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Hudson’s classic arrives on PSP in fine form. Bomberman, the latest release of the classic series this time for PSP, doesn’t reinvent the wheel. Instead, it quite happily plays by the rules that the series has established for over two decades. However, the latest Bomberman game is one that will surely please fans.
As I mentioned above, Bomberman doesn’t drastically change things. You’re going to play in 10 worlds, each with a different theme and 10 stages. Once you beat the game, you’ll unlock a remade version of the original Bomberman which adds another 50 stages to the mix. As usual, you’ll be dropping bombs all over the levels to take out enemies, destroy blocks out of your way, and collect power-ups. These power-ups range from additional speed for Bomberman, the ability to carry more bombs, and even increasing the range of your bombs. All in all, there are over a dozen such items for you to play with. Bomberman introduces an inventory system in single-player mode that lets you browse through collected items and lets you use them when you want. Previously, you had to use an item as soon as you got it.
Each of these worlds will end with a boss stage, where you’ll need to prove that your skills are still sharp. While these boss fights do put up a fair challenge, you are given unlimited continues so you can continue replaying the game. Even veteran Bomberman players will die a number of times as they get through the game, although the difficulty is never insurmountable.
While single-player is fun, the real meat of Bomberman is the multiplayer game. You can play with up to three other players using only one copy of the game thanks to the game-sharing feature. The battle mode remains as fun as ever, and thanks to the game-sharing feature, there are plenty of opponents out there.
The game’s 3D graphics are clean and cute, making it really easy to tell what’s going on at any given time. The themed worlds include stuff like an ice world, desert world, and forest world—all standard fare but nonetheless appreciated. The audio presentation is fairly basic, although given the game, we wouldn’t expect (or want) anything more.
Bomberman is a great rendition of the classic franchise. It’s a rare, truly portable game on the PSP. It’s fun in short bursts, but thanks to the 150 stages, you’ll be playing for hours. -- Jose Liz, PGNx Media
---- Oct 23, 2006
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