'Tis the season for Snow Bros. Jr. (GameBoy)

There was a time--not too long ago, in fact--when I wasn't all that interested in Toaplan's painfully short-lived Snow Bros. series.

Its garish use of color and its nightmarish cast of characters--including the titular Nick and Tom--just didn't sit well with me, I guess.

At any rate, I pretty much ignored the handful of Snow Bros. ports and sequels that were released over the years until I came across the cover art showcased in the photos below. (Check out my Flickr photostream if you'd like to see a few more.)

The game in question is 1991's Snow Bros. Jr., by the way, which was published in Japan by Naxat Soft. (Capcom brought it to North America the following year as Snow Brothers.)

Admittedly, this version of the game lacks the color that abounds in pretty much all of its counterparts, but that doesn't impact the experience as negatively as you might think.

It helps, of course, that the gameplay found in the arcade original seems to have survived the transition from big screen--or at least bigger screen--to small mostly intact. Also, the portable port's soundtrack is just as zippy and energetic as it is in any other Snow Bros. release.

Let's be honest, though: even if I considered every other aspect of this GameBoy title to be a bit crappy, I'd probably still have searched far and wide for a complete-in-box copy.

After all, just look at its box art--and the contents of its instruction manual, too. I mean, it even includes a little comic strip. What's not to like about that? (Sadly, I don't understand a lick of its story.)

Sure, the back of Snow Bros. Jr.'s box is by far the least enticing aspect of this otherwise-precious package, but you can't always have everything, can you?

Have any of you played this portable take on Toaplan's somewhat-sinister, single-screen platformer? If so, what do you think of it?

See also: previous 'Year of the GameBoy' posts

I'm sure I'd love this in-the-works Bubble Bobble clone called Drop Wizard ... if I could play it

It's no secret that I love so-called Bubble Bobble clones.

As such, I guess it shouldn't be much of a surprise to hear that I'm feeling a bit gaga about the game, called Drop Wizard, showcased in the trailer below. I mean, it's got an adorable, cherubic protagonist, similarly aww-inspiring enemies and all kinds of collectible fruit--how could I not go a bit gaga over it?

And then there's the cherry on top: its gameplay looks to include elements of one of my favorite Bubble Bobble clones, Snow Bros.



The only downside I can see to Drop Wizard at the moment is that the levels shown in this trailer seem a bit sparse--although that may be due to it being an iOS game?

Actually, it being an iOS game is another downside, if I'm to be honest. That's not me ripping on iOS game, mind you; it's me whining about the fact that I can't play this particular one because I don't own an iOS device.

Developers Neutronized suggest in the comments section of the trailer above that they'd like to follow up the initial iOS release with Android, PC, PS3/4/Vita, Wii U and 3DS versions, though, so here's hoping they're able to make that dream a reality sometime soon.

See also: other posts about Bubble Bobble clones

The Gay Gamer Giveaway™: Snow Bros. Jr. (GameBoy) Edition

So, here we are: my final Gay Gamer Giveaway™ (for the foreseeable future, at least).

As was the case with the last three such giveaways, this one features a loose copy of a Japanese GameBoy title. Specifically, a loose copy of the Japanese GameBoy port of Toaplan's Snow Bros.

To those of you who've never played--or even heard of--this single-screen platformer, it's an oh-so-capable Bubble Bobble clone that stars a pair of creepily cute snowmen (ignore the cart label art, below--the "official," in-game versions are far less adorable) who toss what I'm assuming are handfuls of snow at even creepier-looking adversaries until they're encased in towering snowballs that can then be rolled into other baddies or into the walls that line each stage.

It's all quite fun, plus it looks and sounds great. (I especially like its soundtrack--with the first level's backing tune being a particularly pleasant little earworm.)

Anyway, should my description of Snow Bros. Jr. make you want to own a copy of it, share the name of your favorite single-screen platformer (again, there are no wrong responses) in the comments section below between now and the morning of Monday, July 21--which is when I'll randomly point to one of those replies and send the person who published it the slightly abused cart seen above.

Speaking of this cart's slightly abused condition, I have to warn all interested parties that I've had a bit of trouble getting this game to boot on my GameBoy Pocket as of late. Sometimes the title screen pops up after I turn on the system, and sometimes it doesn't. Sadly, I don't know if a proper cleaning of the cartridge's contacts will put the kibosh on that little problem or not. So, just know that the cart that arrives on your doorstep--should you win the giveaway--may only work intermittently (or may not work at all).

See also: previous Gay Gamer Giveaway™ posts

You say Bubble Bobble clone, I say Fairyland Story clone

Over the years, a lot of games--such as Chip Chan Kick!, Don Doko Don, Parasol Stars, Rod Land and Snow Bros.--have been called "Bubble Bobble clones." That's always struck me as a bit funny (despite the fact that I've often used the phrase myself--in this recent post about Pop'n Magic, for instance), as I think it would be a lot more accurate to call them clones of The Fairyland Story.

What, you've never heard of The Fairyland Story? No worries, here's a brief history of this not-quite-classic: Developed by Taito, it first hit the floors of the world's arcades--and bars and bowling alleys and whatnot--in 1985. The game's protagonist, a puny witch named Ptolemy, prances from castle-themed stage to castle-themed stage while transforming a cast of surprisingly cuddly enemies--including dragons, helmeted (and knife-wielding) pigs and wizards--into cakes with her trusty wand and then smooshing them to smithereens (often by pushing them off of ledges and onto unsuspecting baddies).

Getting back to why the above-mentioned games should be called clones of The Fairyland Story and not Bubble Bobble, there are three reasons for it, in my mind: 1) The Fairyland Story predates Bubble Bobble by a year, 2) the former clearly informed the development of the latter (a number of The Fairyland Story's power-ups, such as the fire cross and the earthquake book, also appear in Bubble Bobble) and 3) none of the titles listed in the opening paragraph of this post actually copied the mechanics of Taito's most classic of quarter-muchers.

So, does all of this mean that I'll stop describing games as "Bubble Bobble clones" and start calling them clones of The Fairyland Story instead? Probably not, but only because most folks have never heard of the earlier title. That said, I'll do my best to plop the phrase "Fairyland Story clone" into a post every now and then--you know, just to keep things honest.