Bomberman 64

Developer: Hudson Soft    Publisher: Nintendo    Release: 11/30/97   Genre: Action

The Bomberman series has always been hailed as great because of its raucous multiplayer. But while the multiplayer antics have kept it in high esteem the single player has been comparatively weak. Oh there have been entries that have been mildly interesting. But if you did not have a regular group of friends to play with you were better off with other titles for your single player needs.  Bomberman 64 does a great job of providing a compelling story mode alongside its battle mode and is one of the better entries in the series in my opinion.

Space pirates led by Altair have been stealing the life energy of planets throughout the galaxy using their secret weapon, the Omni Cube. The pirates set their sights on the Planet Bomber, unaware that it has a defender in the form of Bomberman. With the help of the mysterious Sirius Bomberman must destroy the barrier surrounding the pirate’s Black Fortress and stop their evil plans.

 

The biggest change in the single player mode is its structure. Rather than a long series of themed arenas the game is now a full 3d adventure like Mario 64. While each individual stage isn’t as big as that game they are sizable and varied. The gameplay options present in the campaign also benefit the multiplayer, making the sum greater than its parts. The transition to 3d is not without its flaws but it is still more engaging than prior titles.

To engage with his environment Bomberman has a variety of abilities. Your standard bombs can be kicked and stopped for precise explosions. You can also pick up and throw bombs when needed.  The newest power is to pump up bombs. After picking up a bomb you can pump it up, making it larger to create bigger explosions. These are necessary to destroy parts of the environment or knock down bridges. There are a few more techniques, such as stacking bombs and such but they aren’t necessary. The controls are simple, just like the mechanics, but the way they are used is what makes Bomberman 64 so fun.

Much like the SNES games there are large variety of power-ups to collect. The most common increase the numbers of bombs you can drop simultaneously. Next are fire flowers that increase the size of your explosions. These are more dangerous than past titles because of the viewpoint. Personally I have always been a fan of remote bombs which return and are just as effective here. In fact they are near mandatory to beat the game’s numerous bosses. The list of power-ups isn’t as high as the later SNES titles but the game doesn’t need them to stay compelling.

Most levels in Bomberman 64 have a simple goal such as reaching the exit. The path to get to that point is often varied and fraught with side detours. In to Have or to Have not you must grab a giant crystal to complete the level. But each time you reach it an enemy takes it first to another part of the stage. Switches and Bridges challenges you to lower bridges and the water level to create a path to its exit. Bomberman 64 has five worlds with three stages and a final boss. The second round in each world is a fight against one of the space pirates, with these battles feeling like multiplayer battles. Overall this is not a difficult game in spite of its few flaws and has a decently long campaign for those that like the story mode.

As much as I enjoy the game it is not devoid of the flaws that plagued many early 3d games. The most prominent is the camera. By default the game uses an overhead view. You can control distance and rotate the camera in four directions but you do not have full control. This becomes a problem when important switches and items are obscured by other objects and the camera will not budge. It is amazing how easy it is to get lost in such small environments but fun exploration quickly becomes frustrating. The times where the camera shifts uncontrollably are also awful.  Certain boss battles do this as well as a really awful segment in the ice world. At least you can work around them but they are still annoying.

The adventure mode is of average length but does offer incentive for exploration. There are one hundred gold cards within the game. There are five in every adventure level that require specific criteria to earn. Sometimes it is simply beating the level within a target time, bombing specific areas, or hitting a boss during moments of vulnerability. Collecting these gold cards unlocks the sixth world, Rainbow Palace. Aside from the new world gold cards unlock a large volume of content in multiplayer like costumes, stages, and cheat codes. 

And now we come to Bomberman 64’s multiplayer mode. The multiplayer is different from prior titles and not necessarily for the better. Most of the maps are multi-tiered, making use of the 3d space. It allows attack and defense to be more dynamic. The simple maps on a flat plane like Rock Garden and Greedy Trap are not as interesting. There are a wealth of options to tailor the specifics of each match but it simply isn’t as engaging as prior titles. It feels more like Poy Poy than Bomberman. Even the inclusion of one or two throwback arenas would have been great. But as it is the multiplayer just isn’t as fun which is a shame.

In Closing

All flaws aside this is a great addition to the series in spite of its growing pains.  Solid graphics and a fantastic soundtrack make Bomberman 64 better than ever; too bad it came at the expense of multiplayer.