For being the game that would start off the entire franchise, the original Bomberman, when compared to other entries in the series, was a basic, yet still enjoyable title. It introduced the staple gameplay that many would come to know and love, and there were plenty of stages to bomb through and mess around in, but with the lack of variety seen throughout these stages, along with the lack of any multiplayer mode to be seen, it is definitely one of the more middling entries in the series, and one that has no reason for anyone to return to with all of the other installments this series has. But anyways, after that game, there would be more Bomberman titles released, such as with Bomber King, or RoboWarrior as we would know it, and Bomber Boy, or Atomic Punk as we would know it, which both contained the same gameplay mechanics and gimmicks, but I figured, for the next game in the series that I tackle, I figure we may as well check out the proper sequel to the original first. RoboWarrior kinda scared me when I tried it out, and Atomic Punk seems… stupid, so instead, I settled with the official follow-up to the original game, Bomberman II.
So, the reason why I took so long to get to this game is for a similar reason that I brought up back in my review of the original Bomberman game. When it comes to Bomberman games, from what I know, most of them don’t really change all too much in terms of gameplay or features, so I don’t wanna sound like even more of a broken record then I already am, so I figured I should stretch these games out, not reviewing them too frequently unless they actually implement some new, interesting features. With all that being said, in terms of Bomberman II, it is an average Bomberman sequel, but for what we got here, I would say it is a good time. It may not change things up that much, but it does introduce new features in the series seen before to a much wider audience, and as a whole, it is still a fun, explosive romp.
The story is pretty simple, where one day, while White Bomber is just walking down the street, Black Bomber goes and robs a bank, framing White Bomber for the crime and getting him thrown in jail, so it is up to White Bomber to break out of jail and give Black Bomber some proper payback, which is a simple premise, but it is an entertaining one, and it does get you going straight away into the game. The graphics are an improvement from the previous game, with sprites of characters, environments, and items looking much better now, and it helps that the entire game isn’t coated in green all the time, the music is pretty enjoyable, with there not being too many tracks, but the ones that are there are catchy and energetic enough to where you won’t mind listening to them for a bit, and the control/gameplay is about the same as the previous game, but it does feel much better to play, and it is more enjoyable compared to the original.
The game is an isometric maze game, where you take control of the White Bomberman, go through six different areas featuring their own set of 8 levels, blow up any blocks around you, as well as the enemies you will find, while also making sure to not blow yourself up in the process (which will still probably happen), gather plenty of powerups to not only increase the power of your bombs, but also increasing your own strengths to give you an advantage over the enemies you will face, and spend way too long locating the door in each level to move further on while defeating all of the enemies. It is practically identical to the original game in almost every way, not introducing any new kinds of power ups, gameplay mechanics, or other common features like bosses whatsoever, but all in all, it still manages to not only be fun, but also an improvement over its predecessor through several small, yet meaningful means.
In terms of the single player mode, again, not much has changed, but it does fix some of the issues that the original game had. For one thing, there is actual variety to the levels, with them not only still introducing more enemies as you keep going, but there are also plenty of different environments you can play through as well, such as with a prison, a forest, a mountain, and several others. These environments don’t really add anything at all, not affecting the gameplay whatsoever, but again, I would gladly take that over staring at GREEN. Outside of that though, there is one major change that this game makes when compared to the original: the multiplayer modes. Yeah, this technically wasn’t the first Bomberman game to introduce it (that would be Atomic Punk), but this was the game that solidified it as a key essential element of the entire series. You can play against another person, blast away at whatever debris is on the map, and try to bomb the fuck out of each other until there is one man standing. Not to mention, you can also play with up to three people if you have an NES Four Score, so that is pretty sweet in case someone else wants to join in.
With all that being said though, at its core, it is still your typical Bomberman game through and through. It can still be fun enough, but not only does the single player portion drag out for a little longer than it needs to, but it doesn’t introduce enough elements to where I would say it is a massive leap in quality from the original. Also, just like with the original game, it is also severely outdated, with the different modes that are featured in this game being vastly improved and expanded upon in later games. That’s not to say that this game is completely unplayable by today’s standards, cause if you and two other friends are looking for some good ol’ explosive action, then this game is for you, but really, you would be better off with just sticking to any of the newer entries in the series.
Overall, despite its lack of major changes gameplay wise, as well as it being outdated when compared to what would come later, Bomberman II does manage to be quite an improvement over the original game, making the single player mode much more appealing and enjoyable to blast through, while also expanding the series multiplayer mode to a much wider audience, allowing for it to be cemented as a core feature in any game to come afterwards. I would recommend it for those who were fans of the original game, as well as those who are fans of the series in general, but for anyone else, again, you are better off just sticking to one of the later games in the series. And since I can’t think of any other way to end this review off, I guess I will show you all the ending of the game, where the Black Bomber does his best Dr. Wily impression. He nailed it right on the head, if you are asking me.
Game #517
So, the reason why I took so long to get to this game is for a similar reason that I brought up back in my review of the original Bomberman game. When it comes to Bomberman games, from what I know, most of them don’t really change all too much in terms of gameplay or features, so I don’t wanna sound like even more of a broken record then I already am, so I figured I should stretch these games out, not reviewing them too frequently unless they actually implement some new, interesting features. With all that being said, in terms of Bomberman II, it is an average Bomberman sequel, but for what we got here, I would say it is a good time. It may not change things up that much, but it does introduce new features in the series seen before to a much wider audience, and as a whole, it is still a fun, explosive romp.
The story is pretty simple, where one day, while White Bomber is just walking down the street, Black Bomber goes and robs a bank, framing White Bomber for the crime and getting him thrown in jail, so it is up to White Bomber to break out of jail and give Black Bomber some proper payback, which is a simple premise, but it is an entertaining one, and it does get you going straight away into the game. The graphics are an improvement from the previous game, with sprites of characters, environments, and items looking much better now, and it helps that the entire game isn’t coated in green all the time, the music is pretty enjoyable, with there not being too many tracks, but the ones that are there are catchy and energetic enough to where you won’t mind listening to them for a bit, and the control/gameplay is about the same as the previous game, but it does feel much better to play, and it is more enjoyable compared to the original.
The game is an isometric maze game, where you take control of the White Bomberman, go through six different areas featuring their own set of 8 levels, blow up any blocks around you, as well as the enemies you will find, while also making sure to not blow yourself up in the process (which will still probably happen), gather plenty of powerups to not only increase the power of your bombs, but also increasing your own strengths to give you an advantage over the enemies you will face, and spend way too long locating the door in each level to move further on while defeating all of the enemies. It is practically identical to the original game in almost every way, not introducing any new kinds of power ups, gameplay mechanics, or other common features like bosses whatsoever, but all in all, it still manages to not only be fun, but also an improvement over its predecessor through several small, yet meaningful means.
In terms of the single player mode, again, not much has changed, but it does fix some of the issues that the original game had. For one thing, there is actual variety to the levels, with them not only still introducing more enemies as you keep going, but there are also plenty of different environments you can play through as well, such as with a prison, a forest, a mountain, and several others. These environments don’t really add anything at all, not affecting the gameplay whatsoever, but again, I would gladly take that over staring at GREEN. Outside of that though, there is one major change that this game makes when compared to the original: the multiplayer modes. Yeah, this technically wasn’t the first Bomberman game to introduce it (that would be Atomic Punk), but this was the game that solidified it as a key essential element of the entire series. You can play against another person, blast away at whatever debris is on the map, and try to bomb the fuck out of each other until there is one man standing. Not to mention, you can also play with up to three people if you have an NES Four Score, so that is pretty sweet in case someone else wants to join in.
With all that being said though, at its core, it is still your typical Bomberman game through and through. It can still be fun enough, but not only does the single player portion drag out for a little longer than it needs to, but it doesn’t introduce enough elements to where I would say it is a massive leap in quality from the original. Also, just like with the original game, it is also severely outdated, with the different modes that are featured in this game being vastly improved and expanded upon in later games. That’s not to say that this game is completely unplayable by today’s standards, cause if you and two other friends are looking for some good ol’ explosive action, then this game is for you, but really, you would be better off with just sticking to any of the newer entries in the series.
Overall, despite its lack of major changes gameplay wise, as well as it being outdated when compared to what would come later, Bomberman II does manage to be quite an improvement over the original game, making the single player mode much more appealing and enjoyable to blast through, while also expanding the series multiplayer mode to a much wider audience, allowing for it to be cemented as a core feature in any game to come afterwards. I would recommend it for those who were fans of the original game, as well as those who are fans of the series in general, but for anyone else, again, you are better off just sticking to one of the later games in the series. And since I can’t think of any other way to end this review off, I guess I will show you all the ending of the game, where the Black Bomber does his best Dr. Wily impression. He nailed it right on the head, if you are asking me.
Game #517