Can You Beat Bop It? Highest Score and World Records

Almost 20 years before Flappy Bird was driving kids (and adults) insane with frustration, we had a game called Bop It!. If you ever played Bop It!, then its signature sound effects and obnoxious voice commands “Twist It, Pull It, Bop It” were forever seared into your brain as you made (another) final attempt to beat your high score.

For most 90s kids, Bop It! was just another novel distraction we wasted far too much time trying to master. But what about the chosen few who did master it? Did the game really end? What’s the highest score possible?

Prepare to Read It! and Learn It! as we answer all your burning Bop It! questions below.

Does Bop It! ever end?

Thanks to the toy’s notorious difficulty, you could be forgiven for asking, “can you beat Bop It?”

Well, yes, with enough free time, you can conquer Bop It!.

The original Bop It! had a maximum possible score of 100 points, which means that if you scored that many on the Solo Bop game mode, you could consider yourself to have beaten the game.

However, later editions of Bop It! would raise the stakes. In the early 2000s, Bop It! Extreme and Bop It! Extreme 2 would have maximum scores of 250 points for their solo mode. In 2005, Bop It! Blast would increase the maximum score to an eye-watering 500 points.

2009’s reimagining of the toy has a solo game mode where, after scoring 100, it automatically unlocks the next level (going from Novice to Expert to Master).

What’s the world record for Bop It?

Since the originally Bop It! only went up to 100 points, it’s still relatively achievable for most people, so there’s no world record. However, world records have been recorded for later, more difficult editions of the toy.

Bop It! Smash

Released in 2012, Bop It! Smash is a unique variant of the game where scoring relied on smashing the two buttons on either end of the toy as a light passed between different zones. After beating four rounds, the game goes into a bonus round, where players can score up to 105 points.

However, it was possible to exploit a glitch in the game’s programming and score over 1000 points.

The current world record for Bop It! Smash is 1070 points and was achieved by Sam Locke in 2015. Locke also set the previous world records of 1005, 784, and 696 (while we think he’s the only one trying, it’s still pretty impressive!)

Bop It! Tetris

The other version of Bop It! we have a world record for is Bop It! Tetris. Like Bop It! Smash, this version of the toy didn’t require players to respond to a voice command but instead displayed a puzzle on a screen that players had to figure out with the right actions.

Again, like Bop It! Smash, there was a bonus round after each stage known as the Marathon mode, where players could earn over 800 points.

What’s the world record for Marathon mode, you ask? It’s 866, set by none other than Sam Locke back in 2020. Just like he did with Bop It! Smash, Locke moved up with successive high scores over the years.

Bop It! Extreme

With its iconic steering wheel-like design, 1998’s Bop It! Extreme is perhaps the version we all remember best. Along with the original three “Pull It!,” “Twist It!,” and “Bop It!” commands, it also featured “Flick It!” and “Spin It!” and quickly became a best-selling toy.

You could choose either group or solo versions of the Vox Bop or Beat Bop game modes. Vox Bop shouts the commands at you, while with Beat Bop mode, you need to listen for audio cues (“Pull It!” is a slide-whistle, “Twist It!” is a cranking sound, etc.)

Unlike Smash and Tetris, Bop It! Extreme doesn’t have a way to go beyond its maximum of 250 points, so there’s no world record. However, there is this incredible video of a 10-year-old casually hitting the max and putting your Bop It! skills to shame:

How to improve your Bop It! game

Looking at those world records and feeling a little unaccomplished in your life? Well, it’s never too late to up your Bop It! game and become, perhaps, as good as the legendary Sam Locke himself.

1. Start with the lower difficulty levels and work your way up.
2. Take advantage of the volume adjustment feature to make sure you can hear the voice and color commands loud and clear.
3. Quit your job, stop talking to your friends, and leave your family so you can dedicate 100% of your time to mastering all the Bop It! Toys.

Okay, we’re just kidding with that last one. While we’re joking around, check out this hilarious spoof of Bop IT! by Studio C:

Peeps Asked!

How do you make Bop It! harder?

As if Bop It! needed to be any harder. Well, if you’re feeling truly masochistic, you could always play it blindfolded. Better yet, put on some sound-canceling headphones and play it purely on instinct.

Can you go past 100 on Bop It?

The original Bop It! only goes up to 100 commands. However, later editions of Bop It! have higher maximum scores and feature bonus rounds where you can go even higher.

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Lee Davey

Lee is curator of nostalgia and a long-time collector of loveable junk. An 80s baby, 90s kid, he knows he had it good when it came to Saturday morning cartoons. Spends his life trying to recapture the dopamine hit of playing Game Boy for the first time and believes Beanie Babies will make a fortuitous comeback. Obsessed with everything (and anything) retro, he is your trusted guide to a world of 90s toys, games and collectables.

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