Alien Bubbles

Alien Bubbles wears its lineage openly: it is built along the lines of the classic puzzle-bubble games, with arrows instead of a cannon and aliens instead of coloured balls. Fire an arrow at aliens matching its colour and they come off; the timing of the release is part of the aim.

The special arrows are what make the later levels a puzzle rather than a reflex test. They do more damage than an ordinary shot, and their number is fixed — the game says so plainly. So each one is a decision: spend it on the awkward cluster in front of you, or hold it for the section you can already see will be worse.

Pixel art keeps the aliens distinct at small sizes, which matters when the shots start needing precision, and the levels run in a straight campaign to a finish rather than an endless score chase.

1. Check the colour of the arrow you are about to fire.
2. Aim at aliens of that colour and release at the right moment.
3. Keep the special arrows for clusters an ordinary shot cannot break — you have a limited number.
4. Clear each level to work through the campaign.

Count your special arrows against the levels remaining, not against the level in front of you. Running out with three stages left is the usual way this campaign stalls, and it always happens because two of them were spent on a section that ordinary shots would have handled.