Bubble Bobble ARCADE

Bubble Bobble is Taito’s 1986 platformer, starring two dragons, Bub and Bob, who trap enemies inside bubbles and pop them to clear each single-screen stage. Its 100 stages can be played solo or in two-player simultaneous co-op, with the two dragons’ bubble-blowing mechanic giving it a gentler, puzzle-adjacent take on the platform-shooter format common at the time.

Its cheerful visual style and cooperative-friendly design helped it stand apart from the more aggressive, score-focused arcade games surrounding it on release, and its cast and mechanics went on to anchor an extended series, including the horizontally-scrolling sequel Rainbow Islands built directly on the same characters and world.