Support NeoGAF

[MrCunningham]

Thant's right, Bubsy 3D is 20 years old today and was released on the original PlayStation on November 25th 1996 in North America.

Mario 64, Crash Bandicoot, Tomb Raider, NiGHTS Into Dreams (sort of), Jumping Flash 2, Bug Too!, Floating Runner and even Pandemonium. 1996 was the breakout year for 3D platformers. The entire genre practically established itself that year thanks to evolving 3D hardware and trail blazing titles like Mario 64, Tomb Raider, and even Crash Bandicoot.

Long time defunct developer/ publisher Accolade also jumped on that bandwagon too with a 3D platformer that started their own ill-fated mascot Bubsy. "What could paws-ibly go wrong?" Well, just about everything. From what I know, the game was rushed out to market in 1996 to meet the Christmas season.

It was developed by a group called Eidetic Software, who later-on found success with the Syphon Filter series on the PS1. The studio was later purchased by Sony and renamed to SIE Bend Studio, who are now working on Days Gone for the PS3 and PS4 Pro.

Bubsy 3D was received poorly by the gaming media of the time and was generally regarded as one of the most underwhelming released on that year.

The magazine adverting for this game was classic, as Accolade would stitch together random out of context quotes from different gaming magazines to try and put a positive spin on the game. They even made up things like the "GOLD X AWARD" (seen on the box art) which apparently was not a real thing from PSEXTREME.

EDIT: It turns out that the Gold X Award was real. Post 49.

The game itself has had its fair share of notoriety online for being one of the worst games ever made. Including fan made sequels like this game here , as well as Ulillillia's infamous 500 hour playthrough of trying to reach the highest point in Level 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09MzaJVH5b4.


Random solitary screenshot:

 

[desmax]

Aren't these Game Designers wonderful?

 

[Fat4all]

 

[Firehead]

Let's get Ulillillia's entire Bubsy 3D archive in here for good measure.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIT2qNV3U8ljhTII1DLCSlzO0uCwXPxS6

He made this game what it is today.

 

[LiveFromKyoto]

I'd love to know the full context for those quotes.

 

[PassiveObserver]

PSExtreme magazine definitely existed. I read several issues back in the day. Don't recall if Bubsy 3D got that high a score but their writers tend to give 80s and 90s out like candy.

Apparently they gave Bubsy a 93%, according to this blog post listing their old review scores. http://gamemagreviews.blogspot.com/2007/12/psextreme-january-1997-vol2-no-2-1996.html?m=1.

It really gets my goat how the myth gets perpetuated that this magazine never existed or that the award is fake. Dubious as it was, both the mag and the award existed. I've seen that Gold X logo before. People love to make fun of this game, but no need to make up stuff to paint this game as even more pathetic.

 

[hoggert]

the only anniversary thread I'll ever be cool with

Thank you for the Ulillillia shout out 😍

 

[MrCunningham]

PSExtreme magazine definitely existed. I read several issues back in the day. Don't recall if Bubsy 3D got that high a score but their writers tend to give 80s and 90s out like candy.

PSExtreme did exist, but the "gold X award" that they apparently dished out to Bubsy 3D may not have been real. I can't find any proof that that existed.

Apparently they gave Bubsy a 93%, according to this blog post listing their old review scores. http://gamemagreviews.blogspot.com/2007/12/psextreme-january-1997-vol2-no-2-1996.html?m=1.

It really gets my goat how the myth gets perpetuated that this magazine never existed or that the award is fake. Dubious as it was, both the mag and the award existed. I've seen that Gold X logo before. People love to make.fin of this game, but no need to make up stuff to paint this game as even more pathetic.

Whoops, I didn't see this edit. They must have been paid by Accolade to score it so highly.

 

[CypherSignal]

I still think the weirdest thing about is it that the follow-up to Bubsy 3D from this studio was Syphon Filter, and then became Sony Bend.

 

[CriterionDog]

Daily reminder that Days Gone is being made by the team that made this. Lol

 

[Kresnik258]

Sony Bend's finest hour.

 

[Aselith]

Daily reminder that Days Gone is being made by the team that made this. Lol

Can't wait to see how Ulililia takes down zombos

 

[Persona7]

i tried playing bubsy 3d a few years ago because I liked some of the aesthetics but jesus christ it sucks.

 

[CriterionDog]

i tried playing bubsy 3d a few years ago because I liked some of the aesthetics but jesus christ it sucks.

I don't know why this post made me laugh so hard lolol

 

[Persona7]

I don't know why this post made me laugh so hard lolol

I played the original bubsy back in the day and I should have known better.

 

[Glowsquid]

 

[PassiveObserver]

PSExtreme did exist, but the "gold X award" that they apparently dished out to Bubsy 3D may not have been real. I can't find any proof that that existed.

Whoops, I didn't see this edit. They must have been paid by Accolade to score it so highly.

I can't find anything on Google images either but I distinctly remember there also being a silver award given to 80s and above, to the point that most reviews had a "award" emblem next to their score.

 

[MrCunningham]

Sony Bend's finest hour.

I honestly had no idea that Eidetic became Sony Bend.

 

[Fat4all]

"after two painful sequels, finally make good"

jesus h fucking christ

 

[Glowsquid]

Apparently they gave Bubsy a 93%, according to this blog post listing their old review scores. http://gamemagreviews.blogspot.com/2007/12/psextreme-january-1997-vol2-no-2-1996.html?m=1.

Contra: Legacy of War 90%

Robotron X 96%

NBA Jam Extreme 89%

what

 

[Afrikan]

Let's get Ulillillia's entire Bubsy 3D archive in here for good measure.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIT2qNV3U8ljhTII1DLCSlzO0uCwXPxS6

He made this game what it is today.

this isn't the Ulililia I remember.

he speaks faster now.

anyone have the older original ones where he talks slow and sublime? or did he take them down. :/

 

[wild wild rice]

What's the Bubsy 3D of 2016?

 

[Alex Anderson]

Ahhh, it's been years since I looked up info about Ulillillia to see what he's up to. Currently reading the Encyclopedia Dramatica page and having a chuckle at some of it. And not in a mean spirited way. I really admire the part of him that's honest about himself and wonders why he is the way he is.

He should do an audiobook!

 

[Trago]

My most hated game, ever.

I wasted a weekend with this trash after my dad picked it up for rent at Hollywood Video. It's the first game I've played that I was aware was bad. Those mother fucking tank controls. In a 3D platformer! The annoying ass voice. The hilariously bad graphics for the time. I spent hours trying to push on through and beat it, but couldn't make it past the first boss fight. Genuine frustration. Fuck this game.

 

[PassiveObserver]

what

They got one right at least:

I can stop obsessing over this award thing, lol.

 

[shoplifter]

Can't wait to see how Ulililia takes down zombos

He's playing Morrowind lately.

 

[Whimsical Phil]

Chris Johnston...of EGM...loves...this game. He claims that it...contains...graphics and...action!

Top of the yarn ball, ma!

 

[IndieJones]

OMG on a tangent here but the "Ask Ulillillia Things" Youtube series on this channel provides a cool and pretty charming look at everyone's favourite Bubsy 3D expert.

 

[shoplifter]

Nick has a job now also. He moved around with his sister for a while. It's good to see him overcoming a lot of issues that he had for a long time.

 

[Living the Dream]

Let's get Ulillillia's entire Bubsy 3D archive in here for good measure.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIT2qNV3U8ljhTII1DLCSlzO0uCwXPxS6

He made this game what it is today.

I could listen to his enthusiasm everyday and be content with life

 

[DJKhaled]

What's the Bubsy 3D of 2016?

No Mans Sky

 

[El Odio]

I remember watching a playthrough of this like a year ago when I had a really bad fever and was incredibly sick. I guess I was just so ill I thought anything sounded like a good idea.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Happy anniversary.

Shoutouts to Arcane Kids

Shoutouts to Ulillilia

 

[superNESjoe]

I played this when it came out. I rented it for a weekend, and it has haunted me to this day. Every few years I play it again to remind myself just how bad it can be.

 

[MrCunningham]

OMG on a tangent here but the "Ask Ulillillia Things" Youtube series on this channel provides a cool and pretty charming look at everyone's favourite Bubsy 3D expert.

Ulillillia is a seriously killer game engine programmer! I think he is a technical genius. His scrapped 3D engine was really bad-ass when he showed it off, and his current 2D engine is mindbogglingly beautiful. Maybe not artistically, but technically it is amazing. All of that 2D parallax, proper speeds proportional to the screen.... even the little cars in the background were moving at correct speed limits! The earth itself even curves a bit when you leave earth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaNuuxglGdE&feature=youtu.be

Just put your 2D engine on Steam man, I would buy it just as a sandbox game. Even a Terraria knock off on that engine would be cool.

Oh man, I had that issue of GameFan. But I forgot that they gave this game positive reviews. They must have been money hatted as well, I wouldn't put it past Dave Halverson to do so. But at the same time, maybe they liked it because it was an early 3D platformer? But why play this over Mario 64?

 

[pizzacat]

I'm still catching ghosts

 

[JaseC]

I was hoping Tommo would greenlight a PC port/release after releasing the first two games on Steam, but alas that never happened.

 

[Laevateinn]

Ulillillia is a seriously killer game engine programmer! I think he is a technical genius. His scrapped 3D engine was really bad-ass when he showed it off, and his current 2D engine is mindbogglingly beautiful. Maybe not artistically, but technically it is amazing. All of that 2D parallax, proper speeds proportional to the screen.... even the little cars in the background were moving at correct speed limits! The earth itself even curves a bit when you leave earth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaNuuxglGdE&feature=youtu.be

Just put your 2D engine on Steam man, I would buy it just as a sandbox game. Even a Terraria knock off on that engine would be cool.

Yeah but he doesn't know how to split his source code into multiple files.

 

[Alphahawk]

Oh man, I had that issue of GameFan. But I forgot that they gave this game positive reviews. They must have been money hatted as well, I wouldn't put it past Dave Halverson to do so. But at the same time, maybe they liked it because it was an early 3D platformer? But why play this over Mario 64?

I remember on one of the old 1up podgasts (I think it was EGM) and apparently back in the day Dave not only praised the infamausly bad PS1 game. Tales of the Sun. but later wrote an editorial where he claimed that other magazines purposely gave it bad reviews because Gamefan, at one point, had it as a cover story.

That magazine was weird man...

 

[MrCunningham]

I remember on one of the old 1up podgasts (I think it was EGM) and apparently back in the day Dave not only praised the infamausly bad PS1 game. Tales of the Sun. but later wrote an editorial where he claimed that other magazines purposely gave it bad reviews because Gamefan, at one point, had it as a cover story.

That magazine was weird man...

Yeah, that is bizarre... GameFan were known for hyping odd games. They gave "Battle Monsters" for the Sega Saturn a massive spread, and then there is also Halverson's infamous Battlemorph review for the Atari Jaguar where he was apparently on acid when he wrote it.

Halverson would also go under multiple persona's for the "viewpoints" reviews. just to help sell a game. He would use "E. Storm" and "SKID" for the same reviews. I thing Halverson did this to help prop up sales for Die Hard Gamers Club and later GameCave. Both were ran by Halverson.


Though Tales of the Sun was a uniquely quirky game for its day. It was like discovering a janky indie-game with a very high concept idea. I could see them overlooking the flaws to hype the potential idea.

Maybe Bubsy 3D had that effect on them? Or maybe they were paid by Accolade.

Yeah but he doesn't know how to split his source code into multiple files.

Maybe he just enjoys the vastness of scrolling through thousands of line of code?

 

[IrishNinja]

i actually enjoyed SNES bubsy in the day (had a plush of him i won at a show back then!), but man the demo alone for this game sent me running to the hills

daaaaamn, gamefan..hold that L

I remember on one of the old 1up podgasts (I think it was EGM) and apparently back in the day Dave not only praised the infamausly bad PS1 game. Tales of the Sun. but later wrote an editorial where he claimed that other magazines purposely gave it bad reviews because Gamefan, at one point, had it as a cover story.

That magazine was weird man...

oh my god, their fucking hype that one issue for Tail of the fucking Sun made me buy that stinker, i'm clearly still salty

 

[WordAssassin]

Who owns Bubsy now? Is it Sony?

Did Bubsy 3D just completely destroy the brand? I'm kind of surprised there hasn't been any kind of Bubsy revival in 3+ generations. Are any of the 2D games even available on any platforms?

 

[morningbus]

Who owns Bubsy now? Is it Sony?

Did Bubsy 3D just completely destroy the brand? I'm kind of surprised there hasn't been any kind of Bubsy revival in 3+ generations. Are any of the 2D games even available on any platforms?

Currently owned by Tommo, Inc., bought from Atari during their bankruptcy.

The first two games are available on Steam.

 

[WordAssassin]

Currently owned by Tommo, Inc., bought from Atari during their bankruptcy.

The first two games are available on Steam.

Huh, interesting. I wonder if a revival could be successful? Maybe if they went the Conker route and made Bubsy kind of a satire of modern platformers ala Deadpool?

 

[Jamesac68]

I actually found Tail of the Sun used for $10 a couple months back and bought it on the spot. I played it once when it came out and the game was endearingly terrible. I'm pretty happy to have it in the collection, honestly, even knowing I'll never touch it.

 

[MrCunningham]

Huh, interesting. I wonder if a revival could be successful? Maybe if they went the Conker route and made Bubsy kind of a satire of modern platformers ala Deadpool?

I think we would have more chance at seeing a GEX revival (make it happen, Eidos/ Square-Enix!), and even then they both are extremely long shots. I think it would be interesting, though.

 

[Alphahawk]

I think we would have more chance at seeing a GEX revival (make it happen, Eidos/ Square-Enix!), and even then they both are extremely long shots. I think it would be interesting, though.

Why did that series die anyway? I mean I understand Gex 3 didn't set the world on fire, but it wasn't like a Bubsy 3D level disaster or anything.

I want a Gex 4.

 

[Eila]

Why did that series die anyway? I mean I understand Gex 3 didn't set the world on fire, but it wasn't like a Bubsy 3D level disaster or anything.

I want a Gex 4.

It's a "rad" gecko with sunglasses. It had to be buried with the 90's.

 

[Dremark]

PSExtreme magazine definitely existed. I read several issues back in the day. Don't recall if Bubsy 3D got that high a score but their writers tend to give 80s and 90s out like candy.

Apparently they gave Bubsy a 93%, according to this blog post listing their old review scores. http://gamemagreviews.blogspot.com/2007/12/psextreme-january-1997-vol2-no-2-1996.html?m=1.

It really gets my goat how the myth gets perpetuated that this magazine never existed or that the award is fake. Dubious as it was, both the mag and the award existed. I've seen that Gold X logo before. People love to make fun of this game, but no need to make up stuff to paint this game as even more pathetic.

Yeah, it's real and it's spectacular:

Should leave no question that the score and award are both legit for this game.

Having said that the game is pretty terrible. It came out too late to break any ground, played terrible and the only thing that was remotely impressive is that it was one of the few games on the PS to use the special High Res mode or w/e it was.

 

[MrCunningham]

Yeah, it's real and it's spectacular:

Should leave no question that the score and award are both legit for this game.

Having said that the game is pretty terrible. It came out too late to break any ground, played terrible and the only thing that was remotely impressive is that it was one of the few games on the PS to use the special High Res mode or w/e it was.

Wow, so the "Gold X Award" is real? Haha. I questioned the legitimacy of that for a long time. Not the magazine, I used to see that one on magazine racks back in the day, but the award itself. But I could never find the issue where they reviewed the game. EDIT: Oops, I missed the Gold X Award image in the previous Einhänder review scans.

That "Warner Bros. quality animation" joke is hilarious. I remember Crash getting the same praise back then, which was a little more deserving, but still not really close...

I would love to find the source of that EGM quote. Especially given how negative EGM was...

It's a "rad" gecko with sunglasses. It had to be buried with the 90's.

yeah, the mascot with a 'tube fad died out and Crystal Dynamics shifted gears in content.