billservo's Full Review: Bomberman Tournament for Game Boy Advance (GBA)
Few games define the console multiplayer experience like the Bomberman games. Its simple approach makes it accessible to all while its fast paced gameplay keeps its repetitive nature from boring players.
Since its NES inception it's had numerous reincarnations on newer platforms, which now includes the GBA. The GBA's portability and Bomberman's slick multiplay are a perfect marriage so it's no surprise that it appears as a launch game this time around.
But outside of the multiplayer spotlight is what Bomberman's originally all about: a basic platformer. And this is where the game truly, well, bombs. From the get go the game thrusts an uninspired story onto the player: mysterious comets rain down on a planet and Bomberman's sent in to find out what happened to his comrade who disappeared investigating it. Same story we've seen from Bionic Commando to today.
Even though the story's lame, it's beautifully told. The GBA's graphics don't disappoint displaying cartoonish storyboards before the game starts. Throughout the rest of the game the graphics do hold up, too. Sprites are large and bright. A welcome change from some of the 5x5 dark sprites in Castlevania. And even though there's not usually too much happening on screen the framerate holds solid, too.
But that's the catch: there really isn't much to hold your attention. Gameplay in Quest mode is dull. Bomberman's slow movement frustrates and his enemies seem to aimlessly move about the screen. You kill enemies by laying bombs and hope that the resulting explosion still finds them nearby, and unless you corner your target with a bomb they'll most likely walk away form the explosion. There's little science or skill to it and until later in the game when different bombs are earned it remains a grating task. Enemies display almost no interest in going after you and for most of the game you're your own worst enemy as you bomb yourself accidentally.
This type of gameplay permeates the game as you move from town to town talking to villagers and getting clues on the whereabouts of your friend. The game mixes things up by sending you on a little "Trading Game", i.e. Villager A needs item 1, you need item 2 to advance, find item 1 and trade it for item 2. Again, nothing new here.
But perhaps the most blatant take from the current gaming trend is the introduction of "Karabon" (read: Pokemon). Yes, they're sickeningly cute. Yes, they're little monsters. Yes, they fight each other. No, they don't have much to do with anything in the game. You pick up Karabon as you progress and equip them like any other equipment. While equipped they level up as you kill enemies. Why? I have no idea since most of them do not need to be equipped to be of value. Most add to your abilities simply by acquiring them. Things like bomb throwing, bomb kicking, etc. are gained through Karabon. They could just as easily be replaced with things like "Kick Boots" or "Throwing Gloves". At times, certain Karabon (read: keys) are even needed to open doors.
There are Karabon fights, but these can be totally skipped over. Where Pokemon matches have strategy, Karabon matches dissolve into a glorified version of paper, rock, scissors. A Karabon is chosen before battle, simply on level alone, not on any type of attribute. Then the Karabon's 3 moves are chosen. Your Karabon can attack, defend, or do a special attack. Once the fight starts the two Karabon's moves are performed together in sequence. You basically hope that they're not defending while you're attacking and vice versa. If you screw up enough to lose most opponents always use the same order so it's not hard to figure out the right combinations- it's just boring.
The Karabon basically boil down to an uninspired grab at the Pokemon phenomenon at a time where it's increasingly losing appeal. However, the game can be played without having to worry about this whole aspect too much. Occasionally you'll have to do a hunt for a certain Karabon to get to a boss, but these searches never take too long. The boss fights are worth it, too. Boss characters can take up a fair amount of screen space or move around enough to be satisfying, especially in a game that's short on adrenaline. Recently acquired bombing abilities are usually needed which adds a little to the fights since you'll have two things to learn to take the guy out.
Fights are never over-challenging and no more than a couple of attempts are needed to figure a boss out. The inability to have extra lives or an arsenal of health potions will keep you on your toes, though. Again, your biggest danger is bombing yourself to death. The boss fights make this a little easier because of compounded controls. Kicking is automatic and ends up costing you a few bombs until you start exercising extreme caution and throwing also takes a little patience. Other than that control doesn't hinder gameplay too much as the challenge never overshadows any control shortcomings.
As fun as the boss fights can be, they don't carry the Quest mode and there's nothing else to it. Music certainly doesn't excite. It's the same Japanese background loop you've heard thousands of times over in the 8 and 16-bit days. Sound effects are limited to squeaks and pops- the game doesn't shoot for realism here, but shouldn't, either.
On the other hand, the multiplayer rocks like you knew it would. In fact, BT outdoes almost every other GBA game in this category. The most impressive feature is that the game features full multiplayer support with only one game. With a total of eight stages it's hard to get bored of multiplayer mode even when playing against the computer. Different stages feature different environmental hazards, too. Teleports, moving walkways, and tunnels keep gameplay fresh. The game's ghost player keeps all players in the game by allowing defeated Bombermen to throw random bombs into the arena changing the outcome and speeding up play. But better players are rewarded, too. Match winners are allowed to pick up an item to start the next round with.
It's as good of a Bomberman as any when it comes to multiplayer. But not good enough to warrant a purchase for most. Those with multiple GBAs at the ready at all times should invest in it. For younger players it's also a good purchase due to low difficulty and little violence, none graphic. But at full price it's hardly worth it for anyone- a definite bargain buy later.
ALL-TIME CLASSIC GREAT FOR ALL AGES GREAT FOR COLLECTOR'S VERY RARE LIMITED EDITION SEVERAL HOURS OF FUN, Platforms: Game Boy Advance, ESRB Rating: Ev...More at Amazon Marketplace
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.