Bomberman (play, 1983)

In the NES version of the game , Bomberman is a robot that produces bombs in an underground enterprise headed by certain “evil forces.” One day, a rumor reached him that a robot that reached the surface could become human. Bomberman did not like forced work, and he decides to run away. He is declared a traitor, sending in pursuit of many enemies ^[5] . As a result, Bomberman manages to get out of the dungeon, and he becomes the man, the main character of the Lode Runner game for the NES ^[3] .

In the ZX Spectrum version, the character is a man named Eric, who searches for treasures in the ruins of a lost civilization ^[6] .

In versions for computers, the player controls a character that looks like a man in a wide-brimmed hat, who is capable of placing bombs behind him that explode after a few seconds. Each level is a generated maze of stone blocks, some of which can be destroyed with the help of bombs. On the level of moving enemies in the form of purple balloons, contact with which is fatal to the hero, but they can be destroyed by an explosion. As a rule, they fly aimlessly through the maze, sometimes setting off in pursuit of a character, changing their color to red. With each new level of enemies becomes more, and their speed increases. All this forces the player to display a strategy when laying bombs. For destructible blocks, bonuses can be hidden in the form of a chest with gold, which gives additional points, or doors with the inscription "Exit" (from the English - "exit"), when you exit to which the level starts anew. The task of the player is to destroy all enemies to move to the next stage. At each level there is a time limit after which the blocks cease to be destructible. In the version for the ZX Spectrum 20 levels ^{[6] [7]} .

In the NES version it is also necessary to destroy all enemies in order to proceed to the next stage. However, after that, you still need to find a way out, hidden behind one of the destructible blocks. The drawing of such blocks is chosen randomly, while non-destructible at all 50 levels have the same pattern . There are more types of enemies in this version, and each of them has unique characteristics - for example, some move faster, others can pass through blocks. At each level, hidden one random bonus that improves the characteristics of Bomberman: increase the speed of the main character; an increase in the number of bombs placed at a time; extra life; ability to pass through blocks; a detonator, with which bombs explode on command, rather than on a timer; and others ^[8] . The Game Boy Advance version is identical to the NES version, but with the presence of the ability to save the game ^[2] .

In the early 1980s, the Japanese company Hudson Soft was engaged in the release of computer games and software on cassettes for personal computers. At the same time, Sharp ordered the development of an operating system for the X1 computer. In 1980, one of the Hudson programmers - Tanaka ( born Y. Tanaka ) - developed a game for this computer as a demonstration of the work of the BASIC compiler , called Hu-BASIC. Titled Bakudan Otoko , the game borrowed the concept of gameplay from the Namco Warp & Warp arcade game. In 1983, Bakudan Otoko was released in small editions for Japanese computers NEC PC-8801 , , Sharp MZ-700 and FM-7 ^{[3] [4] [9] [10]} .

The game was further developed in 1984, when it was finalized and ported by Tanaka and Sasagawa ( eng. T. Sasagawa ) and released for MSX in Europe and Japan and for the ZX Spectrum in Europe under the heading Eric and the Floaters ^{[3] [4]} . Version for the ZX Spectrum published by Sinclair Research . Versions for MSX in the UK - Kuma Computers and Hudson Soft UK, in Italy - Toshiba , in Spain - Canon . In Japan, on MSX, the game was released by Hudson Soft and Sony , in South Korea - Aproman and Korea Soft Bank. There was also the publication of the Kuwaiti company Al Alamiah. The Japanese and Spanish editions, unlike the others, had the name Bomber Man ^{[11] [12]} . However, there is a misconception that the Spanish version was called Don Pepe y los globos (from the Spanish version - “Don Pepe and the balls”) ^{[4] [13]} . This is because in 1985, the Italian magazine Load 'n' Run , which was involved in the illegal distribution of games, released Eric and the Floaters without a license under the modified name Pepe y los globos ^[14] . Don Pepe y los globos was the Spanish localized name of the game Balloon Hopper from the British magazine Computer Computer ^[15] .

Taking into account the experience of Hudson Soft, Nintendo ordered the development of the Family BASIC programming language. Based on this collaboration, Hudson was able to obtain permission to create games for the Famicom game console (also known as NES outside of Japan), and thus the company became the first third-party developer for this console. This happened in the aftermath of the 1983 gaming industry crisis , when Nintendo initially feared to entrust the development to third-party companies. In turn, Hudson decided to develop a ported version of the Lode Runner computer game, which was previously developed and released for personal computers, becoming a big hit in Japan. The ported version was released in 1984, and more than a million copies were successfully sold thereafter ^[4] .

The confidence of Nintendo, the experience in porting computer games and the high sales of cartridges made Hudson Soft return to the concept embodied in Bakudan Otoko and release this game for Famicom. The game was significantly improved in terms of graphics and gameplay and published in Japan in 1985 under the name Bomber Man . In this version, the image of the Bomberman robot was born, which is de facto a sprite of the enemy character from the Lode Runner game in the NES version. Bomberman became a prequel of Lode Runner , because at the end of the passage the robot turns into a man - the main character of this game. Shinichi Nakamoto ( Eng. Shinichi Nakamoto ) was responsible for developing both the ported versions, and, according to the Japanese gaming journalist Hisakzu Hirabayashi, he ported Bomberman in 72 hours, which explains the borrowing of sprites. The inspiration to the developer was the popular arcade games in the shoot'em up genre, which, in particular, prompted the idea to add a bonus to the game that increases the power of bombs. According to the developer, the game is so transformed that it should be considered the starting point in the series ^{[3] [4] [9]} . The tune for the game was written by composer Jun Chikuma ( born Jun Chikuma ) ^[16] .

In 1986, the NES version was ported to MSX under the name Bomber Man Special ^{[10] [17]} . In January 1989, the game was published for NES in North America as a Bomberman ^[18] . The 8-bit version was re-released in 2004 for the Game Boy Advance platform as part of the classic game re-release series, and is called the Classic NES Series: Bomberman ^[19] .

A reviewer from MSX Computer Magazine in 1985 called the game in the MSX version disappointing and noted the scarcity of graphics and sound ^[7] . However, in 2011, in the top ten games for MSX, according to the magazine , it was placed in 5th place. In this ranking, the game was described as “wonderfully addictive” and extremely simple ^[29] .

The critics found the ZX Spectrum version to be original and fascinating, despite the simple graphics, but their impression was spoiled by the unresponsive controls from the joystick, as well as the inconvenient arrangement of the buttons on the keyboard. The author of the Sinclair User clarified that the problems with the joystick are caused by the reluctance of Sinclair to work on supporting peripheral devices ^{[21] [23] [24]} . The editors of Sinclair Answers decided that the game quickly becomes boring ^[30] .

In November 1991, the editors of the magazine Your Sinclair placed Eric and the Floaters in 61st place in the ranking of the best games for the ZX Spectrum. She was also noted that rough graphics, simple gameplay, inconvenient controls and dull colors could not spoil this game ^[31] .

To the author of Game Player’s magazine in the 1989 review, the NES version seemed too easy for experienced players. After recommending it to newcomers who are just mastering the Nintendo platform, he also noted the monotony of the levels due to the fact that all the blocks are painted in the same color and the passwords for the levels are too long — twenty signs ^[8] . In 2005, the gameplay of Bomberman was described in “ Igromania ” magazine as “terribly fascinating” and simple, and this, according to the editors, determined the appearance of many sequels and clones ^[32] . A critic from the All Game Guide in a retrospective review complained about the lack of multiplayer mode and the repeatability of the gameplay, but noted that despite the past tense, the basic and key gameplay elements remain pleasant ^[20] .

The release for the Game Boy Advance was greeted by critics. The main complaint was that the very first game in the series was chosen for reprinting, with primitive and repetitive gameplay, whereas, according to observers, those games that had a multiplayer mode made it popular. On the positive side, the ability to save in return the long passwords of the original game ^{[2] [19] [27]} was noted. The browser from the Thunderbolt website made similar arguments, and at the same time separately complained about the small number of melodies and their primitiveness ^[28] . At the same time, the GamePro critic noted the simple and diverse gameplay, and called the game ideal in order to "kill time." At the same time, Bomberman was described by him as one of the most exciting and absorbing games of all time ^[22] .

In 1984, the sequel to the computer version, Sanjigen Bomber Man ( Jap. 三次 元 ボ ン バ ー マ マ ン ) , alternatively called 3-D Bomber Man , was released for MSX, FM-7 and other computers. The game had the concept of a predecessor, but used a first-person perspective ^{[33] [34]} . The sequel for the console version - Bomberman II - was released in 1991 for NES ^[35] . Thanks to a simple and exciting gameplay, as well as the appearance of a multiplayer mode in subsequent games, the series became popular, forcing Hudson Soft to continue releasing games about Bomberman, because of which the series made 66 games by 2009, not counting various spin-offs ^{[4] [ 2] [19]} .

In 1998, the (released as Bomberman in Japan) was released for PlayStation , where the single-player mode was a remake of the first game in the series. Two-dimensional graphics was replaced by three-dimensional without changes in the gameplay. You could also choose the classic mode with the original graphics ^[36] .

The Bomberman gameplay was used in scientific work: in the educational process in teaching students programming ^{[37] [38]} , in psychological research on the topic of cooperation and competition between the sexes ^[39] , in modeling multi-agent systems ^[40] .

Comments

Sources

• The Eric and the Floaters version of the ZX Spectrum is available for free to play online at the Internet Archive (English) .