For such a simple game, Bomberman is one of the only titles that are still around from 1987 in North America. Over 30 years of party game fun has been had, with not much change to mechanics in the formula. This might be the reason it’s still here today, it knows what people want and it sticks to it, for the most part.
Having a title on most of the consoles and handheld devices throughout the decades has led to a diverse audience that follows the puzzle game on it’s a long journey. The real fun is in getting a group of friends and trying to trap each other in corners or detonate them across the map, no matter the version.
10 Bomberman Tournament (Best)
Unlike other titles in the franchise, Bomberman Tournament really brings the single-player mode to life. There’s nothing in the gameplay that is drastically different from other titles, but it feels better to play. The effort they put into the visuals and audio is great and the interaction with the surrounding world is unlike previous titles.
The battles with your karabon and the focus on breeding them to create new species is unique. It adds a nice RPG feel as players work their way through the world. Overall, Bomberman Tournament has the most life and immersion to it.
9 Bomberman: Act Zero (Worst)
If this were a family reunion, Act Zero would surely be the black sheep. Trying to outdo all its predecessors by jumping headfirst into the shiny new age was an ill-informed decision that ended in terrible reviews and a bruised ego.
Changing the design and camera angles could have worked out if they didn’t try and change the mechanics of gameplay. Bomberman was made simple for a reason, trying to complicate things never goes well. Taking out staple power-ups and replacing them with hard to use and poorly thought out gameplay.
8 Bomberman Blast (Best)
Cutting off all the fat of a full Bomberman release turned out to make for a great streamlined version of the game. Most people don’t play the franchise for their in-depth storylines and emotional gameplay, we want a party game.
This is exactly what you get, online and offline it’s authentic Bomberman, just on Wii. They threw in a couple of extra game modes to put a little extra party in party mode and kept the rest simple. Allowing old and new fans to come together without having to worry about game completion or button learning.
7 Bomberman Land Portable (Worst)
Branching out into a slower, less successful lane is Bomberman Land that decides instead of the main Bomberman you came to play, a detour with a range of mini-games will suffice. Not to say the mini-games themselves aren’t fun, but the intermission between the games becomes tedious quickly.
Trying to save a theme park whilst playing a load of fun games actually sounds like a lot of fun. Getting to the games however is the hard part, leading you on wild hunts for trivial objects makes the average player want to throw the console across the room.
6 Bomberman Ultra (Best)
The real key to keeping the series a success is not messing with the formula too much. It’s a simple game that has survived for decades and people are still buying new editions, don’t fix what isn’t broken.
They clearly knew that here as we get an updated game, moved it to PlayStation this time and given it a few new perks to keep things interesting. With 14 new arena’s and a world of players online, you can squeeze 8 into a lobby at a time with local games giving you all new customizable content.
5 Super Bomberman R (Worst)
The long-awaited return of the franchise who’s last game was 7 years prior, needless to say, the fans were excited to get the game back on their consoles. While it wasn’t that bad, it certainly didn’t live up to the expectation of a 7 year lay off.
The difficulty comes into question when you go from playing a relatively fun story mode straight into a disaster of a boss battle. Taking much longer than any first boss in a game should, it’s the kind of annoying that makes players want to quit. With a lacklustre story and shotty online mode, what would keep them?
4 Bomberman Generation (Best)
Generation is what Act Zero tried to be, a step into the future without letting things get out of hand. Looking more like a platformer than the puzzle game that it is, gives a fresh look at the frankly tired top-down view were so used to seeing.
What makes Generation stand out is the depth and creativity that you have to put in when flowing through each of these puzzles. They also added creatures that affect your different bombing abilities, employing even more strategic thinking into the single-player mode.
3 Bomberman PSP 2006 (Worst)
Bomberman’s first venture onto the Playstation consoles, it tries its best to add exciting new mechanics but stumbles on the execution. Ever since the original players have only been able to hold one item at a time, this game allows you to store and use them at an opportune time.
Players actually end up scrolling through pages of options in a game that relies heavily on timing. The abundance of those items also makes the game feel a little easy, you can use all the items you like because everything is so easily refilled. No budgeting or strategy necessary when you can become invincible at your choosing.
2 Bomberman Online (Best)
Being the first game in the franchise to jump into the online format deserves props enough. Taking it all the way back to the Sega Dreamcast, Bomberman Online dared to go where no Bomberman has gone before. Being a beloved multiplayer game, online was the natural course to take, allowing players to venture out of their friend group and take on foes worldwide.
On top of that an entertaining single-player system that keeps the player engaged with unique tasks to win with every match. As you progress through the enemies your aim is to achieve the highest ranking by pulling it off in specific ways, bombs away.
1 Bomberman: Party Edition (Worst)
Bomberman has never been about the story mode but if you’re going to offer one, at least put a little time into it. Falling into the age-old trap of quantity over quality, playing the single-player is dragged out and tiresome due to the lack of variety in your enemy. The landscapes are basically the exact same as the multiplayer mode maps making it seem like a strange version of groundhog day.
While there isn’t much to mess up as far as the visuals go, they certainly tried their best in the audio department. Forcing you to listen to unmelodic remixes of old Bomberman themes, what will they think of next?
NEXT: 15 Retro Games That Arent As Great As You Remember
