Back in the day, there was just something odd and fun about arcade games, and how weird they could be at times without people really caring as long as the gameplay was solid. One of the most unusual titles I can think of from the early days, featuring very cute bubble-blowing dinosaurs and with a plucky theme song looping forever in the background, was Bubble Bobble. This isn’t only a game I played a fair amount in the arcades, I also remember playing through it completely with a friend on the NES as well.

What’s sad, and I suppose a bit strange, is that while the series tried to go on from that initial popular start, in terms of what I observed, Taito couldn’t get that same lightning in a bottle response as they had with the original. Parasol Stars actually represents the third in the overall series, oddly enough borrowing both from Rainbow Islands and the original Bubble Bobble… though generally returning to that original style of co-op play. Now, many decades later, the game is available on the Switch as well.

This is one of those titles I don’t remember playing too much in the arcades, and returning to it now I think I understand at least some of the reason why. Yes, in the game you won’t be blowing bubbles and doing everything precisely the same way as in the original Bubble Bobble, you’ll instead be working with a trusty multi-function parasol. The problem is that many of the differences actually feel a bit superficial, with quite a few tricks from the original making their way here as well, and that makes it feel less fun and original. An additional issue is that having played so much Bubble Bobble over the years (which I’ll still excitedly play for a while every year or so) it’s really competing with the original and the nostalgia people would have for it specifically, and in my mind that represents a losing battle at best.

In terms of scoring it, that leaves me in an odd and somewhat tough spot. It’s cheery and generally pleasant to play. It has many of the same overall beats, and in general is pretty well a anyone-can-play-it affair in terms of difficulty once you understand some tricks you’ll need as you go along. In terms of its art, there’s also no question that it’s cute, colorful, and easy on the eyes. Just I also can’t ignore that if you gave me the option to play it or Bubble Bobble it would almost always end up being the loser in that battle, so there’s only so high I feel it can fly unless this happens to be your own favorite nostalgia bomb somehow.