Centuries from now, Dr. Mitsumori finishes creating his second robot capable of thought: Black Bomberman. However, due to a programming error Black Bomberman began walking the path of evil, and kidnapped the doctor's only daughter Lisa before barricading himself in his Mechanical Fortress.
It is hundreds of years from now, and you are the first robot created by the famous Dr. Mitsumori. As "Bomberman," you possess awesome power, but you have been programmed only for the pursuit of goodness and justice. But alas, Dr. Mitsumori has made a terrible mistake.
Through a programming error, Dr. Mitsumori's second robot, "Black Bomberman," has gone berserk. Seeking to control the world, he has kidnapped Dr. Mitsumori's only daughter, Lisa. Now he is hiding out in the mysterious Mechanical Castle. Your job? Infiltrate the Castle, rescue Lisa, and rid the world of this mechanized misfit once and for all!
Object of the Game When playing a one player game, your mission is to find Dr. Mitsumori's daughter--ultimately destroying Black Bomberman and his evil followers. In order to complete your mission, you must advance through all 8 stages (64 rounds) of the game while scoring as many points as you can along the way. Look for special items during each stage--they will increase your power and your chances of finding Lisa!
Game story
intro
Black Bomberman flies out of Mitsumori's lab on a dragon, Lisa clasped in its clutches. Bomberman and the doctor are not chuffed.
Black flies away to his Mechanical Fortress upon the mountain. Bomberman sets out on his rescue mission.
progress
Bomberman begins his quest finding a way through the wall, before scaling the nearby mountains.
After crossing the river, he moves in through the forest.
Following a jaunt through a cave, Bomberman finally reaches the entrance of Black Bomberman's castle.
Bomberman travels up the floors until he reaches the top, where he encounters Black.
ending
After destroying Black Bomberman's minions, White Bomberman chases Black through his castle. Black promptly fetches Lisa and grovels for forgiveness.
Dr. Mitsumori exits his lab to be reunited with Lisa. Black Bomberman's castle explodes until the mountain is naught but rubble.
The camera pans up and the credits roll.
Sources
Media
Micom BASIC
May 1991: The X68000 version is listed in its "this month's notable software" section. [src]
Svet Kompjutera
September 1992: Short preview of the Amiga version.
GamesMaster (S2E05)
Broadcast October 29th 1992 on Channel4. The members of boy band Take That battle each other in a game of Bomberman (playing the DOS version). Robbie Williams effortlessly eliminates his bandmates and wins the Golden Joystick trophy.
Footage from DynamiteHeaddy on YouTube.
ST Review (issue 10)
Dated February 1993. A preview of the game featuring quotes from the Ubi Soft developers, claiming to be responsible for things that were already in the original game. A scan can be found at Atarimania.
Reviews
Check out Amiga Magazine Rack for magazine scans relevant to the European home computer releases.
GamePro (issue 20)
Bomberman's reminiscent of early arcade hits like Pacman, and some solo players might not find it explosive today. But if you like crowds, this is one of the most fun multi-player games around. For beginning gamers or anyone looking for an addicting, relatively simple-to-play puzzle game, Bomberman is a blast.
Dated March 1991, reviewed by "Riff-Raff". Cites the TurboGrafx-16 version's release date as Spring '91. The individual scores average to 3.4 out of 5. Image from Vault 1541.
Game Player's (Volume 3 Issue 4)
Most games require you to shoot things in front of you, but Bomberman is different. You have to rely on a good sense of timing, rather than dead aim, to eliminate your enemies. The action takes some getting used to, but it's an oddly addictive sort of game.
Dated April 1991, reviewed by Jeff Lundrigan. Image from Vault 1541.
Zero (issue 31)
Martin: Despite a yawny 'girlfriend kidnapped by evil wizard' scenario, this game is a bit of a laugh. I gave the one player game a spin 'cos I'm a bit of lone wolf, me - a moody maverick, the steely-eyed stranger who drifts into town free from the baggage of dependents and emotional ties. (You mean you haven't got any friends. Ed.) No, that's not what I mean, I'm terribly popular, it's just that all my friends were too busy to play. It doesn't mean everyone calls me 'that smelly old nobody, Martin-No-Mates', or anything. Okay? (Just get on with it. Ed.) Anyway, it was marvellous - playing the game is, to quote Aristotle: "Easy-peezy, lemon squeezy".
Of course. it's a trillion times better with the multi-player option. [...] Obviously, to get the most out of the game, your pals will probably have to bring their own joysticks along. Unless, of course, you're an oily, snivelling. rich kid with four of your own. Either way, it's a corker.
Dated December 1991, reviewed by Martin Pond. Awarded 88%. Scan from the Internet Archive.
Power Play
January 1992: A report from the Amiga-Messe held in Cologne, Germany. Actionomics "entertained the audience at the POWER-PLAY booth for three days with their newly completed Amiga version of the multiplayer game "Bomber Man" or Dynablasters", and are said to be working on more computer ports of Hudson Soft games.
Ein Spielerwunschtraum wird explosive Wirklichkeit: Das beste Multi-Spieler-Spektakel seit ”Midi-Maze” und dem ”Gauntlet"-Automaten gibt's endlich auch für Europas gängigsten Heimcomputer. Den Actionamycs-Entwicklern ist es gelungen, die geniale PC-Engine-Version grafisch und spielerisch beinahe 1:1 auf den Amiga zu übertragen. Auch der manischhektische Soundtrack ruft Erinnerungen an durchwachte Nächte vor der NEC-Konsole wach. Kein Wunder, daß Japaner die Sounds mittlerweile schon auf CD kaufen.
Daß Hudson den FünfSpieler-Adapter diesmal (und erstmals) jedem Spiel beilegt, verdient ein kräftiges Schulterklopfen und macht den Einstieg denkbar einfach. Spielt Dyna Blasters zu viert oder fünft und Ihr wißt, daß es jenseits der "Lemmings” noch zündende Spielideen gibt. Die Solo-Variante macht etwas weniger Spaß, genügt jedoch, um die Zeit bis zum Eintreffen derDyna-Blastersbegeisterten Freunde zu überbrücken.
A gamer's dream becomes explosive reality: The best multiplayer spectacle since "MIDI Maze" and the "Gauntlet" arcade machine is finally available for Europe's most popular home computer. The Actionamics developers have succeeded in porting the brilliant PC Engine version to the Amiga almost perfectly, both graphically and in terms of gameplay. Even the frenetic, manic soundtrack evokes memories of sleepless nights in front of the NEC console. No wonder the Japanese are already buying the soundtrack on CD.
Hudson's inclusion of the five-player adapter with every game this time (and for the first time) deserves a hearty pat on the back and makes getting started incredibly easy. Play Dyna Blasters with four or five players and you'll discover that there are still plenty of exciting gameplay ideas beyond the "Lemmings" mode. The solo mode is slightly less fun, but it'll sufficiently fill the time until your fellow Dyna Blasters enthusiasts show up.
The Amiga version is reviewed by Winfried Foster (above) and Martin Gaksch. Awarded 85%. The MS-DOS, Commodore 64, and Atari ST versions are listed as "in Vorbereitung" (in development).
In Eurem Test zum Spiel "Dynablasters" habt Ihr geschrieben, selbiges Spiel käme auch für MS-DOS-Rechner heraus. Ich meine PPs nach einem Test zur IBM-kompatiblen Version abgesucht, bin aber nicht fündig geworden. Ist das Spiel noch nicht erschienen oder habe ich den Test übersehen?
Timo Hofmann. Kehrsatz (Schweiz)
Leider ist die MS-DOS-Version von Dynablaster immer noch nicht fertig. Kleinere technische Schwierigkeiten und Unstimmigkeiten zwischen Hudson und den Programmierem verzögern leider die PC-Fassung.
September 1992: A reader writes in to the letters page asking about the whereabouts of the PC version. "Minor technical difficulties and disagreements between Hudson and the programmers are unfortunately delaying the PC version."
The One for Amiga Games
Cute-'til-you-puke graphics, a cringe-worthy tune and a cocktail of addictive gameplay, a fun scenario and screen upon screen of killer nasties means we're knee-deep in cutie territory. [...] The graphics and sound are just as you'd expect: cute and, erm, cute!
Dynablaster's designers have obviously realised the game's limited staying power and have included two, three, four and five-player games in order to pep things up. These are fought over one-screen mazes with power-ups aplenty. Here, the action is fast and furious, as each player attempts to blow the others away and the screen is an iridescent blur of pyrotechnic tomfoolery! As always in this type of game, the multi-player option is by far the best bet and this one will have you coming back time and time again.
Issue 42 (March 1992): Reviewed by the cuteness-loathing Sarah Hibbert. Awarded 87%.
Issue 51 (December 1992):Dynablaster is number 27 on the Full-Price Top 40 chart. (of top selling games, or ranked by score, or...?)
Amiga Power
When people talk about console-style products on the Amiga they‘re usually referring to big platform games like Robocod, Harlequin or similar, but that by no means covers it all. Take Dyna Blaster/Bomberman, for instance -- a cute, bright little thing with elements of PacMan, Chip's Challenge and (yes!) our very own issue one covergame Bombuzal. This started out on the PC Engine under the name Bomberman, went to the Gameboy as Dyna Blaster and has now arrived on the Amiga as a
PC Engine-perfect conversion under this rather indecisive dual name.
[...] Expensive but very addictive PacMan variant, improved dramatically by the inclusion of a joystick adaptor for five player fun. if you're in the habit of playing games with friends, it's a must buy.
Issue 12 (April 1992): Reviewed by Matt Bielby, awarded 83%.
Amiga Action (issue 32)
The simplest games are often the best and this is definitely the case with Dyna Blaster. [...] Once you get into the frantic action you just can't stop playing. Puzzle and arcade elements have been combined extremely well to produce a game that will be liked by absolutely everybody.
Dated May 1992, reviewed by Jason Simmons. Awarded 93%.
The Games Machine: Action Amiga (Anno 1 Numero 10)
Dated October 1992, reviewed by Eloisa Scichilone. Awarded 4 out of 5 stars. Scan from the Internet Archive.
PC Games Magazine (11/92)
Dated November 1992, reviewed by Oliver Menne. Awarded 75%. Scan from the Internet Archive.
Computer + Video Games (issue 124)
As far as playability is concerned, this is a dream come true. In one player mode, it's a massive and addictive task, but in head to head (with up to five players), this is truly awesome!
Dated March 1993 and reviewed by Frank O'Connor, who acknowledges the franchise's few releases and strange naming conventions in the UK. Awarded 93%.
ST Review (issue 11)
Dyna Blaster first appeared in the arcades under the name Bomber Man. [...] While the name varied, the basic game remained unchanged. Let's hope that UBI Soft keeps in with Bomber Man's programmers, Hudson Soft. so we can see more Japanese games of this quality heading our way.
Hudson is the largest producer at PC Engine software and has a massive back catalogue. Seeing that NEC never released the Engine, or its hand-held brother the GT, in this country. they've got nothing to lose by letting some kind soul convert a few of their games for us poor Brits.
Dated March 1993, reviewed by Wayne Legg. Awarded 94%. A scan can be found at Atarimania.
Australian Commodore & Amiga Review (Vol. 11 No. 7)
As a single player experience, DynaBlaster's average. Instead of evil scheming human opponents you get computer monsters of various levels of intelligence. which can only kill you by running into you. Challenging this is, when you get into the big scrolling levels with hordes of bad guys. but there's not the thrill of putting ten pounds of instant sunshine under your best mate's behind.
How do you get five players at once without cramming your keyboard with humanity? Use the parallel port adaptor supplied with DynaBlaster. which accepts two joysticks. making a total of four sticks and one keyboard player. The adaptor. which is universally referred to on the box and in the documentation as an "adaptator", is also DynaBlaster's copy protection: you can't play the game without it.
In fact. the only good reason not to buy DynaBlaster is the price. At $79 it's a bit on the steep side for a simple game like this, and you can get a very, very good shareware imitation for about $5 to evaluate and $US10 (or more - the author kindly lets you send him as much as you like!) to register, from any PD library. Dynamite Warriors, on Fred Fish disk 931, doesn't have a single player option, but it can handle five players too if you've got one of the old (Leatherneck) type four player adaptors.
Dynamite Warriors isn't quite as pretty as DynaBlaster. but there are more interesting power-ups, some specifically designed to make other players miserable like the joystick reverser and the bomb dropping preventer.
DynaBlaster's slightly prettier. but if you're going to buy it for the multi-player mode (which is the best thing about it), check out Dynamite Warriors; $50 off is significant!
Dated July 1994, reviewer unknown. Scan can be found at Amiga Magazine Rack.
The Video Games Guide: 1,000+ Arcade, Console and Computer Games, 1962-2012
If this simplistic maze-game looks like an early-Eighties throwback that's probably because Bomberman first appeared (in basic form) on the ZX Spectrum way back in 1983. Hudson Soft showed good judgment in reviving the game and, with the multitude of sequels and conversions that followed, it's since become their flagship title.
Bomberman's gameplay is simple, fast, and Fun, with echoes of both Pengo and Pac-Man. You control a little chap in a space helmet, and dash around a maze dropping big round bombs to blow up obstacles, monsters, and your fellow players. The bombs take only seconds to explode and fill the adjoining corridors with flame, and if you are caught in the blast radius then it's over for you too. During multi-player bouts (where the game comes into its own) Bomberman really does bring new meaning to the word frantic.
Published December 2012, authored by Matt Fox. Awarded 4 stars out of 5.
Weekly Famitsu
[what issue was this in, and does anyone have a scan?
A robot created for the pursuit of justice and peacekeeping. Not long after being brought into this world, he's lumped with the task of saving his creator's daughter from a malevolent copy of himself. He takes it in stride, though.
Black Bomberman / ブラックボンバーマン
A robot with unrealistic plans of world domination. He's a nasty fellow, but has the common decency to grovel at your feet after being thrashed. Alongside a huge army of monsters, he owns a sweet castle, dubbed the Mechanical Fortress (機械城). Where on earth he got it from is left unexplained.
Dr. Mitsumori / 三森博士
The good doctor, responsible for creating Bomberman and accidentally screwing up Black Bomberman. He's a mite miffed over the kidnapping of his daughter, but does little to personally aid her rescue. He never shows up again after this game (but his lab, although shrunk, makes an appearance in Panic Bomber for PC-Engine).
Lisa / 理沙
Dr. Mitsumori's only daughter, and the unfortunate victim of glitch-induced kidnapping. There's not a whole lot to say about her. She's plenty happy to see her dad and Bomberman after her rescue. She can't be a big fan of Black Bomberman, that's for certain.
Aron / アーロン (Arion)
A big, blue, segmented, serpentine creature. Or maybe it's a robot, the game doesn't say. It protects the wall and the river leading to Black's Mechanical Fortress. It's not capable of anything more than slithering around the place.
Bubbles / バブルズ
A little blue blob with eyes, ears and a mouth. It can spawn pink, sentient, gaseous creatures to track down Bomberman, and even use them as a shield. Bubbles itself is otherwise defenceless, however. It guards the path to Black's castle from the forest and the cave.
Warpman / ワープマン
A squirming, squashing, cyclopean blob ghost. It has the power of teleportation, and can spawn micro-sized ghost blobs to pursue Bomberman, though it still can't defend itself from a high-calibre explosive. It defends the forest and bottom floor of Black's castle.
Setsutore / セツトレ
Would you believe it? Another blue blob thing. This one has horns! Setsutore is capable of actually defending itself (gasp!) by not only generating a protective force field, but spraying a stream of fire in every which direction. A gang of them protect the second floor of Black's castle.
Credits
Transcribed from gameplay.
PC Engine credits
Game Designer
Tsukasa Kuwahara
Main Programmer
Atsuo Nagata
Sub Programmer
Wrecker Muroya
Graphics Designer
Hideyuki Ogura
Mika Sasaki
Music Composer
Atsushi Chikuma
Sound Programmer
Keita Hoshi
Produced By
HUDSON SOFT
Amiga credits
Production
ACTIONAMICS
Coordination
Axel Bialke
Direction
Tobias Strauch
Floira Welsch
Graphics
Alexander Meyer
Florian Strauch
Disk Routine
Mathias Reichert
Coding
Michael Kleps
Florian Strauch
Armin Sander
Jörg Puls
Soundtrack
Eike
Sound FX
Sadik Domlu
AST Sound Routine
Michael Kleps
Multi Tap
Rainer Münch
Gametesting
Christian Wolgast
Michael Menz
Mark Vollmann
Achim Stecher
Philipp Berger
Ulrike Jung
Swantje Hammerich
A robot created for the pursuit of justice and peacekeeping. Not long after being brought into this world, he's lumped with the task of saving his creator's daughter from a malevolent copy of himself. He takes it in stride, though.
A robot with unrealistic plans of world domination. He's a nasty fellow, but has the common decency to grovel at your feet after being thrashed. Alongside a huge army of monsters, he owns a sweet castle, dubbed the Mechanical Fortress (機械城). Where on earth he got it from is left unexplained.
The good doctor, responsible for creating Bomberman and accidentally screwing up Black Bomberman. He's a mite miffed over the kidnapping of his daughter, but does little to personally aid her rescue. He never shows up again after this game (but his lab, although shrunk, makes an appearance in Panic Bomber for PC-Engine).
Dr. Mitsumori's only daughter, and the unfortunate victim of glitch-induced kidnapping. There's not a whole lot to say about her. She's plenty happy to see her dad and Bomberman after her rescue. She can't be a big fan of Black Bomberman, that's for certain.
A big, blue, segmented, serpentine creature. Or maybe it's a robot, the game doesn't say. It protects the wall and the river leading to Black's Mechanical Fortress. It's not capable of anything more than slithering around the place.
A little blue blob with eyes, ears and a mouth. It can spawn pink, sentient, gaseous creatures to track down Bomberman, and even use them as a shield. Bubbles itself is otherwise defenceless, however. It guards the path to Black's castle from the forest and the cave.
A squirming, squashing, cyclopean blob ghost. It has the power of teleportation, and can spawn micro-sized ghost blobs to pursue Bomberman, though it still can't defend itself from a high-calibre explosive. It defends the forest and bottom floor of Black's castle.
Would you believe it? Another blue blob thing. This one has horns! Setsutore is capable of actually defending itself (gasp!) by not only generating a protective force field, but spraying a stream of fire in every which direction. A gang of them protect the second floor of Black's castle.
CreditsTranscribed from gameplay.
