Bubba ‘n’ Stix is a side-scrolling platform game for the Sega Genesis, Amiga and CD32 developed and released by Core Design. The Genesis version was released by Tengen in the United States and featured a promotional tie-in with the Bubblicious bubble gum brand.
The player controls Bubba, a redneck character, who is accompanied by a sentient stick named Stix. Stix can be used in various ways to help Bubba defeat enemies and get past obstacles: for instance, Stix can be thrust into a hole in the side of a platform so that Bubba can climb higher.
Development
According to designer Simon Phipps, originally Core Design had wanted a “moody, dark and atmospheric” game featuring an adventurer wielding a multipurpose stick. It became apparent to him that a realistic approach to the design was not feasible. As a result, Phipps, along with collaborator Billy Allison, sketched out a large number of mostly outlandish uses for the game’s central tool. After reviewing the drawings, Core subsequently gave the go-ahead to develop the game.[1]
The game’s protagonist started out as a green long-necked alien and went through several iterations until the developers settled on Bubba.[1]
Reception
Reception
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| AllGame | SMD:    [7] |
| Amiga Computing | AMI: 85%[2] |
| Amiga Format | AMI & CD32: 85%[3][4] |
| Amiga Power | AMI & CD2: 84%[5][6] |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | SMD: 6.75/10[9] |
| Flux | SMD: 7/10[8] |
The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the Genesis version a 6.75 out of 10, particularly praising the originality of the gameplay concept and the highly challenging puzzles.[10] GamePro likewise praised the game’s originality and “thought-provoking challenges”.[11] Flux magazine gave the genesis version a 7 out of 10 and saying the game’s humor makes Bubba ‘n’ Stix stand out from other games and they also praised the graphics describing it as “bright, cartoonish and cute”.[12] In 1995, MegaZone included the game on their “Top 50 Games In History”.[13]
