Play Rainbow Islands Extra Online

Rainbow Islands Extra is a 1993 Sega Genesis release from Taito, a sort of expanded and rearranged version of the arcade original. It arrived late in the system's life, a colorful and quirky platformer that felt distinct from the more common action or sports titles dominating the library at the time.

You control one of the Bubble Bobble dragons, Bubby or Bobby, and your goal is to climb a series of islands by creating temporary rainbow bridges. Your main tools are these rainbows, which you shoot to form platforms, trap enemies, or collect power-up gems that change your rainbow's properties. The screen-by-screen progression is methodical, but the pacing is frantic; enemies swarm constantly, and the rainbows disappear after a few seconds, forcing you to keep moving. The Extra mode is particularly notorious for its steep difficulty, shuffling bosses and stages into a punishing new order. It feels like a constant, delightful panic, a race against your own disappearing footsteps.