Saturn Bomberman Fight!!

"Four-Player Havoc"

Saturn Bomberman Fight!! is an extremely addictive and enjoyable multi-player title on SEGA Saturn. Even though a majority of the game is entirely in Japanese, most gamers should be able to easily navigate the menu system to be rewarded with one of the best multi-player experiences available on any console platform.

Gameplay: Fans of the Bomberman series of videogames will quickly notice this particular title strays from typical legacy Bomberman gameplay. The biggest difference concerns the isometric tilt the game employs. Everything represented in-game is on a slight downward center perspective. This viewpoint allows players, in most instances, to witness all of the on-screen action at once. Saturn Bomberman Fight!! also features a jump ability which is handled quite well and truly adds more depth to the gameplay. Finally, unlike most legacy Bomberman titles, Saturn Bomberman Fight!! utilizes a health meter for every character which allows players to take multiple hits until the meter is depleted and they are forced to retire until the end of play.

Story: As is typical in most Bomberman games, the story is the weakest aspect of Saturn Bomberman Fight!!. This title was made with the intent of being a multi-player so the absence of a focused storyline can and probably should be overlooked by most players.

Audio: The music to Saturn Bomberman Fight!! is unremarkable to say the least. Nothing particularly memorable but the tunes featured serve their purpose to some degree. SFX, too, are standard fare and are serviceable for what they are (bomb explosion, character's yelp, etcetera).

Video: One piece of criticism that could be directed against Saturn Bomberman Fight!! are the actual levels to the game itself. Simply stated, the game areas are too small. I would theorize that in order for the Saturn hardware to handle all of the character movements, bomb explosions and any and all other types of in-game activity with hardly any slowdown, the board levels had to take up a smaller amount of space on-screen and therefore tax the console less in processing the entire overall package. This, of course, means that a smaller board equals even smaller characters. At times a player can lose sight of their character behind a wall or obstacle. Other than that particular complaint, Saturn Bomberman Fight!! features extremely crisp and clear graphics in a tight little area of the television screen.

Re-Playability: Like most Bomberman games there is plenty of inherent re-playability in Saturn Bomberman Fight!!. Multi-player sessions tend to be fast and furious with an enormous amount of chaos on-screen during peak bombing moments between players. There's also a little horse that shows up occasionally which players can quickly saddle and ride throughout the board to deliver their arsenal of bombs against their hapless opponents.

Saturn Bomberman Fight!! is truly a fast-paced and thoroughly enjoying multi-player experience. With a great selection of board levels and characters to choose from, the game is easily one of the best multi-player titles ever created.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/04/00, Updated 06/14/07