Help Bob the Brick Breaker (as opposed to Bob the Builder), break bricks by bouncing a wrecking ball with a girder.  Yup, it’s a BreakOut or Arkanoid clone.  But is it as good as those classics?  You’ll just have to read on to find out!  The game is available on Switch and PlayStation consoles, but reviewed on Switch here.

As Bob, you’ll run left and right at the bottom of the screen, bouncing the ball around to break bricks.  Sometimes, power-ups will fall down for you to catch, and they’re typical Arkanoid style power-ups like a 3-ball splitter, extend your paddle girder, make the ball cut through bricks, etc.  I do like how they keep things moving by having the screen scroll to the next stage, even if you haven’t broken all the blocks from the last one.  And instead of the ball just falling into an abyss from the bottom, it’ll bounce back.  I also like the 1930’s style cartoon construction site motif.  Aside from the single player mode, you can also play two player co-op and vs. modes as well.

I did have some problems with the game, though.  Your character moves too slow on the bottom of the screen, and I couldn’t figure out how to tell how many times you can miss the ball.  Plus I thought this game was way too hard, although I’m not really very good at these types of games, even though I still like playing them.  If that makes any sense.  But if you want an Arkanoid clone to play, you might want to check this one out.

Kid Factor:

Nothing too violent or objectionable here.  When you get a Game Over, Bob just falls off the screen and it shows him under the girder with a cracked hard hat.  Reading skill isn’t needed, but younger gamers may find it too difficult.   Bob the Brick Breaker is rated E for Everyone.

Tags: Game Reviews