Bubble Around is a bubble-popping game in the geometric shapes subcategory. It's most similar to the unaffiliated "Balloons" Pyramids and Rhombics titles except that the bubbles burst and disappear in place instead of the game sucking the pieces off the top of the screen. The game also has enhanced graphics with glossy bubbles and brightly colored laser targeting lines. As with the other bubble shooters, the player's goal is to earn points and clear a playfield of connected mixed bubbles displayed on a gray grid of small six-sided hexagons in the shape of a larger hexagon. The game also offers ad-view coin earnings and purchasable boosters that improve play.
The player directs their laser targeting line from a central projectile to target matching bubbles to create clusters of three or more of the same type. If the player watches ads, they can earn enough coins to purchase two boosters offered in the lower right corner. One booster allows the player to skip a projectile to access a different color. The other one allows them to shoot a projectile at any color. They can track the associated gold crown points and coins they earn in the upper-left corner.
Bubble Around increases difficulty using a free pass system. The player can miss creating a cluster three times without serious penalty. They merely lose a bubble in the lower-left corner each time. After the third, the game adds rows of bubbles to the outer sides of the hexagon. With each successive failure, the game adds additional rows, which shorten the laser line distance and shooting options.