Arcade Video game published 43 years ago:

Libble Rabble (c) 1983 Namco.

At first glance, the gameplay resembles Taito's Qix. The player controls two "arrows", one red (Libble) and one blue (Rabble) with a line strung between them. The object is to wrap the line around poles and surround Mushlins and enemies with it. The player can either close the loops themselves (worth more points for the Mushlins) or move both arrows to the same edge of the screen. The player clears a "season" when he or she harvests all the Mushlins.

Along the way, various enemies will appear and try to stop the player. The most common are four little hooded critters (Hobblins), which start each season in the corners. If the player catches them in a loop, they will be sent to the top of the screen for a short period of time. Other critters such as fireballs (Killers), sparks (Changers), and Demons will also appear. These can be killed by closing a loop around them. Sometimes, scissors-like enemies (Shears) appear, and if they cross the player's line, they cut it. If the player's line is ever cut by Shears or Demons, a new one is instantly made: directly between the two arrows.

Player layout in our catalog: 2P alt.

If you are exploring by feel rather than by title, jump from the tags above into the matching genre rooms, or return to the Arcade hall for the full wall.

Open Play on this page to start Libble Rabble. Keyboard, USB/Bluetooth pads, and the on-screen touch gamepad all work inside the emulator bar. Save states and fullscreen live on that same bar so you can pause mid-session and resume later.

Libble Rabble is filed in our catalog as a 1983 release.

Player layout on this cabinet: 2P alt.

Genre tags on Classic Arcade Games: Puzzle.

Credit line lists Namco as developer.