SFC/SNES Super Bomberman
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The best part about this game is the tank you can ride about during your stay in the Story Mode. That right there should be enough for you to get off your lazy ass and download a rom, or heaven forbid, buy the cart. I mean, it has a tank, what more do you fucking want out of a game but bombs and tanks?

Anyways, this was the first game I ever played in the series and I have a lot of fond memories of staying up late playing this with friends before I moved away and had to replace them. :( I got this shit at the former Red's Video, which also had adult titles in the back, though I never checked out that section. I merely waited for my stepfather to rent and copy stuff, then snatched it from his hiding place with him never being the wiser. This game was the reason I bought a loose multiplayer tap and additional controllers for my SNES. In a way I think those good memories are what I try to reclaim with every additional purchase of Hudson Soft's handiwork.

Now to put on the nerdy glasses and start rambling like a professor doing his best to put your candy-loving-ass to sleep. This game came out in all three major regions, NTSC-Japan Land, NTSC-America Land, and PAL-Euro Land. There were also various releases with packaging in other languages such as German and Spanish as well, if I recall correctly, though I could be thinking of some other title, so be wary. Many people obtained the game as part of the Party Pack oversized box which had a multitap included with the game, though I was not so lucky and still watch eBay for one of these boxes to show up cheaply.

SFC - Japan SNES - America SNES - Europe
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Story Mode - One Player Story Mode - Two Players BattleMode One-Four Players
sbman1a.gif This is pretty challenging stuff. Note the colorful use of epileptic seizure lights. sbman1b.gif It gets worse when you have an assclown stealing your continues… sbman1c.gif When you dim the lights of your fellow robotic bombers, you are awarded thusly.

Already you may notice slight differences between the screens, though what really gets interesting is the packaging that accompanied the cartridge. The boxes and manuals are what makes someone with a lugnut loose like me want to have them all. I really will not be happy until I have them all. Seriously…

SFC - Japan SNES - America SNES - Europe
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The game is a worthwhile purchase for anyone who collects this sort of thing, though some of you who have played later versions on the SFC/SNES and other consoles will likely want to pass. The characters move more sluggishly than you may be used to and the graphics are not quite as refined as they later are on the last SFC titles in the series. You may also be offended by the chubby Bombers appearing on the label, manual, and box covers.

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Pros

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Cons

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12 Battle Stages

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Can't Kick Into Warps

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Varied Level Design

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Poison Not Tagged Away

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Awesome Powerups

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Only 4 Bombers To Pick From

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Powerups are where the magic happens. This version of Battle Mode has a fair share of amusing joy to share with your fellow bombers. Of course, you probably hoard them all, you dirty monkey, you. That tactic is especially foul here, since powerups do not recycle as in other titles. To exacerbate things your bombs' fuses sometimes go dud only to relight without warning. This sometimes traps you in an alleyway of soft and hard barriers waiting for it to make up its mind already. Talk about being caught in the can.

The punch should not be confused with the glove which allows you to carry bombs in other games. It's a boxing glove with the ability to punt about your burning madness. Poison icons can be destroyed with a bomb blast. This is good since you cannot tag off your disease to others, so contract them with care. If you do touch anyone else though, you both are stuck with the disease for its duration. Nothing tops being able to get the bomb-dropping disease, aka diarrhea, but it sort of defeats the purpose if you lack enough bombs to actually make things messy for your opponents.

Bomb Skate Flame Max Flame Punch Kick Detonator Poison
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Adds an additional bomb. Increases speed. Increase flame. Maxes out flame. Allows you to punch bombs. Allows you to kick bombs. Gives detonator bombs. Infects you with a disease.

I mentioned the Battle Stages but did really describe the range of design in them, so if you are a glutton for data, here you go. These boards actually offer more variety than some of the titles released later across various consoles, which is nice. And if those tunnels look too small for the bomber to fit, think Santa Claus physics and you will have a fair approximation of what happens when you enter them.

Screenshot Description
sb1_1.gif Normal - Your favorite generic board. Such sweet smelling grass.
sb1_2.gif Western - Start off with higher flames, but where's Honey? No strange Japanese cowgirl sighted? Damn.
sb1_3.gif Bomb - Bombs away…literally, watch your head!
sb1_4.gif Jump - If only the jumps would propel the bombs as well.
sb1_5.gif Belt - Ever have nightmares of being stuck on in a city of treadmills and then George Jetson comes down and mocks you with his rocket belt? Yeah, me too.
sb1_6.gif Tunnel - They don't make tunnels like that anymore. Thank goodness, because I'd never leave their walls.
sb1_7.gif Duel - Run Shiro, Run! It's all about the powerups, baby.
sb1_8.gif Flower - Yes, those are pink bombers on bulldozers.
sb1_9.gif Light - The emulator won't capture the effects right, but trust me. It is less blinding. You can only see what is inside the spotlight thus you often fumble in the darkness. Much like a game of 7 Minutes in Heaven.
sb1_10.gif Power - You get six bombs, skates, max flame, boxing glove, kick, but no soft barriers to get in the way of your reckoning.
sb1_11.gif Warp - Ever get that tingly feeling when entering warp holes?
sb1_12.gif Speed - It's fast, it's full of flames, and it's your last choice.
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I originally awarded this title: cuprate1.gifcuprate1.gifcuprate1.gifcuprate1.gifcuprate1.gifcuprate1.gifcuprate1.gif 7 Golden Cups and I stand by that initial rating. It is not as well liked or popular as Super Bomberman 2 or even later releases that never made it to America, but the array of boards and aforementioned tank in Story Mode really wins it serious brownie points in my book. It is the first Bomberman game I ever was exposed to, but when compared to later releases I enjoy a lot, I cannot give it higher marks.

In addition, something should be said for the diverse array of characters you have to eradicate in the one or two player Story Mode. You will not merely be facing Floaters reappearing in each level in a different hue, but some truly odd monsters whom deserve to be highlighted one day when I learn more Japanese. They are referenced in detail in the SFC Super Bomberman Strategy Guide from which the main logo of this site comes. Best enemy character hands down would have to be the Munchie Jump because it is just so much fun to kill. The thing looks like Pac-Man but does not stop to take a break and harass arcade dwellers or get married to a cherry-loving, lipstick-wearing fiend. Oh no. It chases you mercilessly in its own speed and time, eating any explosives left before it. To kill it, you need time your bomb blasts perfectly to give it a nice wash of sulfur in the kisser. There are even more amusing characters waiting for your fire, but I cannot be bothered to remember them all right now.

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