Bust-A-Move Pocket

Bust-A-Move Pocket is an installment in the long-running puzzle series exclusive to the Neo Geo Pocket Color. It offers a selection of modes and levels seen in earlier entries.

The game includes three different game modes. Puzzle mode consists of 99 puzzles, taken from various earlier entries in the series for a “best of”. The first ten levels can be selected from the start, and the best clearing times are saved per level. VS mode is the competitive variant of the game, played in best-of-three matches either against one of several different CPU opponents (with different strategies) or against another player via link connection. Survivor mode is an endless mode played for high score.

Gameplay follows the standard model: the player controls a cannon at the bottom of the play field that shoots randomly colored bubbles. When three or more bubbles of the same color touch, they are removed from the field. In puzzle mode, the ceiling moves downward after a while, while in the other modes, additional bubbles are added from the top. In survivor mode only, bubbles also are added from the bottom sometimes. The game is lost once the bubbles reach the bottom. Popping more than three bubbles at a time moves extra bubbles to the opponent’s field in VS mode.