Virtual Bomberman
information
Titleバーチャル ボンバーマン / Virtual Bomberman |
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ConsoleVirtual Boy GenreTraditional Players1 DeveloperHudson Publishern/a Releasesn/a |
Virtual Bomberman appears to have been first revealed in Weekly Famitsu on August 1995, announcing it as an upcoming title with no known release date.
The game was displayed in Hudson's booth at Famicom Space World (ファミコンスペースワールド, also referred to as Shoshinkai / 初心会) in November 1995. Flyers with additional game information were available, and are the source of most information on this page. The flyers announced the release date as February 29 1996, though all magazine coverage even into early 1996 listed the release date as "to be confirmed." Of the twenty Virtual Boy titles displayed at Space World, only four saw release; Virtual Bomberman was not among them.
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Despite magazine coverage as late as April 1996, the Virtual Boy was quietly discontinued in all regions by that point, and the game was cancelled without fanfare.
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A traditional top-down Bomberman game. The HUD implies you would have had to collect keys and/or crystals to open the exit; no source goes into detail on the game's objective; curiously, the Space World flyer depicts the second item as quartz crystals, while all media afterward replaces them with crystal balls.
Sprites and background elements would appear three-dimensional thanks to the Virtual Boy's stereoscopic view; the level design would apparently have made use of height and depth, including vertical traps and multiple tiers of platform, though this is not depicted in any screenshot. [src: flyer] Magazines commented on the increased emphasis on puzzle-solving, though this is always in reference to the secret exits; see "rival battles" below. [src: Marukatsu Super Famicom issue 14, Jugemu Magazine issue 12]
The game was to contain five worlds; a jungle stage appears in many screenshots, and a single screenshot seen only in the Space World flyers shows a rocky cavern, though it's unknown what the other themes were. [src: flyer] The jungle world would have featured enemy snakes and turtles/armadillos, in addition to rope bridges, tightropes, collapsible rocks, and missile launchers that would have tracked Bomberman. [src: Comic Bom Bom]
Each world would have had their own rideable creature, each with two unique abilities. Apparently the Virtual Boy's second D-Pad would have been used to operate certain abilities. [src: flyer] These creatures later found a home in Bomberman World with only minor changes.
All stages would have secret exits that led to one-on-one rival battles with God Bomber, playing out like a Battle Game match. [src: flyer] The flyers don't elaborate on how you'd access these areas, but one screenshot claims to show God Bomber hovering over a waterfall, perhaps indicating where the passage would be. [src: Dengeki Super Famicom No. 14]
Eyecatches would be displayed after completing a stage, similar to those after defeating a boss in Bomberman '93. It's unknown if they were intended to tell the story or just for the fun of it. [src: Dengeki Super Famicom No. 14]
Besides the main campaign there would be a Challenge Mode, where a player could choose a 2-minute or 5-minute mode and try to earn a high score from collecting bonuses and defeating baddies, and receive a ranking based on that score. The description matches Bomberman World's Challenge Mode to a T.
No mention was ever made of any multi-player features, and given how the Virtual Boy's 2-player link-up cable was never released, it's unlikely it was ever considered.
An A4 flyer with a fold-out interior. As of this writing, the only visual record of the game's showing in Space World 1995. This was also the first announcement of a release date: February 29th 1996. Translation is sourced from Benjamin Stevens.
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Planet Virtual Boy (English)
The most comprehensive source of Virtual Boy information online, containing rare screenshots, magazine scans and even the Space World flyer; this game would've been a mystery to me were it not for this site! All magazine entries below link to this site's respective page for them.
Weekly Famitsu (ファミコン通信, issue 349)
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Dated August 18/25 1995, the first known record of the game.
Humor Network (ユーモアネットワーク) (August 1995)
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The "Monthly Hudson Users Magazine". Virtual Bomberman was among the games showcased at the CGS (Consumer Software Group / コンシューマ ソフトウェア グループ) event held at the Nagoya Congress Center, My Dome Osaka and Sunshine City Ikebukuro across September 1995. |
Humor Network (ユーモアネットワーク) (September 1995)
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Japanese comedian and musician Boo Takagi (高木ブー) sits down with developer "Dardanian" (ダルダニアン) to sample Virtual Bomberman and Tobidase! PaniBom. Although Boo is more enraptured with Panic Bomber, he comments on the detailed environments and three-dimensional effects, and the game is said to still be in development. |
Dengeki Super Famicom (電撃スーパーファミコン, No. 14 1995)
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Marukatsu Super Famicom (マル勝スーパーファミコン, issue 14)
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Comic Bom Bom (コミックボンボン) October 1995
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A one-page preview of the game alongside other Bomberman coverage, featuring artwork by Gen Sato of Minasaaan! Bomberman desuyo!! fame. It repeats what little is known of God Bomber and the animal partners, as well as unique info on stage features in the forest world. |
Weekly Famitsu (ファミコン通信, issue 363)
Dated December 1 1995. Just another box on the "coming soon" page (translation).
Nintendo Fun Vision (February/March 1996)
A quick nothing-to-report from Shoshinkai '95.
Jugemu Magazine (じゅげむ, issue 12)
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Dated April 1996.
Tadaima Bomberman Land (Japanese)
Brief coverage on a Bomberman fansite, quickly describing the gameplay. Also says its first proposed release date was December 1995? Where's that sourced from?
Bomberpedia: Virtual Bomberman
Plasma Captain's write-up on the game, as well as an article on Tandem Shock offering thoughts and opinions based on the details described in the flyer.
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