Bubbles Are Very Versatile
When it comes to designing lots of levels for a game you will find yourself re-
using assets a lot. Things like crates, plants, ground, buildings etc. There's one graphic that I have re-used in many different ways......A bubble.
Bubbles The All Mighty Object
Here is a few things I have used bubbles for designing games. The list is quite extensive for a very basic 5 minute graphic.
As background decor out vents
For gun pickups in games
For powerups that float and you pop to get them
As a physical bouncy ball object to jump on
Holding player 2 when he dies
For water areas to show a splash
As you can see there is so many ways to use this simple graphic. It is the perfect game item for storing powerups and weapons when you need to deliver them to the player in a cute way, it also makes things easier for you as a developer to code it, because it can simply 'pop' when the player hits it triggering the drop of whatever is inside it.
Games I used Bubbles
I have used it as a physics object in Eggy's Big Adventure, the level is quite fun seeing the bubbles colliding with each other and seeing our Egg character slide and bouncy off them, since they are a form of a sphere you can give them spherical physics properties.
I also used them in The Magical Golden Egg as a way of trapping my little chickens, it makes a great effect because as they run into them it triggers a graphic to display a little chicken trapped in time floating around in the bubble and when you shoot or touch it, your little companion is free once more. This creates a really satisfying element to the level.
I have used bubbles in my old game Battle Fish as a way of keeping your fish alive. You could even hold the mouse down to make the bubbles bigger, the bigger the bubble, the more HP it gave to your fish. Looking back on this one it didn't fully make sense since fish don't eat bubbles......but hey never let logic get in the way of
a good game right? :D
As you can see I made good use of this graphic. The best part? It's literally a 10min drawing at best. Anyone can draw a bubble, give it a nice simple alpha fade and a shine and your powerful bubble is about to be the most featured graphic you've ever drawn in your life.
Never doubt the power of a bubble my friends. The only limit is your imagination. Legend has it my secret to stopping developer procrastination is still stuck in a bubble out there somewhere.
