Bomberman
Playing Bomberman is like working your way through a fighting game; you don't really need a story to enjoy it. The single player experience in the PSP version has one that loosely works its way into the theme but is entirely unnecessary.
That diabolic Professor Bagular is back at his antics again and has covered a series of planets in a strange haze. The inhabitants have been brainwashed and there are some robots running around. Luckily Bomberman just happened to be flying by and noticed the planets in need of saving so with explosive device in hand you set out to save the world(s). You really have to know only one thing in order to do so, if it moves, blow it up.
Gameplay:
Fundamentally this game is classic Bomberman in just about every regard. From the overhead view to the soft and hard blocks and even power-ups; everything about this game is old-school. Therefore it stands to reason that fans of the series that were soured by Bomberman: Act Zero will find solace in the fiery embrace of this game.
We all know the gameplay elements that this title features, because frankly, we've been playing Bomberman for over twenty years now. When the round starts your first goal is to check out what's around you and begin blowing up soft blocks to a) get through and b) find power-ups. Once you accomplish either of those things start to heat up as you work your way through the level to get to your opponent and light their bottom with your fire. The stage is complete when all enemies have been killed and there is still time left on the clock. That's it in a nutshell.
The single player games serves as more of a training course and time waster compared to the multiplayer feature, but it's probably the mode you'll find yourself playing the most unless you have three other buddies with PSPs. Throughout the course of the solo adventure you'll be tackling a hundred stages, bonus rounds and boss fights. It seems like a daunting task at first but thanks to a new item storage system things are a little easier; maybe a little too easy in fact.
As you play and locate power-ups you can either use them right them and there or store them for later use. This feature is a godsend when you find yourself back down to barebones statistics if you die. Why start over on a new life with the ability to only drop one bomb or have a limited explosion range? Power that sucker up and get revenge for the dirt nap you were just sent to. As you collect items and store your most powerful ones for later the challenge of Bomberman begins to slip away. This becomes even truer as these collected items stay when you continue after dying.
Each planet has its own design and set of enemies to fight through. This helps keep things in the single player game from getting too monotonous but let's face it, that's going to happen irregardless. If any game forces you to make your way through 100 levels or so you're going to inevitably get bored. Luckily some boss fights help to keep things balanced, but those only happen on the tenth stage of a planet. The real reason for playing through the solo game is to unlock some classic stages to add even more playability.
Like any good Bomberman game, the main attraction in the gameplay lies solely on its multiplayer functionality. By taking part in Battle Mode and utilizing the WLAN Ad Hoc you're able to team up with three other players for some explosive fun. The beautiful thing is it's possible for you and three of your friends to play the game with only one of you having the UMD. The systems share information though I couldn't tell if it was because of this that we experienced lag while playing. Either way it's a great design to have implemented into the game.
As far as options are concerned you can tweak everything from the number of matches it takes to win to the duration of time. Plowing through the options is a great way to keep things fresh since there are different scenarios to test out. I personally like the ones with max firepower. The other great feature to the multiplayer comes from the option to get revenge after you kick the bucket. Once you go to the big bomb shelter in the sky you'll find yourself off to the side of the map where you can ride around and throw bombs at the living. The beautiful thing is that if you actually succeed in causing an opponent to die you are given a chance to get back in the ring.
If you were scarred after playing through Bomberman: Act Zero and were wondering if you could ever try the franchise out again, be thankful that you can. The Sony PSP release of Bomberman plays like a charm and offers hours of blasting fun and frantic insanity. Multiplayer is really where the meat of the gameplay resides so if you have some buddies with PSPs then you're good to go. The single player experience becomes rather redundant after a while even though the game shakes things up with different environments and enemies. At least the power-up storage system is pretty handy!
Graphics:
Skewed to a slight 3-D view the PSP version of Bomberman is unmistakably similar to the bulk of the franchise. Cute character designs and vibrant colors pop from the LCD screen while not compromising any aspects of the gameplay (unlike Act Zero). There are some rough edges at times and to be fair despite the variety of stages things kind of blend together before long. The Bomberman franchise has never been a graphical powerhouse but instead it has always been presented with an appealing design that is functional and acceptable. That's basically what you'll find here.
Audio:
In a game that relies on little more than the sound of an explosion you don't really need a whole lot more to get the point across. Hudson understood that because frankly, there isn't a whole lot more. The limited sound effects easily take second place to the soundtrack, which provides most of the filler. Many of the tracks sound the same and the techno music got annoying after extended play, but I do have to admit that it fits in with the theme very well.
Conclusion:
After Act Zero I was speculating if the Bomberman franchise could ever be fun again. Fortunately the PSP's addition into the series has proven that, yes, using explosives on your friends still provides hours of wholesome entertainment. The single player mode does leave a lot to be desired despite the fact that you can unlock "classic" stages. Multiplayer is where things really heat up even though some lag takes things down a notch at times. The graphics and sounds are unmistakably Bomberman so if you're a purist to the franchise you'll appreciate them. Overall this is a title that fits well into any PSP library and provides a ton of fun for the road.