Tumblepop

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Tumblepop is an arcade game platform game by Data East released in 1991. It is considered a unique cult classic, but appears to borrow some elements from the previous year's Snow Bros.

The game involves one or two pre-teen ghost-busters who can suck in monsters/ghosts in vacuum-cleaner-like devices and spit them back in a bouncing/rolling ball, that can be used as a weapon and when crushing other enemies and finishing rolling/bouncing, it results in bonus items. The game's plot was possibly inspired by the film Ghostbusters. The looks are reminiscent of Pang.

The protagonists evolve in stages based in different parts in the world with each their special enemies and bosses:

Moscow, which is a circus-like stage, enemies being clowns, invisible conjurers, fire spitters; the boss is a giant clown held by balloons who juggles with bombs.
Egypt: near the pyramids in the desert, the enemies include fire spitters and mummies; the boss is a giant genie who spits fireballs.
Paris: near the Arch of Triumph, all the enemies are robots; the boss is a big flying robot that sends out flying hands.
New York City: near the Statue of Liberty and the World Trade Center, the enemies are pumpkin-headed zombies and octopuses; the boss is a giant octopus.
Rio de Janeiro: near the Statue of Christ the Redeemer: with several fire monsters; the boss is a dragon made out of fire.
Antarctica: populated by snowmen, snowmen armed with shovels, and hairy monsters; the boss is a giant snowman wearing a bucket on its head.
Australia; it has carnivorous plants, cavemen and snowmen made out of mud; the boss is a giant two-headed carnivorous plant.
Japan: near Mount Fuji with yureis, kappas and skeletons; the boss is a giant pile of daruma dolls.
Space: Greys, spacemen with blaster guns. The boss is a flying robot that looks like the Flatwoods monster.
Moon: all the bosses from the previous worlds must be fought again. The final boss is a cyborg mad scientist controlling a giant robot.

At the beginning of each stage, the character(s) says: "Tekuga!" and when it is accomplished, he says "Bugi!".

[edit] References

The fire breathers are modelled after Karnov. The star of his own self named Data East arcade game.

The cavemen are based on the cavemen from Joe and Mac. A Data East arcade game that starred two cavemen ninjas.

The grey spacemen are based on Chelnov from the Data East arcade game. Atomic Runner Chelnov.

[edit] Trivia

Remember not to hold on to the monsters etc that you have sucked in as they will explode your backpack. In the game, this can be seen as the backpack flashing and bulging.