Bubsy actually has a good game… Words I never thought id actually put in a sentence. Bubsy is a character who’s been rather infamous among gamers since the early 90s. He had two games on the SNES and Genesis that while reviewed solidly, didn’t age well and his 3D outing is often called one of the worst games of all time. On top of this, the character himself was not likeable at all.

They tried to reboot the character twice and the attempts were bad to ok at best. Fast forward to 7 years since the last entry and Bubsy 4D undoes everything people didn’t like about the series. If it only lasted longer it perhaps could’ve stood with some of the recent excellent 3D platformers. From it’s level design and somewhat erratic yet fun controls, and actually making Bubsy likeable as a protagonist, a good job was done here.

Story

While babysitting his niece and nephew, Bubsy notices that his old enemies the Woolies have returned and started abducting sheep. Not wanting to deal with another adventure, Bubsy decides to ignore them. However, the sheep come back in cybernetic form, now known as Baabots and steal all of the golden fleece from their planet. This reluctantly forces Bubsy back into action as he learns that the sheep have not only taken the golden fleece but, also enslaved the Woolies as well. Although Bubsy protests, his family and friends force him to go along.

Pros

Perhaps the biggest accomplishment of Bubsy 4D is that Bubsy is actually likeable in the game unlike his past titles. He’s actually funny this time around and his 4th wall breaking is played with in the way that his family and friends Vincent and Oblivia are sick of it – just like it would be annoying in the older games. I think part of what makes Bubsy likeable this time around is due to one relatable fact, he’s tired. Bubsy really didn’t want to go through another adventure and it’s pretty funny watching him protest having to do it again and his reluctance to fight the bosses as well.

Part of the game’s humor also draws from Bubsy’s reputation in the past as well. His friends have little faith that he can get the job done and they chalk it up to dumb luck that he succeeds. The game doesn’t take itself seriously in a good way. The game pokes fun at the fact that the Baabots are supposedly a super advanced race yet they make worlds out of wool and arts and crafts items. The dialogue between Bubsy, his friends and the enslaved Woolies, who largely don’t even want to fight him now had me laughing out loud more than once.

Bubsy 4D isn’t only a funny game, it’s a well made platformer as well. Bubsy controls well, in a somewhat erratic way that calls back to the old games. He can double jump by running mid air as well as glide short distances, and he also has a pounce move that sends him into an all fours state for faster traversal. Lastly, he can morph into a giant hairball which makes him move much faster and also allows him to bounce. Bubsy also has large number of unlockable moves ranging from a charged dash to hilarious yet useful ones such as being able to walk on air briefly like Wile E. Coyote. You can get through the game without purchasing any of these moves but they are useful and fun to play with. Some such as one that helps you track down collectibles will also save you a lot of time.

The games levels both look and are designed well. They feel like a light version of a collect-a-thon platformer from the N64 era. On top of the golden fleece at the end of every level, there’s also blueprints which unlock Bubsy’s abilities and 150 yarn balls in each level which unlock various outfits. Tracking them all down will take you off the beaten path but it doesn’t feel too tedious. Each level tries to make use out of all of Bubsy’s base abilities, such as half pipe sections to make the most out of the hairball form and using all of his aerial abilities, the double jump, the glide and the pounce in succession. The platforming finds a solid balance of not being very hard but also not being overly easy.

Each world does introduce different themes as well such as zero gravity sections in the sci-fi trash world or glue platforms and walls in the arts and crafts world. Bubsy 4D does a good job of switching things up while also not relying on any one thing too heavily for its platforming. The game also encourages you to experiment with Bubsy’s abilities to unlock the game’s final collectibles, the time trial medals. Unlike other games like Crash Bandicoot 4 where time trials were infuriating, I actually found Bubsy 4D’s time trials fun to get through. Once you recognize the level layouts well enough they aren’t too difficult to get through at all but still provide a fun challenge. Using the hairball in areas you may not have thought of before and mixing abilities such as the coyote walk and the pounce run to just complete a trial with only 2 seconds left was a good feeling in the end.

Another good thing about Bubsy 4D is the boss fights. The game’s bosses are just as humorous as the other characters in the game and they’re also quite fun to fight and actually had a bit more challenge than I was expecting. I’m not saying you’re going to be stuck on one for hours on end or anything but I did die a couple times while fighting one of them and I enjoyed navigating through their patterns.

Also, I can’t go through this review without talking about the outfits bubsy can unlock. Yarn balls you find throughout the levels can be used to buy different outfits. While some of them are simple color changes, others are great and just down right hilarious such as one that throws Bubsy back into his Bubsy 3D form to others poke fun at other video game characters.

Cons

So perhaps the biggest fault I’d say with Bubsy 4D is the game really leaves you wanting more. Just running through each of the 15 levels will probably only take you about 3 hours and going for everything the game has to offer will probably take most experienced gamers 5-6. Although there is a fun reward for completing everything, I just wish it wasn’t over so soon. This is only a 20$ game however so I can’t fault it too hard for being short.

However, another problem the game has is that it’s combat is fairly weak. Although the bosses are fun, Bubsy only has his pounce move for an attack which can be sometimes finicky vs enemies in the field, or he can roll into them with his hairball. Not giving Bubsy a more standard attack does feel a bit strange, even if it’s not really a combat heavy game.

Lastly, while the platforming is mostly well done, there is one part that didn’t always feel as good and that’s when Bubsy has to scale walls. His pounce allows him to climb up walls but it stops short after a certain point and would sometimes activate when I didn’t really want it to.

Final Thoughts

Well… I guess persistence pays off. While Bubsy 4D may be over too soon, it’s still an overall very fun platformer and Bubsy is finally a likeable protagonist. If this is what the future holds for the bobcat, What could possibly go wrong?

Reviewed on PS5. Thank you to Atari and Fabraz for providing a code.

Bubsy 4D releases on May 22, 2026. It is launching on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC