PixlBit

It's a platformer with Bomberman. . . and that's all

The last couple weeks we looked at Bomberman 64 and Bomberman 64: The Second Attack. The short of it is that they're both great games. Bomberman Hero was released between the two in 1998 for the N64, developed by Hudson and published by Nintendo. Unlike those games, Hero is a platformer; that's right, Bomberman can jump! Sadly, the game's full potential is never fully realized and comes off as a mediocre platformer at best, a quick cash-in by Hudson at worst. 

Right away you'll notice the loose controls. Bomberman is a little slippery, and it's easy to over-jump or misjudge the distance your jumping and fall to your doom. The controls are different from the other Bomberman games. No longer does our hero lay bombs behind him; now he pulls bombs from his stomach and sets them in front of him when you press R or down C. By pressing B he will throw a bomb with one hand, traveling about 6 or 7 feet before hitting the ground. I hate the fact that you can't set bombs behind him. Throwing bombs is different too, but this is something you will get used to as the game progresses. 

Hero prided itself on its expansive adventure; "5 worlds with over 60 levels!" But the truth is, those levels are very short. You can beat most of them in 3 or 4 minutes, some even less. And how is that level design? For the most part, bland. The levels are very linear, going from point A to point B, with usually nothing else to do or nowhere to explore. I suppose it wouldn't be so bad if I hadn't played the other N64 Bomberman games, which are good games; this one fell short of my expectations. In the levels, Bomberman can collect jewels, find explosion and bomb count power-ups, and look for special orange jewels. 

The plot for the game is retarded. A UFO lands on Bomber Planet; Bomberman goes to check it out and runs into Nitros of the Garaden Empire. He's captured Princess Millian, so you chase him in order to rescue her. As usual, Nitros wants to resurrect some evil dude who will take over the universe. We've seen it all before, but Hero's cutscenes are boring, offering very short and simple text. By the way, Bomberman talks in this one, but he only says things like, "I'll stop you!" or "I'll save you, Princess!" 

Nitros is a huge pain in this game. You will fight him five times, each time changing things slightly. He's hard to hit because he's very quick at moving and jumping, and he will slide right into you if you're not paying attention. The other bosses are pretty boring and not difficult, but tedious. They may take longer to defeat than you would like, hitting them again and again with bombs, wondering "when is this going to end?" 

I mentioned that the level design is bland. Luckily, Hudson decided to vary things up with some vehicle levels. Bomberman can transform into Marine Bomberman (water propeller), Air Bomberman (helicopter), or Jet Bomberman (jet-pack). These levels are definitely the best in the game. You can tell that they took a page from Starfox 64 due to the fact that the controls handle the same, with a behind-the-ship perspective, and inverted up and down controls. There's also a couple snow mobile levels in which Bomberman zooms down a mountain on a snow mobile. These levels are decent, but once again, way too short. 

                 The most fun to be had in Bomberman Hero is right here

Two levels in the game involve Louie, a big bunny which Bomberman will ride (hm, just like Yoshi and Mario; Louie is even green). While on Louie, you won't be able to throw any bombs, so the focus is on platforming. Louie is fast and can jump very high, but he's also very slippery, and getting him to wall-jump can be difficult. 

Two levels stood out to me as unique with some good mechanics. One involved Bomberman using ice bombs to freeze enemies, then jump on the frozen baddies to reach platforms. These bad guys could stretch their necks high, and some platforms could not be reached unless you froze them with their necks up. Another level had you running in front of a mirror. The mirror revealed all the platforms, but they were invisible on your side; eventually, you will go through a portal and appear on the other side of the mirror. These were great levels, but sadly, they were the only two that stood out to me as well designed. 

I have to mention that Bomberman has a very high voice in this game. When he gets hit, he squeels like a girl. After you beat a level, he exclaims "I did it!" I did enjoy the animation of him falling if you miss a platform and land in the air; he will do an old Wily Coyote bit where he flails in the air for a second before falling. That was great! But seriously, this is Bomberman, not Bombergirl; why is his voice so stinkin' high? 

The music is also very disappointing. Only a couple songs are "okay," but they still fall short when compared to the great music of Bomberman 64 and Second Attack. Most of the songs don't even have melodies, they're just annoying bleeps and bloops. The same four songs repeat throughout the game; that is lazy! No wonder they got Yasunori Mitsuda to do the music for the next game; they didn't want that kind of sloppy work to be done again with the music. 

I hate to keep poo-pooing on Hudson, but this appears to me to be a quick cash-in on the success of Bomberman 64. It was released a mere seven months after the first game in Japan! No wonder the levels are so short and the music is cheap. But how can I really tell this is true? Once you get to the fifth planet, Garaden, it is nothing but reworked boss battles of the same bosses you've already fought! Not a single level! Could it get any worse? Yes: Bomberman Hero has no multiplayer! 

Final Verdict--3 Stars: It's Okay

Bomberman Hero is not a bad game, just a disappointing one. It pales in comparison to great N64 platformers like Super Mario 64 or Banjo Kazooie. It appears to be rushed, and that has been the downfall of many a game. It was neat to experience Bomberman in a platformer, but the experience wasn't all that fun. Poor level design; short levels; tedious bosses; terrible music; typical plot; and no multiplayer nailed that coffin shut. But I suppose I can't complain too much, considering that two good Bomberman games exist on the N64. 

Okay, my Bomberman tyrade is over; next week we'll go back to normal retro reviews. Don't worry, we won't do an N64 game. Hope to see you then.