A Doctor's Online Gaming Life: Bomberman Review

Bomberman has been with the gaming industry since 1983, planting bombs to defeat enemies on Bomber Nebula. It used to be available on consoles only, but with the advent of technology, it had successfully made its way to portable handhelds. We're not just referring to PSPs or DS consoles, but on mobile phones as well.

The 3D Bomberman Atomic is a revised version of the classic Bomberman game. The character and enemy sprites are now three dimensional, including the crates and the stage in general. For a mobile game, we'd have to admit that the graphics are remarkably better, including the animation and environment per stage.

Gameplay
The premise of the game is simple; you have to kill enemies by planting bombs. You must strategically place bombs to kill the enemies, making sure that they would be hit within the explosion range. The enemies do not walk in one direction only; they would follow you if there is an open path. Boxes may be used to corner your enemies. Coming into contact with the enemy or the explosion range of your bomb would reduce your life.

Power-ups can be acquired by blowing up crates. They vary from speed boost, additional life, increased firepower, to additional bombs. Initially, the player will start with a single life and a single bomb planting capacity.

Game Modes
There are three modes available, namely Campaign, Single Play, and Match.

The Campaign Mode employs a similar gameplay as that of previous Bomberman single player games, with the objective of killing all enemies by bombing them. Upon defeating all the enemies, the exit that leads you to the next level will appear. A single stage is composed of several levels.

After completing a stage in the Campaign Mode, it would then be available in the Single Play mode. You must finish the Campaign mode to unlock all the stages for the Single play. You will be able to repeat all the available stages as much as you want, in hopes of improving or exceeding your high score.

The Match mode is a versus type that is similar with the concept of "survival of the fittest". Two or more Bombermen will be placed in a single stage, where only one must remain standing. The goal of the game is to defeat the other Bombermen by tactically planting bombs, while trying to evade explosions. If two survives once the time is up, the game will be declared a draw.

Verdict
The graphics have improved considerably, and Hudson was able to retain the classic touch of Bomberman. The improvement on the enemies' AI has also made the game more challenging than it previously was. The 3D Bomberman Atomic is still the same Bomberman game we've always known, only better. It is ideal to play during your 5 minute breaks, to fulfill your daily dose of simple, unadulterated entertainment.