Bubble Boat is a rescue-style bubble-popping game that features cute animated characters. A dog with a cannon on a boat needs the player's help to rescue tiny animals trapped in rows of bubbles.
To perform each save from level to level, the player must create clusters of three or matching bubbles using color-matched projectiles shot from the cannon. Their other goal is to earn a high score on a sign displayed in the lower-right corner. If they have an account, they also attempt to rank high on a global leaderboard.
The player doesn't need to clear all bubbles from a level. They merely need to remove enough to allow the animals to escape and fall into the water. Although the boat has a main projectile and a secondary one at all times, the player can't swap the projectiles. They also receive only four penalty passes before a new row slides onto the field.
If the row bubbles extend beyond the bottom of the field, one of the trapped animals angrily knocks the dog off the boat with a bubble. The player must then view an ad to continue or start over entirely from the first level. As a result, they must think at least two moves ahead at all times.
Bubble Boat makes play more difficult over time by increasing the number of animals that need help and positioning each one higher among the rows. It also eventually adds gray bubbles to the field that look like rocks. The player shouldn't allow these or other changes to trick them.
