Super Bomberman R (スーパーボンバーマン Ｒ, Sūpā Bonbāman R) is an action-maze game developed by Konami and HexaDrive, and is part of the Bomberman series. The game was first released worldwide as a launch title for the Nintendo Switch in March 2017, and later for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One in June 2018.
It is also the first main Bomberman entry in over a decade, as well as being the first to be developed following the dissolution of original series developer Hudson Soft on March 1, 2012. The game received mixed reviews, though many of the criticisms were addressed with post-release patches. By August 2018, the game had sold over a million units worldwide.
Gameplay
Super Bomberman R is an action game in which players move through a two-dimensional grid environment and must trap and drop bombs to defeat their opponents. The game features story mode spanning 50 stages and supports cooperative gameplay for two players. The game also features an eight-player competitive multiplayer mode. The online mode contains a league system (Baby A/B, Novice A/B, Amateur A/B, Pro A/B, Champ A/B and God A/B). Starting in Baby league B the player has to win matches to gather and earn points for advancement.
Battle mode includes 19 battlegrounds in total. Besides the classic arena, it also offers a multi-level arena with springboards, ice-patterns, moveable blocks, etc., each with a unique style. In addition to the eight Bomberman Bros. and the Five Dastardly Bombers, Super Bomberman R also features a selection of new characters based on Konami Originals, such as Dracula Bomber, Vic Viper Bomber, Goemon Bomber and more. In total, there are 27 characters, each with special abilities.
Grand Prixclarification needed was introduced with an update in November 2017. It contains 3 vs 3 battles in offline or online matches within 3 different arenas. Alongside new characters (with unique abilities) the player's goal is to collect as many gems as possible within the given time. Alternate mode is team fight which counts the total wins (blow-ups).
Plot
The game features a rebooted plot of previous Super Bomberman games. It starts in a robot scrapyard, where Emperor Buggler resurrects five robots to be his new henchmen, the Five Dastardly Bombers. Meanwhile, on Planet Bomber, live the Bomberman Brothers; eight robotic lifeforms created to be heroes of the universe. Unfortunately, only the eldest brother, White, has the mentality and discipline associated with this role and has no luck getting his younger siblings to take their mission seriously. Black is a self-absorbed slacker, Pink is more concerned about fashion and gossip, Blue sleeps all day, Red is an out-of-control hothead, Yellow is innocent to a fault, Aqua hates violence, and Green is a cunning sneak who uses his status as the baby brother to manipulate his siblings. During yet another of White's attempts to get his siblings to train with him, their television begins broadcasting a signal from Buggler, who proclaims his goal to conquer the universe and shows that his army has taken control of the five planets of the Starry Sky Nebula; swearing that all other planets will soon follow. He offers a challenge to anyone who would defy him to fight his Five Dastardly Bombers. White immediately takes up the challenge and forces his siblings to come with him as he heads to the Starry Sky Nebula to face the Buggler army.
Release
Super Bomberman R was developed by Konami and HexaDrive, and several people involved in the game are former Hudson Soft staff who had worked in past Bomberman titles. The game was announced on 12 January 2017 and released 3 March 2017 as a launch title for the Nintendo Switch console. On 20 April 2017 free DLC was announced alongside regular updates with various gameplay improvements. The first DLC set includes four new stages and two new accessories. Future updates with various playable characters from other Konami franchises—including Vic Viper from Gradius, Simon Belmont from Castlevania, and Pyramid Head from Silent Hill 2—were also teased. Further updates with additions of new characters and entirely new game play modes are being released by Konami. Ports for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows were released in June 2018, each featuring a platform-exclusive character: Ratchet from Ratchet & Clank for the PS4 version; Master Chief from the Halo series for the Xbox One version; and P-Body from Portal 2 for the Windows version. The original Switch version also received its own exclusive character via an update: the Bomberman franchise's own MAX. An update in June 2018 added WWE professional wrestler Xavier Woods as a playable character, along with additional Konami characters such as Solid Snake, Naked Snake and Raiden from the Metal Gear series.
Reception
Nintendo Life's preview stated that "Super Bomberman R isn't going to break any ground with its familiar explosions and mayhem, but it doesn't have to; sometimes, colourful old-school gaming is refreshing in this era of progressively darker and more complex titles." This was reiterated in their review, with Steve Bowling describing it as "no-frills", but "the go-to multiplayer launch title" for the Switch.
Super Bomberman R received "generally mixed reviews", according to review aggregator Metacritic. In Japan, the game's debut week sales reached 39,609 copies sold, marking the highest first-week sales for a Bomberman game since 1998's Bomberman World, which sold 76,801 copies in its first week. By August 2018, the game had sold over a million copies worldwide across all platforms.
