Saturn Bomberman
Saturn Bomberman | |
---|---|
multiplayer |
Saturn Bomberman
Gameplay
Like most Bomberman games, Saturn Bomberman features a battle mode as well as a story mode. Along with them is a master mode in which the player races to finish a series of
Saturn Bomberman utilises Dinosaur helpers, which are initially found as eggs released upon the destruction of a soft block. Dinosaurs come in three levels: babies (the weakest), adolescents, and adults (the strongest). Dinosaurs can only take one hit no matter how large they are. If a player is riding a dinosaur when this happens, the dinosaur takes the hit instead of the player.[4] As powerups are collected, a special meter at the top of the screen slowly builds up. Once this meter is full, the dinosaur will grow one level, from baby to adolescent or adolescent to adult. However, in battle mode this system works differently. Whenever a player collects an egg while riding on a dinosaur, the dinosaur will grow. The player can jump off of the dinosaur at any time.
Story mode
Saturn Bomberman has a story mode which can be played single player or two-player.[4]
The story mode levels involve blowing up poles with glowing red orbs on the top (which are known as Zarfs) while avoiding (or destroying) enemies, blowing up blocks and collecting powerups. Once all the Zarfs on a level have been destroyed, an exit appears. Upon entering the exit, Bomberman will do a victory pose, then a short
Battle mode
Saturn Bomberman supports up to ten human players on battle mode with 2 multitaps,[5] 7 players with just one multitap, or two players without any multitaps. It is also possible to combat against CPU-controlled opponents in battle mode.[5]
If the number of players in a game exceeds eight, the game is played on a widescreen arena, shrinking the characters and blocks to tiny proportions, making the playing field very large. This also disables many of the powerups, including dinosaurs.
The North American version also supports the
Reception
Aggregator | Score |
---|---|
Saturn Power | 91/100[13] |
Sega Saturn Magazine | 90%[14] |
Publication | Award |
---|---|
Electronic Gaming Monthly | Saturn Game of the Year, Multiplayer Game of the Year[15] |
Reviews
Critics were generally positive over Saturn Bomberman. It received enthusiastic reviews from
Critics were also not wholly sold on the 10-player feature, as most noted that the screen size used for ten players makes powerups and characters too small to discern on all but the largest television sets.[10][11][14][16] They nonetheless concurred that the multiplayer modes overall are the highlight of the game.[9][10][11][13][14][16] Dan Hsu of Electronic Gaming Monthly stated that "It's a mediocre one-player game. It's a fantastic multiplayer game. And that's all you really need to know."[9] Mortlock ventured that it is "Probably the best multi-player game you'll ever play."[13] GamePro noted that the screen is much less confusing if there are eight players or fewer, and commented, "If you don't have a Sega multitap, Saturn Bomberman offers the perfect excuse to get one. If you don't have friends, this is a good opportunity to get some of them, too."[16]
The Story Mode and Master Mode were criticized by Matt Yeo for the frustratingly difficult AI and unforgiving boss fights,[14] and GamePro similarly described them as "more a trial of your patience than a test of your skill."[16] However, Next Generation contended that these modes are the one area where Saturn Bomberman actually exceeds Super Bomberman 2, as they "offer a decidedly less frantic (but more cerebral) puzzle-gamelike experience".[11]
Critics generally remarked that the graphics and music are very limited and fail to advance the Bomberman series in any way.[10][11][16] Most also complained at the excessive length of time between the game's original release in Japan and its release in North America and Europe.[9][10][13][14]
Next Generation reviewed the Japanese version of the game as an import in 1996, rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "even a mediocre Bomberman game is still worth checking out, and a must for gregarious Saturn fans."[17]
Sales
In Japan, the game sold 129,616 units.[18]
Accolades
Electronic Gaming Monthly gave Saturn Bomberman the 1997
In 2008,
Notes
References
- ^ "Press release: 1997-04-04: Sega's Spring Line Up". Sega Retro. 2023-11-15. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
- ^ "Hudson - Action game [ Sega Saturn](Archive)". hudson.co.jp. Archived from the original on 6 February 1997. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "NUMBER ONE MULTI-PLAYER GAME IN HISTORY COMES TO SEGA SATURN". Sega Central. Sega of America. September 4, 1997. Archived from the original on February 2, 1998. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
- ^ Emap International Limited. pp. 40–43.
- ^ a b "Protos: Bomberman" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 92. Ziff Davis. March 1997. p. 34.
- ^ Dan Elektro (December 1997). "The Saturn's Net Worth". GamePro. No. 111. IDG. p. 32.
- ^ "Net Link Play". Saturn Bomberman US Instruction Manual. Sega. 1997. p. 20. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
- ^ "Saturn Bomberman for Saturn". Archived from the original on 2019-12-05.
- ^ a b c d e "Review Crew: Saturn Bomberman". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 100. Ziff Davis. November 1997. p. 191.
- ^ a b c d e f Gerstmann, Jeff (October 10, 1997). "Saturn Bomberman Review". GameSpot. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ Imagine Media. November 1997. p. 199.
- ^ a b "Digitiser's Top Games of 1997". Digitiser. 13 January 1998. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
- ^ Saturn Power. No. 1. Future plc. p. 75.
- ^ Emap International Limited. pp. 52–53.
- ^ a b Electronic Gaming Monthly, issue 104, Editors' Choice Awards, pages 86-96
- ^ a b c d e Scary Larry (October 1997). "Saturn ProReview: Saturn Bomberman". GamePro. IDG. p. 146.
- ^ "Finals" (PDF). Next Generation. No. 23. Imagine Media. November 1996. pp. 271–272.
- ^ "Game Search". Game Data Library. Famitsu. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
- ^ "100 Best Games of All Time". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 100. Ziff Davis. November 1997. pp. 152, 154. Note: Contrary to the title, the intro to the article (on page 100) explicitly states that the list covers console video games only, meaning PC games and arcade games were not eligible.
- ^ Buchanan, Levi (29 July 2008). "Top 10 SEGA Saturn Games". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 3 September 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
- ^ Buchanan, Levi (29 August 2009). "The TurboGrafx-16 at 20". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 28 May 2015. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
- GamesRadar. Future plc. 18 April 2012. Archived from the originalon 26 July 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
- ^ "Top Ten Saturn Games". Retro Gamer. Future plc. 20 January 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2022.