Saturn Bomberman

BOMBERMAN
Hudson Soft
Sega Saturn
Platform

by Charles McCarter

BOMBERMAN, having been released in a myriad of variations on a wide array of platforms, seems to have almost as many incarnations as MACROSS. (Although to date there is no Bomberman where the bombs are detonated by singing.) The newest entry into the "Bomberverse" is the version for the Sega Saturn, imaginatively titled "Saturn Bomberman."

People have lamented that this version does not look very much improved over the Super Nintendo version and doesn't take "full advantage" of the Saturn's capabilities. In response I'd like to say, "So what?" Not every game has to be three-dimensional polygons floating through a universe of rendered backgrounds. Sometimes 2D is just fine; this is one of those cases. All the qualities that made Bomberman fun and addictive are still there, and some new elements have been added.

First, though, you are treated to a fully animated opening sequence that is very tongue-in-cheek and begins with the sleeping Bomberman being buried in bombs by ninja-robots. Things only get more insane from there.

A Bomberman cut-scene

This game has three modes: Story, Battle, and Master. The story mode involves the Bomberman (or men, as it can be 2 player simultaneous) traveling through time and space to various worlds to regain stolen gems. These worlds are, of course, in the insane tradition of Bomberman and are a lot of fun--especially the Dinosaur World. Each stage has a boss that has to be beaten in order to advance. In some cases it's easy, and in others, well, just be glad you can continue.

Battle mode should also be familiar to Bomberfans. The newest gimmick in this version is that you can have up to ten people involved. Of course, you need the special adapters to do this. One drawback of this 10 person battle mode is that everything on the screen looks really small, and it's easy to get lost. The normal-sized screen can accommodate up to six combatants and it's much easier to see things.

In the normal Battle Mode there are eight stages to choose from, including a soccer field, a jungle, a space ship, an Egyptian desert, and a ninja house. Each of these has its own little secrets and surprises and adds an interesting twist to the battles.

Bombs away!

Master Mode is a series of courses in which you are rated and ranked according to how fast and how well you complete each course. It's an interesting variation on the Bomberman theme and gives the experienced Bomberman veteran something new to try and beat--the clock.

All the old power-ups are there (including the dreaded geta), and so are a couple of new ones. The most interesting is the addition of the tiiras (Dinosaurs). If you find a large egg after blowing up a block, move onto it and it turns into a baby dinosaur. There are five colors--pink, green, purple, blue, and yellow. Each color has a different ability: the pink one can jump over enemies and blocks; the yellow one shouts and stuns opponents who are in the line of fire; the green one sprints across the screen; the blue one kicks bombs; and the purple one has sonar which can tell you which blocks are hiding power-ups. The dinosaurs add a lot of fun to the game, especially since they 'grow' as the game progresses; they are available in both Story and Battle Modes.

One more interesting feature is the characters. Sure, the white and black Bombermen are present, but the other eight character choices are from other Hudson games. You can play as "Bonk" the caveman or "Honey-chan" the cowgirl, or any of six other characters that I don't immediately recognize.

This game has a lot of options--three different modes, eight stages in Battle Mode, and a wide variety of characters to choose. That, and the addictive nature of the Bomberman games, means that this is not a game you play once and put down. If you get this game, make sure to clear your schedule for a couple of days, as tearing yourself away from it may prove difficult.