Bubsy 4D Review: Solid Platforming, Exhausting Nostalgia

Key Takeaways

• Bubsy 4D plays like a hybrid of Sonic and Super Mario Odyssey with complex movement mechanics
• Developer Fabraz has a strong track record with platformers like Demon Tides and Slime-san
• The game's fourth-wall breaking humor and '90s nostalgia feel forced and tiresome

A Competent Game with an Identity Problem

Bubsy 4D exists. That sentence alone feels like the punchline to a joke nobody asked for. When Atari announced the revival of one of gaming's most notorious franchises last year, skepticism was the only reasonable response. Bubsy 3D remains infamous as one of the worst games ever made. Why resurrect that?

The answer lies partly in developer Fabraz, a studio with genuine platforming credentials. Demon Tides holds an "overwhelmingly positive" rating on Steam. Slime-san earned strong reviews in 2017 when action platformers dominated the indie scene. This is not a shovelware operation.

And yet, despite solid mechanics and a capable developer, Bubsy 4D manages to be more irritating than enjoyable. The problem is not the gameplay. The problem is everything around it.

Movement That Rewards Persistence

Bubsy 4D plays like a mashup of Sonic and Super Mario Odyssey. The genital-less cat (the game's humor, not mine) is highly maneuverable. He can double jump, leap and glide, and chain these abilities to spend extended time airborne or scramble to impressive heights.

Subtle techniques add depth. Doubling back mid-sprint before jumping executes a higher-than-normal leap. These moves feel awkward initially. Bubsy bounces unpredictably off walls, making chained jumps frustrating. But by the fourth level, the controls click into place.

The furball transformation takes longer to master. This mode turns Bubsy into a high-speed pinball, and it feels appalling at first. The trick is using jumps to turn corners rapidly, switching back to normal form to extend reach with a flutter, then returning to ball mode. Overshooting a corner usually offers correction paths.

Easy to Pick Up, Garbage Until Mastered

Bubsy 4D follows the "easy to pick up, hard to master" formula. But here's the catch: it feels genuinely bad until you've mastered it. Like Sonic, momentum killers lurk everywhere. Death frustrates because you lose all that hard-earned flow.

Returning to earlier levels with better technique makes them more enjoyable. The problem is wanting to return at all. Bubsy 4D is not compelling enough to warrant replay, even when the mechanics finally work in your favor.

The Vibes Are Terrible

Here's where Bubsy 4D falls apart. The fourth-wall-breaking humor feels "purchased straight from a comedy asset store." Every joke lands with the thud of forced nostalgia. The '90s references never stop, and none of them earn their presence.

Bubsy as a character represents everything exhausting about mascot platformers from that era. The attitude, the quips, the self-aware smugness. These elements might work as parody if the game committed to the bit. Instead, Bubsy 4D wallows in the very tropes it pretends to mock.

A passable platformer can survive weak humor. But Bubsy 4D forces its comedy into every interaction. There's no escape from the relentless '90s nostalgia. The game seems convinced that referencing its own failures counts as charm.

A Missed Opportunity

Fabraz clearly knows how to build platformers. The movement system in Bubsy 4D shows real craft. The hybrid Sonic-Odyssey approach could have anchored something memorable.

But wrapping competent mechanics in insufferable presentation creates a game that's hard to recommend. Technical skill cannot overcome vibes this bad. Bubsy 4D proves you can build a decent platformer and still make something few will want to finish.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Bubsy 4D better than Bubsy 3D?

Yes, significantly. Bubsy 3D is considered one of the worst games ever made. Bubsy 4D is a competent platformer with solid mechanics, though its humor and nostalgia elements remain divisive.

Who developed Bubsy 4D?

Fabraz developed Bubsy 4D. The studio previously created well-received platformers including Demon Tides (overwhelmingly positive on Steam) and Slime-san.

What kind of platformer is Bubsy 4D?

Bubsy 4D is a 3D platformer that plays like a hybrid of Sonic and Super Mario Odyssey, emphasizing speed, momentum, and complex aerial movement chains.

Is Bubsy 4D worth playing?

The platforming mechanics are solid once mastered, but the game's constant fourth-wall humor and '90s nostalgia feel exhausting. Most players will find better options in the genre.

Source: PCGamer latest