Bomberman Blast

Bomberman Blast is an action game developed and published by Hudson Soft for the Wii and WiiWare. It is part of the Bomberman series. It is the second in a trilogy of downloadable Bomberman games, after Bomberman Live for Xbox Live Arcade, and followed by Bomberman Ultra for PlayStation Network.

Bomberman Blast
North America WiiWare boxart
Developer(s)Hudson Soft
Publisher(s)Hudson Soft
Director(s)Tatsumitsu Watanabe
Producer(s)Kentaro Murayama
Composer(s)Hironobu Yahata
Shinya Otoge
SeriesBomberman
Platform(s)Wii, WiiWare
ReleaseWiiWare
  • EU: September 12, 2008
  • NA: September 29, 2008
  • JP: September 30, 2008
Wii
  • JP: September 25, 2008
Genre(s)Action
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

The game was released as two versions: a fully featured retail release and a downloadable, lower priced WiiWare version with less content. The retail version was released in Japan on September 25, 2008, while the WiiWare version was released on September 30, 2008.[1] The WiiWare version was released in Europe on September 12, 2008[2] and in North America on September 29, 2008.[3]

Overview

The WiiWare version of Bomberman Blast only contains the traditional battle mode, while the retail release also includes a story mode and other additional features.[4] The plot of the story mode revolves around Bomberman saving the player's Miis by defeating five bosses who have kidnapped them. The story mode covers 39 stages across 5 worlds, featuring 31 different unique enemies.[4]

The game features new items, such as a rocket that enables the player to fly, and a shield. A number of items are activated by shaking the Wii Remote. In the retail version, players are also able to purchase upgrades and power-ups by cashing in gems collected during play, such as Hearts, Fire Ups, Bomb Ups and Speed Ups. In addition, players are also able to use their Miis during play,[5] and the retail version features a mode called Bomberman for Beginners which teaches novice players the basics of the game.[4]

The game is primarily controlled with the Wii Remote held on its side NES gamepad-style. The game also supports GameCube controllers but not Classic Controllers. The game also supports 480p and 16:9 widescreen display modes, but does not output in Dolby Pro Logic II. When four Wii remotes and four GameCube controllers are used in conjunction, this game can support 8-player offline play.

Battle mode

The game's battle mode features eight-player, worldwide online play with rankings, and players with the retail and WiiWare versions of the game are able to compete against each other. 10 battle stages are included with the WiiWare version, while the retail release includes an extra 2 stages, for a total of 12.[4] Eight-player battle mode is supported by having four players using GameCube controllers and four players using Wii remotes.

Battle mode also introduces "appeal motions", an emote players can perform. WiiWare players have access to 10 motions, while retail players have access to 20 in total.[4]

Development and release

2008, the year Bomberman Blast was released, was the 25th anniversary of the Bomberman franchise. The game is developed in-house by Hudson, unlike Bomberman Live for Xbox Live Arcade which was outsourced to Backbone Entertainment. The game was originally scheduled to be released in June 2008, but was later delayed to September 2008 due to Hudson wanting to make sure the online mode was top-notch.

The official website initially opened on March 28, 2008, and fully opened on July 11, 2008. The final name was revealed through the game's rating by the German USK on July 9, 2008.

To celebrate the release of Bomberman Blast, Hudson held a Bomberman Blast tournament called "Bomb It Up".[6]

Reception

It has a score of 86/100 on Metacritic.[7] Eurogamer, which gave it an 8/10, were also impressed by the many game modes and options available. Although they believed the game was "a tad pricey" at 1000 Wii Points, they otherwise felt that "it's hard to quibble over such a dependable game".[8]

Official Nintendo Magazine gave the game 88%, calling it a "brilliant version" of Bomberman and recommending it over Bomberman '93 on the Virtual Console. However, despite the general praise of the online play, they did voice some minor concern about "a few instances" of lag, and also believed some players may be put off by the WiiWare version's focus on multiplayer battling.[9] The magazine also ranked it the 98th best game available on Nintendo platforms.[10] IGN scored it an 8.1/10, claiming that despite the lack of innovation and some minor interface hiccups, the game is "a blast to play" and maintains "that classic, addictive quality" from past Bomberman games.[11]

Sequel

A sequel was announced by Hudson titled Bomberman Live: Battlefest on WiiWare in 2011.[12] However, the release was cancelled for WiiWare, and released only on Xbox 360 Arcade.[13]

See also

References
  1. GameFAQs Archived December 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  2. EU WiiWare Update: Plättchen, Bomberman Blast, and Midnight Pool!
  3. "Two WiiWare Games and One Virtual Console Game Added to Wii Shop Channel". Nintendo of America. 2008-09-29. Archived from the original on 2008-10-03. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
  4. Siliconera » Hudson quizzed on WiiWare development (Tetris with the balance board?)
  5. Siliconera » Blow “Mii” up in Bomberman for WiiWare
  6. "Bomberman Blast Tournament "Bomb It Up" Details Page". Archived from the original on 2008-10-28. Retrieved 2008-10-03.
  7. "Bomberman Blast for Wii Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
  8. Eurogamer: Bomberman Blast Review
  9. "ONM: Bomberman Blast Review". Archived from the original on 2008-09-18. Retrieved 2008-09-17.
  10. East, Tom (2009-02-17). "Nintendo Feature: 100 Best Nintendo Games: Part One". Official Nintendo Magazine. Archived from the original on 2014-11-03. Retrieved 2013-12-05.
  11. "IGN: Bomberman Blast Review". Archived from the original on 2008-10-02. Retrieved 2008-09-30.
  12. "Bomberman Live: Battlefest announced for XBLA/PSN/WiiWare". Destructoid. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
  13. chrisscullion (2017-02-26). "The complete history of Bomberman". Tired Old Hack. Retrieved 2020-03-10.


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