licensed spin-off in the Touhou Project series. The gameplay is similar to that of the Puzzle Bobble series, which Taito also developed. The company has referred to the game as "Puzzle Bobble meets Touhou Project,"[1] implying that they consider it to also be a spinoff of both series.

Gameplay

Example of a match between Reimu and Marisa. Marisa is currently in the rhythm microgame that, once finished, will put further pressure on the panicking Reimu.

In Touhou Spell Bubble, the player is given colored bubbles, which they fire from the bottom of the screen onto a pile towards the top. The rate at which the player can fire bubbles corresponds to the tempo of the music.[2] When three bubbles of the same color are connected, they pop, giving the player points. If a large enough group is destroyed, a rhythm microgame will initiate, requiring the player to rhythmically press the button to the song's timeline (seen on both far left and right) to receive further points and send colorless junk bubbles to the opponent.[3]

Touhou Spell Bubble features a story mode told from either Reimu and Marisa's perspectives, both containing 22 levels each. Using visual novel-styled cutscenes and gameplay, it tells the tale of Marisa's newly developed, magically charged game "Spell Bubble" and the ongoing mysteries regarding the upcoming tournament surrounding it.

Characters can be unlocked in story mode, totalling at 20 playable characters upon completion, each of whom has a total of 3 spell cards to choose from, which can be used to destroy bubbles, or impede her opponent's ability to do the same.[4] Matches last for the runtime of the background music, and the player with the most points when the time runs out is declared the winner.[3] The player can also play singular matches, either with the AI, or with human opponents through local or online multiplayer.[3][5] Upon winning or losing matches, the player is given in-game currency based on the overall skill intensity between the opponents of the match, which can be used to purchase new songs and spell cards.[2]

Development

On 23 January 2020, Taito released a gameplay trailer for Touhou Spell Bubble on their YouTube channel, and announced the game's release date.[6] The game was released in Japan through the Nintendo eShop on February 6, 2020,[7] and internationally on October 29.[8] Physical copies were released in Asia in autumn 2020.[9]

The music of Touhou Spell Bubble was used in promotional material, with Taito releasing the names of composers in January 2020.[10] The game features doujin songs including "Bad Apple!!", "Marisa Stole the Precious Thing", "Night of Knights", and "Cirno's Perfect Math Class".[4]

In November 2020, three separate music packs were released as DLC,[11] and side story content was released in DLC exclusive to Japan.[4] In November 2021, online multiplayer was added to the game in a free update.[5]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic77/100[12]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Nintendo Life8/10[3]
Cubed38/10[13]
Digitally DownloadedStarStarStar[14]
Nintendo Blast8.5/10[15]
Siliconera8/10[4]

Touhou Spell Bubble received "generally favorable reviews", according to review aggregator Metacritic.[12] Nintendo Life's Pete Davison commended the gameplay, music, and artwork, but criticised the lack of an online multiplayer.[3] Digitally Downloaded's Harvard L. was more critical, stating that "the elegant simplicity of Puzzle Bobble was being tainted", resulting in "a game about instincts rather than planning". He considered both the story and gameplay too difficult to understand, and argued that it was inferior to the original Puzzle Bobble.[14] Siliconera's Jenni Lada gave positive remarks to the "unbelievably satisfying" gameplay, and "amazing" music.[4] Lada later went on to call it one of the best games of 2020.[16]

Nintendo Blast's Juliana Paiva Zapparoli criticized the high retail price due to the use of licensed music and translation issues, stating that the title was better suited for fans of Touhou Project. Nevertheless, Zapparoli gave positive remarks for the gameplay, replay value, game modes, responsive controls, adjustable difficulty, music selection and for being faithful to the source material.[15] Cubed3's Shane Jury felt that the game stands above most puzzle titles on Nintendo Switch for its "brilliant audio collection" and unique take on the Puzzle Bobble system, but criticized the lack of online multiplayer.[13] Touch Arcade's Shaun Musgrave called Touhou Spell Bubble one of the 10 best puzzle games available on Switch, but noted "the only thing it’s missing is an online multiplayer mode, and that is admittedly a big omission given what a blast the local multiplayer mode is."[17]

See also

  • List of Touhou Project fangames

References

  1. ↑ "Puzzle Bobble meets Touhou Project in a new Rhythmic Puzzle Game for Nintendo Switch! Launches today!" (in en). https://www.taito.co.jp/en/mob/topics/4548. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Kreinhop, Hunted (February 24, 2021). "Touhou Spell Bubble Review – Poppin Bubbles With Waifus". Noisy Pixel. https://noisypixel.net/touhou-spell-bubble-review-switch/. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Davison, Pete (November 4, 2020). "Mini Review: Touhou Spell Bubble - A Puzzle Bobble Sequel In All But Name - Taito hops onto the Touhou Project". Nintendo Life. Nlife Media. https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/switch-eshop/touhou_spell_bubble. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Lada, Jenni (November 13, 2020). "Review: Touhou Spell Bubble Pops". Siliconera. Enthusiast Gaming. https://www.siliconera.com/review-touhou-spell-bubble-pops/. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lada, Jenni (2021-11-18). "Touhou Spell Bubble Online Multiplayer Added in Free Update" (in en-US). https://www.siliconera.com/touhou-spell-bubble-online-multiplayer-added-in-free-update/. 
  6. ↑ "Touhou Spell Bubble Puzzle Game's Videos Preview 12 New Songs" (in en). https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2020-01-30/touhou-spell-bubble-puzzle-game-videos-preview-12-new-songs/.155950. 
  7. ↑ Romano, Sal (2020-01-23). "Touhou Spell Bubble launches February 6 in Japan" (in en-US). https://www.gematsu.com/2020/01/touhou-spell-bubble-launches-february-6-in-japan. 
  8. ↑ "Touhou Spell Bubble Launches Outside Japan" (in en-US). 2020-10-29. https://www.siliconera.com/touhou-spell-bubble-launches-outside-japan/. 
  9. ↑ Wong, Alistair (2020-07-30). "Touhou Spell Bubble Physical Copies in Asia Will Include English Subtitles" (in en-US). https://www.siliconera.com/touhou-spell-bubble-physical-copies-in-asia-will-include-english-subtitles/. 
  10. ↑ "Puzzle Bobble Crossover Fangame Touhou Spell Bubble By Taito Releases in Japan on February 6, 2020" (in en-US). 2020-01-23. https://www.siliconera.com/puzzle-bobble-crossover-fangame-touhou-spell-bubble-by-taito-releases-in-japan-on-february-6-2020/. 
  11. ↑ Nguyen, Lisa (2020-11-04). "Touhou Spell Bubble Now Available On The Nintendo Switch eShop | Happy Gamer" (in en-US). https://happygamer.com/touhou-spell-bubble-now-available-on-the-nintendo-switch-eshop-91058/. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Touhou Spell Bubble for Switch Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. October 29, 2020. https://www.metacritic.com/game/touhou-spell-bubble/critic-reviews/?platform=nintendo-switch. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Jury, Shane (January 8, 2021). "Touhou Spell Bubble (Nintendo Switch) Review". Cubed3. Cubed3 Limited. http://www.cubed3.com/review/6248/1/touhou-spell-bubble-nintendo-switch.html. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 L., Harvard (November 13, 2020). "Review: Touhou Spell Bubble (Nintendo Switch)". Digitally Downloaded. Digitally Downloaded Media Australia. http://www.digitallydownloaded.net/2020/11/review-touhou-spell-bubble-nintendo.html. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Zapparoli, Juliana Paiva (December 13, 2020). "Análise: Touhou Spell Bubble (Switch) é uma aventura rítmica em Gensokyo". Nintendo Blast. GameBlast. https://www.nintendoblast.com.br/2020/12/analise-touhou-spell-bubble-switch.html. 
  16. ↑ Lada, Jenni (December 25, 2020). "Best 2020 Games You Might Have Missed". Siliconera. Enthusiast Gaming. https://www.siliconera.com/best-2020-games-you-might-have-missed/. 
  17. ↑ Musgrave, Shaun (July 2, 2021). "The 10 Best Puzzle Games on Nintendo Switch: SwitchArcade Special Edition". TouchArcade. https://toucharcade.com/2021/07/02/the-10-best-puzzle-games-on-nintendo-switch/. 
  • 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. 
  • No URL found. Please specify a URL here or add one to Wikidata.

Template:Atari





Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Software:Touhou_Spell_Bubble&oldid=1058368"