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Ahhhh the c64 community you never cease to impress me. People running Commodore websites (like the one you are reading and hopefully bookmarked, and if not why not?) numerous internet radio stations, even shows like back in time live. The c64 is alive and well, and this shows from many new game releases recently. The most recent … Bomberland.

Bomberland is a game by Michal Okowicki and Owen Crowley which has been in development for quite a while. First beginning as Boombastic benny, changing to Bomberman 64 and now finally to Bomberland.

As you may have guessed already this game is a based on the Bomberman series, a series to be honest I have never really played. But even if like me you have never played them, it’s fairly safe to say that you at least know of them. So am going into this fairly new.

BOX

Packaging for the game is standard as with other RGCD releases, a small boxed standard version and the more flashy Deluxe version. As normal you get the game cart, stickers and manual, but Bomberland does come with a few extras. A game code sheet to keep all your game codes in a safe place and a fantastic poster depicting the various monsters you will face in the game. Very welcome additions. As I own one of their previous games on cartridge (Get em DX) I can attest to how well they are done. Some may say they are too expensive, but these are professionally produced products for a 30 year old system. Bargain I say 🙂 and if your short on cash, there is a digital version of the game for £1.99 which has all the extras but in a digital format, so there’s no reason to not pick it up on price.

THE GAME

In this game you play as the “Hero” (don’t think a name is ever mentioned) who is spurred into action to defeat the Lord Bomber, who wishes to drive Bomberland’s residents into slavery in what is an amusingly political plot (welcome to 2013 people 🙂 )

The game is played over 36 stages with 6 enviroments ranging from : Brick Factory, The Swamps, The Rockies, Snowy Foothills, Laboratory and the castle of the Lord Bomber. At the end of each set of stages you then face off against a boss.

Gameplay consists of clearing a level of enemies using bombs you can drop on the map which explodes in 4 directions. When they are cleared you then need to find the exit to reach the next stage. Fairly simple but it does get very tricky, very quickly. Finding the exit before you have cleared the level can be a problem, as they can spew out new enemies you have to kill before you can make your escape.

Luckly help is at had to clear these nasty critters which are contained within “brick Walls”.

These are destroyable sections of the map which can get you closer to your prey but more importantly, some of these contain Power Ups and bonuses. These can range from being able to plant extra bombs, being able to move faster and having a larger explosion range. Not all of them are helpful though, as there are also what are called “Skull Suprises” which you have to really think about taking that chance. Numerous time I had my controls reversed which is a bit of a surprise.

Also a welcome addition is the passwords which are given around every 3 stages. My first thoughts were “why do these passwords have to be so long?” and within the readme, is the answer to this. Not only does the password let you start on that level it also gives you back the power and bonus’s you had as well as your current score. That is a damn fine addition.

So thats the basics of the gameplay and single player…. but there is more.

Bomberland has a multiplayer mode in which 5 people can go head to head … yes I said 5. How may you ask? Indeed I asked the same question, how the hell is that possible??. Seems there is a device out for the c64 that can give you access to 2 more joystick ports, so 4 joysticks and 1 keyboard player. Even without being able to try that out, even just the thought of it sounds like a blast (maybe pun intended)





So there we have it, Bomberland. The latest in a long line of new games coming out for my beloved c64 system. And I can honestly say its one of the best, even as a newcomer to Bomberman games its easy to see how well this plays, looks and sounds. From getting more than 1 monster with one hit to stupidly trapping yourself with your own bomb there is so much fun to be had.

Go get some 🙂

Download Demo Version: Bomberland_preview.d64

Download the SID: Bomberland_preview.sid

Buy the full version on RGCD

Review by Retrograde – AkumaDesigns