Bomberman

This page encompasses Bomberman on the NES/Famicom, Bomberman Special on MSX, Bomber Boy's secondary mode (Mode B), and the Normal Game in Bomberman on PlayStation.
Each version has marginal differences that will be denoted by a (NES), (MSX), (BOY), or (PS1).

The goal of every stage is to defeat all enemies, then find the exit door which is hidden beneath a random soft block; you cannot exit until all enemies are defeated. Bomberman begins with only one bomb and a blast radius of one tile; one power-up item is hidden in each stage, allowing Bomberman to gain better equipment as he progresses. New enemies are introduced along the way, each with unique traits.

The game is 50 levels long. Completing the game will display the ending sequence before looping back to Stage 1, but with all of the power-up items you had collected so far.

timer

You are given 200 seconds to complete each stage.
Each in-game second is approximately 1.55 real-time seconds (NES), 1.46 real-time seconds (MSX), or real-time (BOY).

If the timer reaches 0, play will continue, but all existing enemies will be removed and replaced by 10 Pontans.

Bonus Stage

After every five stages is a Bonus Level, wherein the goal is to destroy as many enemies as possible within 30 seconds. Bomberman is invincible for the duration, and enemies will continuously spawn (to a maximum of 10 at a time), encouraging reckless bomb usage. Once the timer reaches 0, the bonus stage ends and will continue to the next numbered stage.

enemy spawns

If you bomb an item, the item will be destroyed, and it will spawn multiple enemies of a single type; enough enemies to fill the population to 10 (unless there are already 10 enemies, in which case no new enemies will spawn). Bombing the exit door will get the same results, and you cannot exit the stage until all enemies are defeated.

What enemy type is spawned is determined either by the item in that stage (NES), or different for each stage (MSX/BOY). See the "enemy spawn" marker in the enemies or Stages section.

lives

Bomberman begins with 2 lives. Completing a stage will award Bomberman with an extra life. Once all lives are lost (that is, dying when the HUD reads "LEFT 0"), it's Game Over. You must re-enter your password to resume progress.

passwords

You will be given a password on the Game Over screen. This will record your items, what stage you were on, and even your score. It is possible to modify a password to begin with items you wouldn't normally retain after death, or access stages beyond the default 50; see cheats and codes.

Controls

Items can be found inside of soft blocks; each stage only has one item.
The "enemy spawn" denotes which enemy will spawn if you bomb that item, or the exit door on that stage.
All items are lost upon death (except Bomb, Fire, and Skate). The maximum stock for Bomb and Fire are only what's enforced during standard gameplay; those limits can be bypassed via passwords.
In Bomberman Special (MSX) only, all items are worth 1000 points.
Japanese item names are sourced from the Famicom Disk System release. Items are unnamed in the American manual.

Bomb / 爆弾

Allows Bomberman to lay an extra bomb. Maximum of 9 (NES/BOY/PS1) or 6 (MSX).
Enemy spawn (NES): Ballom

Fire / ほのお

Extends the blast radius of bombs by one tile. Maximum of 4 (NES/BOY/PS1) or 5 (MSX).
Enemy spawn (NES): Onil

Skate / スケート

Makes Bomberman walk slightly faster. Maximum of 1. No joke! Cumulative speed-ups wouldn't be a thing until later games.
Enemy spawn (NES): Dall

Remote Control / リモコン

Bombs no longer detonate on a timer, but can be detonated at any time by pressing the B Button (NES/BOY) or Button 2 (MSX).
Enemy spawn (NES): Kondoria

Wall Pass / ブロックすりぬけ

Allows Bomberman to walk through soft blocks. Standing inside a soft block as it is destroyed will still kill you.
Enemy spawn (NES): Minvo

Bomb Pass / 爆弾すりぬけ

Allows Bomberman to walk through bombs.
Enemy spawn (NES): Ovapi

Fire Barrier / 火炎バリア

Allows Bomberman to survive his own bomb blasts.
Enemy spawn (NES): Parse

Invincibility / 無敵

Makes Bomberman temporarily invincible to all hazards (enemy collisions and bomb blasts) for a while: 34 seconds (NES), 28 seconds (MSX), 17 seconds (BOY), or 30 seconds (PS1).
Enemy spawn (NES): Pontan

Each stage can contain up to 10 enemies.
All enemies (except Parse and Pontan) operate on a timer that randomly chooses a new direction for them once it has elapsed; touching a bomb, hard block, or soft block (if the enemy cannot pass through them) will also reset the timer and change their direction. Turning towards Bomberman does not reset the timer.

Enemies come in four speeds (except in Bomberman Special, where slowest is absent).
Slowest is half the rate of Bomberman's default speed.
Slow is slower than Bomberman's default speed.
Medium is on par with Bomberman's default speed.
Fast is on par with Bomberman's speed when equipped with the Skates.

If more than one enemy are bombed by an explosion, each successive enemy's score value will be increased in the following orer: 100, 200, 400, 800, and then repeating with an additional 0. (for example, the 1st Minvo will award 800 points, the 2nd 1000 points, the 3rd 2000 points, the 4th 4000 points, the 5th 8000 points) The multiplier caps at 10,000.
Names in brackets are from the American manual.

Ballom / バロム (Valcom)

An orange balloon. Does not react to Bomberman's presence.
Speed: Slow
Direction change: 2 to 4 seconds (NES) / 2.2 to 7 seconds (MSX) / 1 to 4 seconds (BOY/PS1)
Points: 100

Onil / オニール (O'Neal)

A blue onion-shaped creature. Will turn towards Bomberman if it sees him on the Y-axis.
Speed: Medium
Direction change: 0.8 to 3.2 seconds (NES/BOY/PS1) / 1.4 to 4.4 seconds (MSX)
Points: 200

Dall / ダル (Dahl)

A red barrel that squashes and stretches. Will turn towards Bomberman if it sees him on the X-axis.
Speed: Medium
Direction change: 0.8 to 3.2 seconds (NES/BOY/PS1) / 1.4 to 4.4 seconds (MSX)
Points: 400

Minvo / ミンボー (Minvo)

An orange buck-toothed sphere. Will turn towards Bomberman if it sees him on the X or Y-axis.
Speed: Fast
Direction change: 0.5 to 2 seconds (NES/BOY/PS1) / 1.4 to 4.4 seconds (MSX)
Points: 800

Ovapi / オバピー (Ovape)

A red cartoon ghost-like monster. Can travel through soft blocks. Will seemingly alternate between following Bomberman and avoiding him.
Speed: Slow (NES/PS1) / Medium (MSX) / Slowest (BOY)
Direction change: 1 to 4 seconds (NES/BOY) / 1.4 to 4.4 seconds (MSX) / 0.5 to 2 seconds (PS1)
Points: 1000 (NES) / 2000 (BOY)

Kondoria / コンドリア (Doria)

A blue shapeless mass with a face. Can travel through soft blocks. Will turn towards Bomberman if it sees him on the X or Y-axis.
Speed: Slowest (NES/BOY) / Slow (MSX/PS1)
Direction change: 2 to 8 seconds (NES) / 2.2 to 7 (MSX) / 1 to 4 seconds (BOY/PS1)
Points: 2000 (NES) / 1000 (BOY)

Parse / パース (Pass)

An orange sphere with vaguely animalistic features (common consensus says it's a tiger). Prone to moving erratically and changing direction at every junction, pursuing Bomberman when on his X or Y-axis... and sometimes prone to moving in a loop or having egregious blind spots.
Prone to getting stuck between walls and refusing to move (MSX).
Speed: Fast
Points: 4000

Pontan / ポンタン (Pontan)

An orange spinning disc with a face. Can travel through soft blocks, and more insistent on pursuing Bomberman.
Prone to getting stuck between walls on occasion just like Pass though (MSX).
Speed: Fast
Points: 8000

Bonus Items award huge point bonuses, but require special specifications be met before they appear. Their spawn position is random, and they cannot be bombed.
Bonus items will disappear after 8 seconds (NES), after 12.7 seconds (MSX), or stay indefinitely (BOY/PS1).
What bonus items appear in which stages is determined by a multiplication algorithm: this is explained by Takahashi Meijin on 16Shot.
Kudos to MGN3303 for confirming some of the requirements for certain items in Bomberman Special.

[still trying to figure out requirements for Famicom and Dezeniman in Bomber Boy!]

Bonus Target / ボーナス・ターゲット (NES/MSX/BOY)

(NES/BOY): Walk over the exit door when no enemies have been defeated.
(MSX): Defeat all enemies, then partially overlap the exit door (but not enough to exit the level, of course).
Points: 10,000
Stages: 6*, 8, 14, 16*, 22, 24, 30, 32, 38, 40, 46, 48 (multiples of 8 / 8+6)
* (MSX): There appears to be a glitch where this item will not spawn on Stages 6 and 16 in Bomberman Special.
Also referred to as the B PanelBパネル or simply Bonusボーナス.

Gordess / ゴーデス (NES/BOY)
Hachisuke / ハチスケ (MSX)

(NES/BOY*): Defeat every enemy. Then touch the corners of the stage without leaving the outer border. If you re-enter the inner portion of the stage, the progress will be reset and the corners need touched again.
(MSX): Defeat all enemies, then touch the four corners of the stage. (there is no stipulation to walk along the border like in the Famicom version)
(PS1): Defeat every enemy. Then walk around the outer border of the stage.
Points: 20,000
Stages: 1, 7, 9, 15, 17, 23, 25, 31, 33, 39, 41, 47, 49 (multiples of 8+1 / 8+7)
* (BOY): As far as I'm aware, the conditions for this item are glitched in Bomber Boy (because the code was not updated to match the smaller stage dimensions), and it is impossible for this item to spawn without hacking.

Bottle / ボトル (NES/MSX/BOY)

(NES): Walk over the exit door when no enemies have been defeated, and keep walking without letting go of the D-Pad for 16 seconds. ('sticking' yourself between two blocks by holding two directions at once will make the tracking value count faster, allowing it to spawn within 8 seconds)
(MSX): Walk over the exit door. This item does not disappear and will stay indefinitely.
(BOY): Stand still for 10 seconds.
Points: 30,000
Stages: 4, 12, 20, 28, 36, 44 (multiples of 8+4)
Also referred to as Colaコーラ.

Famicom / ファミコン (NES/BOY)
BeeCard / ビーカード (MSX)

(NES/MSX): Defeat every enemy, then detonate 248 bombs. Having the Remote Control prevents this item from spawning.
(BOY): ...?
Points: 500,000
Stages: 3, 11, 19, 27, 35, 43 (multiples of 8+3)

Nakamoto-san / 中本さん (NES/MSX/BOY)

(NES/MSX): Defeat every enemy, but don't destroy any soft blocks.
(BOY): Detonate 248 bombs. Having the Remote Control prevents this item from spawning.
Points: 10,000,000
Stages: 2, 10, 18, 26, 34, 42, 50 (multiples of 8+2)
Also referred to as Programmer Nakamoto中本プログラマー.

Dezeniman / デゼニマン (NES/BOY)
Clock (MSX)

(NES): Destroy every soft block, but don't kill any enemies (including the enemies that spawn from the exit door). Then bomb the exit door 3 times. The bonus item will spawn if the door has been bombed 3 times before the soft blocks are destroyed, but not if it has been bombed 4 or more times.
(MSX): Destroy all soft blocks, defeat all enemies, and bomb the exit door 3 times. Any of these steps can be performed in any order; so long as there are no enemies alive when the final step is performed.
(BOY): ...?
Points: 20,000,000
Stages: 5, 13, 21, 29, 37, 45 (multiples of 8+5)
Also referred to as Ojisanおじさん (old man) in the Super Technique Manual. MSX item has no known official name; a clock or clocktower?

The Bonus Items in the PS1 version are not 1:1 with the original in terms of score, requirements, or what stages they spawn on, hence why they're shunted off here. Bonus Items do not disappear in this version.

Bonus / ボーナス

Walk over the exit door when no enemies have been defeated.
Points: 10,000
Stages: 6, 8, 14, 16, 22, 24, 30, 32, 38, 40, 46, 48 (multiples of 8 / 8+6)

Louie / ルーイ

Defeat every enemy. Then walk around the outer border of the stage. The item will spawn once all tiles on those rows have been walked upon; progress can be done non-consecutively, it is not reset by stepping out of those lanes.
Points: 20,000
Stages: 1, 7, 9, 15, 17, 23, 25, 31, 33, 39, 41, 47, 49 (multiples of 8+1 / 8+7)

Yo-yo / ヨーヨー

Walk around the outer border of the stage, but don't defeat any enemies.
Points: 30,000
Stages: 4, 12, 20, 28, 36, 44 (multiples of 8+4)

Golden Bomberman

Detonate 248 bombs. Use of the Remote Control is allowed, and will not disqualify the item from spawning.
Points: 500,000
Stages: 2, 10, 18, 26, 34, 42, 50 (multiples of 8+2)

Nakamoto-san / 中本さん

Defeat all enemies. Then destroy 16 soft blocks.
Points: 10,000,000
Stages: 3, 11, 19, 27, 35, 43 (multiples of 8+3)

Tekuteku Angel / てくてくエンジェル

Destroy every soft block, but don't defeat any enemies.
Points: 20,000,000
Stages: 5, 13, 21, 29, 37, 45 (multiples of 8+5)

Bomberman will always begin in the top-left corner. Stage layouts are randomised, with different arrangements for the enemies, soft blocks, item and exit door.

In most versions of the game, all stages are 29x11 in dimension.
(BOY): In Bomber Boy, stages begins at 11x9 in dimension. This increases to 13x9 by Stage 4, 15x11 by Stage 15, and caps at 17x11 by Stage 30.

If you bomb a door or item, enemies will spawn.
(NES/PS1): What enemy type is spawned is determined by the item.
(BOY): Enemy spawns cycle per stage in the same order: Ballom, Onil, Dall, Minvo, Kondoria, Ovapi, Parse, Pontan.

(NES): The first stage has 54 soft blocks, and that amount increases by 2 every stage, until Stage 50 has 152 soft blocks.
(BOY): Bomber Boy uses a different formula, starting at 16 soft blocks and increasing by 2 every stage, then 1, then by 1 every second or third stage, increasing by 8 whenever the stage dimensions expand.
(PS1): This follows the NES formula, give or take one or two blocks. The first stage can have 53 to 55 soft blocks, and Stage 50 can have 148 to 149.

The stage layouts in Bomberman Special are different (or offset by 1 starting at Stage 10), so it's easier to just plug them into a separate section.

Enemy spawns are different per stage, with seemingly no correlation to other data.

All stages are 29x11 in dimension.The first stage has 55 soft blocks, and that amount increases by 1 every stage, until Stage 50 has 104 soft blocks.

(NES/MSX/BOY): 20-character passwords are generated based on your items, stage, and score, and should be compatible between versions. See the various guidebooks for example passwords, or use Leonardo Bareno's password generator.

(PS1): 10-character passwords are generated based on your items and stage.

RAM addresses (NES)

Additional information can be found at Data Crystal and gamehacking.org.

RAM addresses (MSX)

Addresses are referenced from BizHawk 2.11.