1997 · Video System · Puzzle · Rhythm

Pop'n Bounce

SNK exclusive

Pop'n Bounce is a puzzle game similar to Break Out; the player must bounce a ball off a paddle in order to knock out a wall of sprites. However, in Pop'n Bounce, the sprites are of assorted living creatures instead of bricks.

Released: 1997
Platforms: Neo Geo
Genres: Puzzle Rhythm
Developers: Video System
Publishers: SNK
Themes: Action

About

Pop'n Bounce, released in Japan as Gapporin, is a 1997 block breaker video game developed by Video System and published by Visco for the Neo Geo arcade platform. It was released in 1997.

Hamster Corporation acquired the game's rights alongside Video System's catalogue, re-releasing the game as part of their ACA Neo Geo series for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 in March 2026, the series' first game after a 7-year hiatus, after SNK unprecedentedly added the game into the ACA Neo Geo Selection Vol. 10 collection, which traditionally only adds SNK-owned games.

Keywords

music and rhythm
xbox live indie games
cat
musical peripherals
hippopotamus

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

The player aims to defeat numerous creatures on the screen using a paddle and ball in a similar manner to Taito's Arkanoid. Unlike other games in the genre, each creature has unique attributes, such as eggs that protect dragons inside for one hit, black creatures which cannot be defeated easily without a bomb and two creatures merging into one large creature. which allow the player to gain more points when defeated. Power-ups drop from defeated creatures, including a power-up that allows the paddle to periodically shoot an enemy in front of them.

Indestructible walls provide additional challenge. When all six letters in the word "attack" are collected, the ball splits into three, allowing them to hit more creatures. One of the creatures is the main character from Rabio Lepus.