A Review: Bust-A-Move 3DX, N64 1998
Bust-A-Move 3DX (also known simply as Bust-A-Move 3) is an action puzzle game developed by Taito and published by Acclaim Entertainment for the Nintendo 64. This is the third game in the series and the sequel to Bust-A-Move 2. It was first released in 1996 for stand-up arcade cabinets before being ported to the N64, Playstation One, Sega Saturn, Game Boy, and Windows PC's. The play is mostly the same as in the previous games, with the player matching three balls repeatedly to complete a series of stages in various modes. In 2023, a modern port was released for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Again, and something that I have felt with all of the games in this series that I have played, Bust-A-Move 3DX was a fun and addictive little game. There isn't much that I can say that I haven't already said before. I do recognise that this game is more refined and somewhat more polished than the other games though. The menus are cleaner and require less navigation before getting into gameplay. The stages are cleaner and much smoother when playing head-to-head compared to the other games. The frame rates seemed to be more stable to me, and the difficulty curve was slightly softer. I enjoyed completing this game and thought that it was a worthwhile addition to the series.
Visually, is where this game seems to have had the most work put in. The backgrounds are almost of photo quality rather than a lower-resolution scan. The menus are cleaner and have fewer ragged edges, with the game areas also having sharper-looking lines and shapes. The bubbles are smoother and more detailed, and I also thought that the bonus items looked better too. The characters look much better than the other games and even seem to be close to 2.5D now, with them having more varied animations overall. Seeing Bub move around in a circle or jump and spin highlights this improvement, in my opinion. The bubble guns look better and have new textures too, which is a visual positive, and almost all of the colours seem sharper and tidier.
Overall, this is a much better-looking game than the others, but it hasn't really changed or introduced anything new or fresh. As such, I wouldn't recommend this game over the others, but I will say that it was still fun enough to warrant my time for a playthrough.
6/10 – Good fun!
Signed Off – Leonardo – PSJ
Again, and something that I have felt with all of the games in this series that I have played, Bust-A-Move 3DX was a fun and addictive little game. There isn't much that I can say that I haven't already said before. I do recognise that this game is more refined and somewhat more polished than the other games though. The menus are cleaner and require less navigation before getting into gameplay. The stages are cleaner and much smoother when playing head-to-head compared to the other games. The frame rates seemed to be more stable to me, and the difficulty curve was slightly softer. I enjoyed completing this game and thought that it was a worthwhile addition to the series.
Visually, is where this game seems to have had the most work put in. The backgrounds are almost of photo quality rather than a lower-resolution scan. The menus are cleaner and have fewer ragged edges, with the game areas also having sharper-looking lines and shapes. The bubbles are smoother and more detailed, and I also thought that the bonus items looked better too. The characters look much better than the other games and even seem to be close to 2.5D now, with them having more varied animations overall. Seeing Bub move around in a circle or jump and spin highlights this improvement, in my opinion. The bubble guns look better and have new textures too, which is a visual positive, and almost all of the colours seem sharper and tidier.
Overall, this is a much better-looking game than the others, but it hasn't really changed or introduced anything new or fresh. As such, I wouldn't recommend this game over the others, but I will say that it was still fun enough to warrant my time for a playthrough.
6/10 – Good fun!
Signed Off – Leonardo – PSJ
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