Bizarre Creations is all giddy about their second foray into the world of Xbox Live Arcade games. And why shouldn't they be, their first one was mega-hit Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, a three-man effort.

Their next title is the already announced Boom Boom Rocket, a game created by an entire team of people including seven core team members, a composer and "a few EA Pogo chaps." Personally, I'm not one to buy into the whole more is better philosophy, but all that really matters is the end result.

On to what matters:

The game itself is a simple concept, but taken to extremes. The aim is easy: press the corresponding button for each firework as it hits a line at the top of the screen, and it'll explode. The more accurate you are with your button presses, the higher your score. The person with the highest score wins. Easy stuff... you're probably already familiar with the concept from games like DDR.

However (and this is a big however), Boom Boom Rocket introduces a few new ideas to the tried and tested formula which we think make the game really fun to play. The first thing is the idea of pure speed. We don't have to worry about complicated peripherals to make this game fun... its game pad only, and it's FAST. Within a couple of rounds you'll be setting off huge numbers of fireworks as if it were second nature... and much of the fun comes from the fact that your fingers will be moving at Mach 3 on the harder difficulties.

Another new idea is the concept of multipliers, and bonus runs. We love points-based games here at Bizarre (PGR, GW, and The Club all have elements of this), and Boom Boom Rocket is no exception! Again, the idea is simple... but the tactics can get pretty in-depth. This is your Combo Bar:

As you successfully detonate fireworks, the bar will fill. The big number is your current score multiplier. It starts at x1, and eventually hits x4 when the bar is full. Needless to say, you'll get double the points when it's on x2, treble the points at x3, etc. However, if you miss any fireworks your bar will drain a little, and potentially your multiplier could drop. The game ends if your bar empties.

So what's a Bonus Run? Well, if your bar is full it'll start to sparkle, like this:

When your bar is all sparkly, you can hit either of the triggers to activate your Bonus Run. For a limited time the graphics will go all crazy, the crowd will go wild, and you'll get a massive x8 multiplier. It's big points time! The catch is that it only lasts for 20 seconds, so you'll want to save up your bonus runs for the busy parts of the song. There's nothing worse than activating your bonus run, only for the fireworks to naturally slow down and valuable points to be lost!

The best players will no doubt save their runs for the busiest part of the songs... usually the chorus. More fireworks = more points. You have to be careful though! If you miss any fireworks whilst on your run it'll end, so measuring risk vs reward is a big part of becoming a Boom Boom professional.

The team says the game will feature classical music instead of your typical rhythm game popsynth. Sounds like it could be another Geometry Wars in a good way or a bad way, only time and the release of the game will tell. Brian Crecente

Studio Update 21 [Bizarre Online]