Bomberman is an arcade-style maze-based video game developed by Hudson Soft. The original home computer game Bomber Man was released in 1983 for the MSX, NEC PC-8801, NEC PC-6001, Sharp MZ-700 and FM-7 in Japan, and for the MSX and ZX Spectrum in Europe (in the UK as Eric and the Floaters, and in Spain as Don Pepe Y Los Globos). It had a Japanese sequel known as 3-D Bomberman, in which Bomberman navigates the maze in the first-person. In 1985, Bomberman was released for the Family Computer. It spawned the long-running series with many installments building on its basic gameplay. The earlier game Warp & Warp by Namco is most likely the inspiration for the Bomberman gameplay.
Bomberman (NES version)
In the Famicom/NES release, the eponymous character, Bomberman, is a robot that must find his way through a maze while avoiding enemies. Doors leading to further maze rooms are found under rocks, which Bomberman must destroy with bombs. There are items that can help improve Bomberman's bombs, such as the Fire ability, which improves the blast range of his bombs. Bomberman will turn human when he escapes and reaches the surface. Each game has 50 levels in total. The original home computer games are more basic and have some different rules.
Bomberman was written in 1980 to serve as a tech demo for Hudson Soft's BASIC compiler. This very basic version of the game was given a small-scale release for Japanese PCs in 1983 and the European PCs the following year. The Famicom version was developed (ported) by Shinichi Nakamoto, who reputedly completed the task alone over a 72 hour period.
Bomberman is most known for the NES/Famicom version released in Japan on December 19, 1985 and in North America in 1987. Hudson Soft's director of research and development, Shinichi Nakamoto, commented in a 1995 interview that 'I personally believe that the Famicom version of Bomberman is the one and only version of the game.' This version was ported back to the MSX the following year as Bomberman Special. Bomberman's appearance in this game (Hudson Soft re-used an enemy graphic taken from their own 1984 NES/Famicom port of Broderbund's Lode Runner) is an early version of Bomberman's more famous design, a robotic anime-like character with a pink antenna. The game was also released on Game Boy as a 'Game B' mode of the game Atomic Punk. In 2004, this version of Bomberman was re-released for the Game Boy Advance as part of the Famicom Mini series in Japan and the Classic NES Series in North America and Europe.
More details about this game can be found on
Wikipedia.org.
Find digital download of this game on
GOG
or
Steam.
Game controls:
The NES version of Bomberman was originally controlled via the NES controller with a cross-shaped joypad and two action buttons. The basic description of game controls is summarized in the table below. Detailed description of how to play this game can be found a in the attached game manual. Please note that individual
gamepad buttons are emulated by different keys on your PC keyboard depending on the settings of your online emulator (see the table next to the game).
Use the direction pad to direct Bomberman in any one of the four cardinal directions.
Press the A button to drop a bomb on the tile that Bomberman is currently standing on. If Bomberman does not possess the Detonator power-up, the bomb will self destruct after a couple of seconds.
Only used if you have the Detonator power-up. Press the B button to detonate the oldest bomb that you have remaining on the screen.
Press Select on the title screen menu to choose between a new game and a continuation of an old game.
Use to start the game. Press during play to pause. Press again to resume play.
Videogame Console:
This version of Bomberman was designed for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), which was an eight-bit video game console manufactured
by Nintendo in the years 1983 - 2003. In that time, it was the best-selling video game console for which more than 700 licensed games and a number of non-licensed
games were created. Worldwide, approximately 62 million units of this console were sold at approximately price $ 100 per unit. More information about the
NES console can be found here.
Recommended Game Controllers:
You can control this game easily by using the keyboard of your PC (see the table next to the game). However, for maximum gaming enjoyment, we strongly recommend using a USB gamepad that you simply plug into the USB port of your computer. If you do not have a gamepad, buy a suitable USB controller on Amazon or AliExpress or in some of your favorite online stores.
Available online emulators:
6 different online emulators are available for Bomberman. These emulators differ not only in the technology they use to emulate old games, but also in support of various game controllers, multiplayer mode, mobile phone touchscreen, emulation speed, absence or presence of embedded ads and in many other parameters. For
maximum gaming enjoyment, it's important to choose the right emulator, because on each PC and in different Internet browsers, the individual emulators behave differently. The basic
features of each emulator available for this game Bomberman are summarized in the following table:
If you like Bomberman you'll probably like also some of the similar games in the overview below. The games you see here
are selected based on title similarity, game genre, and keywords. However, the list is generated automatically and can therefore be very 'subjective'
especially for some specific games. To find a particular game, please use our search form.
This website is NOT sponsored or endorsed by Nintendo, Atari, Sega or by any other video games company.
RetroGames.cz makes no claim to the intellectual property contained in the individual games.
Text content of RetroGames.cz
is available under the
Creative Commons 3.0 License. You can copy it freely, but indicate the origin and keep the license.
RetroGames.cz is free, but online advertising is our only source of income, covering operational costs and further development. If you prefer not to see ads, please consider supporting us through a voluntary financial contribution. Your support not only helps us keep this website running but also contributes to preserving gaming history for future generations. Thank you for helping RetroGames.cz remain a place where your favorite retro games come to life!