Bob’s Bad Day

The reason why Bob’s having a bad day is that his head has become detached
from his body, and they’ve been hurtled off into different places. To retrieve
his body, he must progress through 50 levels, then a further 50 to escape
before he can be put back together.

Gameplay involves the character being on a rotating landscape with a set
number of coins placed all over it. By rotating the joystick, the player moves
the landscape so that Bob moves over the coins and finds the exit.

The levels include many spikes, contact with which causes the loss of coins;
if the player has no coins when contact is made, it’s game over. Some level
designs are fiendish, with lots of corridors and alleyways, teleports, and
bricks to break through (by building up enough momentum).

There are a host of special ‘power-ups’ across the level as well. The simplest
ones (and the first ones the player will meet) change the direction of
gravity, causing the player’s character to automatically ‘fall’ to the left
when not in motion. Others include a sticky mode where Bob stops bouncing
(unless the player presses the fire button), a heavier-bounce mode, and a very
useful one allowing the player to ‘thrust’ Bob around, ideal for reaching
precariously-placed coins.

Once the player reaches level 51 a further twist is added – Bob’s body starts
in a separate point of the level, and this must also be coaxed to the exit.
The view always centers on Bob’s head until this is in the exit. Some sections
can only be completed by combining the two and learning the body’s differing
properties, knowing that a move which benefits one can drag the other off
course.