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Scrubbles

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Developer: Oberon Media
Publisher: Oberon Media
Genre: Puzzle & Casual > General
Released: Jun 19, 2006
Players: 1

- 2006 Casual Game of the Year

It seems that you rarely run into a casual game that doesn't feel like a variation on a game that you have played before. Scrubbles is no exception, but while I�€™ve played several variations of this gameplay in the past (Bust a Move being the most widely known), this was the first of these clones that I really enjoyed.

Scrubbles is an arcade-puzzler in which you have to save Borb Bay from the lumps and whoever sent them to terrorize the town. You do this by playing through several levels that consist of two types of playing styles, straight-up or ball. In general the gameplay is the same in either, you want to connect 3 or more of a matching Scrubbles (which are kind of like a colored bubble with a personality) using your Scrubble shooting cannon.

In straight-up the Scrubbles and lumps (lumps are bad guy Scrubbles that just get in your way and are cleared only by removing all the Scrubbles around them) spread out in rows on the screen, while in ball mode the Scrubbles and lumps are arranged around the center of the screen. The main difference between these playing styles is how a level is failed. When you waste your allotment of Scrubbles in your cannon, you get closer to what is called the �€œdanger zone�€?. In the straight-up game the �€œdanger zone�€? is on the bottom of the screen and the Scrubbles are pushed downwards towards the �€œdanger zone�€?. In the ball mode, the �€œdanger zone�€? shrinks in around the middle of the screen.

One added fun part of the ball mode is that the Scrubbles in the center rotate each time a Scrubble is fired so you have to keep figuring out the best angle to shoot. You can use the walls to bounce Scrubbles off of to get them where you want them which adds a dimension of difficulty to the game because you have to use the wall bounce to get past more difficult levels.

Scrubbles offers an arcade version of endless action and a journey mode. While the arcade mode has different difficulty levels and can be quite enjoyable, the journey mode is truly where this game shines. Each level of the journey mode is introduced by some of the different Scrubble characters. They crack jokes while introducing the level and/or different characters along with a simple story throughout. The dialog is well done and the humor hits more often then it misses. The game�€™s cute and fun-loving personality doesn�€™t stop with the cut scenes; the Scrubbles continue with their jabber throughout the game to signify different in-game events like, for example, saying the name of a special weapon that is picked up.

The journey mode also does a great job of introducing new power-ups and gameplay elements each level one at a time. This saves the player having to wade through what may have been a lengthy tutorial keeping the game moving smoothly. There is a good variety of special weapons and unique gameplay additions like having to wake sleeping Scrubbles up to complete sets etc. There are also some endboss levels that make for some interesting battles. So despite this game�€™s origins not being entirely unique, the variety of special weapons and unique gameplay elements keeps things fresh and fun.

Scrubbles also does a good job of increasing the difficulty naturally as you advance in game levels. This is something I�€™ve seen as a shortcoming in lot of casual games, by either making things get way too difficult, or by not really having an increase in difficulty at all. Scrubbles does a good job of making difficulty increase linearly (except for the final level in the game which is just annoying due to the difficulty being caused by randomness).

I think the biggest qualm I had with the journey mode is that it was rather short. There�€™s only about 30 levels in the game, and it only took a couple hours to blow through. With a $20 price tag, I personally would like to see more levels in the journey mode even if they all didn�€™t have cut scenes to introduce them (I�€™m assuming cost of the cut scenes is what limited the total number of levels in the journey game).

Graphics:

The graphics are as good as I�€™ve scene in a bubble popping game like this. I�€™ve never been a big fan of Flash games (I find some Flash quirks annoying) but Scrubbles is full of cute animations and effects. From the cut scenes to the smaller in-game bubble Scrubbles to the menus, the graphics professional quality throughout.

Sound:
The sound is also top quality in Scrubbles. The voice acting is as good as I�€™ve heard in some console games. The music has a good amount of variety and I never found it getting repetitive or old.

Gameplay:
The gameplay was great. As I said earlier, there�€™re a lot of clones I�€™ve played with a similar gameplay style, and this is the only one that actually kept me playing. The fun storyline, cute personalities, and the entertaining twists found throughout make Scrubble�€™s gameplay shine.

Concept:
I�€™m reducing some concept points because this game is a clone. There wasn�€™t a whole lot of derivation from what�€™s been done in the past. Scrubbles does a great job of bringing a lot of personality and excitement to this game style while adding some unique power-ups and end bosses.

Value:

I was able to blow through the main game in a couple hours, and I think I spent an hour of that time on the game�€™s last two end bosses (which were in the annoying category rather then challenging). While it was rather high quality gameplay, for a twenty dollar price tag, I would like it to last longer. I didn�€™t have nearly as much fun playing the arcade style games as I did the journey game (mainly because the coolest part of the game was the cut scenes), and I lost interest rather quickly in this side part of the game. People who really enjoy this style of game will probably get much more enjoyment out of the arcade game which is still well put together. I personally would like some more mileage out of the journey mode, and possibly some un-lockables or other things that would give the game more replay value.

Recommendation:
You should definitely give this game a try. Regardless of if you like Scrubble�€™s gameplay style or not, it�€™s worth checking out if not only for it�€™s funny cut scenes. Unfortunately, because Scrubbles is a clone and is not that lengthy, the vast amount of personality that Scrubbles has to offer may not be enough to warrant a purchase.

By: Bryce Carroll
Posted: Monday November 20, 2006