Published: Wednesday, 16th April, 2008 12:00
Bomberman Land
By Narin Bahar
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IF you're a gamer of a certain age then there are certain retro figures who will warm your heart in a way that even Sonic and Mario on a good day can't manage. Pacman. Repton. But before them all came Bomberman.
A simple and yet addictive format which - if you've been under a pixellated rock for most of the last two decades - involves placing bombs to break out of little brick prisons and trap other players until you're the last one standing. Fun, frenetic and beautifully designed, the original is available on the Virtual Console, so what does this new release bring to the Wii owner's party?
Well the answer is, unfortunately, not much.
There are 50 different mini-games - that stalwart of every Wii release nowadays - most of which can be played in multiplayer mode. There's also a story mode complete with quests and puzzles aimed at restoring peace to Bomberman Land. It's diverting enough, but it's no match for the retro classic. And the cut scenes drag on and on and the music will make you want to knock yourself unconscious with the Wii remote. There's lots of unlockables and it's fun enough, but it suffers from comparisons with the brilliance of its forebears.
The major attraction of parting with your cash for this game is the Battle mode where up to four players can compete in classic Bomberman action. If you haven't already bought it on the Virtual Console then this mode is worth the cost of the game alone as before you know you'll all be giggling like loons and trying to outwit each other with cannily placed bombs.
Three stars. Still better than most games out there but you can't help but feel they've missed a trick somewhere.
* Bomberman Land is out now on the Wii, Nintendo DS and PSP.
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