I know it’s been a long time coming (I’m off by a few days for those who keep up with this series), but I’ve finally got around to writing up the moveset/outline for the second character I feel should have made it into Brawl. He’s another fan favorite who many speculated would appear, but alas he missed his chance. He’s a fan favorite here on the ‘Toid because of Mr. Destructoid’s cameo appearance in his latest XBLA title, he’s your friendly neighborhood Bomberman.

*New Challenger Approaching*

Bomberman

Bomberman was thought to be a shoe-in for a third party representative in Brawl. His history dates back for years and many different titles in his long and varied series have had homes on Nintendo consoles. The fact he’s already cartoony and goofy means he would certainly not look out of place in the colorful world of Smash, which is more than Snake can say (despite the fact he manages to fit in well… I think it’s the camo).

Not only that, Bomberman has a long and varied series of games in which to pull moves from to craft a fun and particularly explosive play style. I’m by no means an expert on the character, but I know enough about him and the moves already in Brawl to whip up a decent little arsenal for him. Let me know what you all think.

The first and most obvious move Bomberman needs is his bomb which, like Link’s, would be mapped to Down+B. Instead of his pocket he could pull it out of the ground (like Peach does with her veggies) just like in his games. He could then toss his bomb like any item and do some good old fashioned explosive damage. Smashing and/or charging the toss could then allow him to throw it further and in a straighter line, otherwise it would arc (think Diddy Kong’s peanut gun). So, you could potentially lob it or really send it in a beeline for someone’s face. This would play along with the fuse mechanic (see below).



One caveat to the Down+B would be that if he pressed it again (while he had one) he would plant the bomb in the ground (like Snake’s mines), just like he can do in some of his other titles. Unlike Snake’s mines, though, they would explode on their own (see next paragraph). In the air, it would simply act as a downward toss.

Another key factor would be that the bombs would be on timers (well, technically fuses). That means that, unless they hit someone directly, they would land on the ground and be able to be picked up and reused by an opponent, which is where the majority of his moveset comes in. Other than bomb laying, Bomberman has been known to use a wide variety of tools and devices to help him in his quest to blow people to bits.

**Side Note:I’m undecided as to whether or not upon explosion his bombs should do general radius-based damage or only horizontal and vertical damage (like his main games). It would be a nice nod to his series if they exploded like little plus signs, but they may prove too easy to avoid. Thoughts on this matter?**

His neutral B move would be a whip attack that does very little damage (or none at all) but can be used as a deflection device (like Fox’s shield). Like Mario’s cape, it could also be used to flip opponents around (or trip them, maybe) if it doesn’t connect with an item. This would come into play when he needs to put some more space between him and his bombs.

His Over+B would be a dash attack similar to Fox’s, Ike’s, and a few others. He would quickly dash using his roller skates and perform a shoulder check or punch of some sort. His skates always made him move faster in his games, so I think this would be a nice nod to his fans.

For an Up+B recovery move I don’t know enough about him to know a truly great suggestion. The only thing I can think of would be some type of bomb explosion that would blow him upward, without doing any damage to him. This would be sorta like Fox’s, but it would only blow him straight upward and deal damage like a vertical version of Luigi’s headbutt missile. He’s usually a pretty grounded character, I dunno how often he really gains a vertical, so suggestions are welcome here.

In terms of standard A attacks and Smash attacks I envision a regular series of punches and kicks. He’d be an adept hand-to-hand combatant. He’s used his fists to punch bombs as well as kicks, so I would want to see a boxing glove smash attack make an appearance along with a solid kick move. Because he’s explosive in nature, fully charged Smashes (or at least one of them, possibly Smash Up+A) would deliver a solid explosive blow.

For a Final Smash I’m sort of at a loss. I know in Bomberman Live, they have little vehicles that can go around the outside of the stage and blow bombs into the field at players, so I envision something like that. He’d hop in a little cannon thing and move around the four sides of the screen, shooting highly explosive bombs onto the field of play as opponents scramble to avoid them (like Snake’s almost) but they could still be picked up and tossed if the opponent was quick enough (and lucky enough to not get hit directly). These bombs would be on shorter fuses and do more damage than his standard ones. The number would be dependent on how fast the player could tap A, as the move would be time based, not ammo based.


Pick four. Any four.

As for alternate costumes/colors, he has limitless potential. His most recent XBLA outing is a prime example of the bevy of choices they would have to pick from. For someone who is known to dress up, I don’t want to see some simple color swaps (although that would translate well and be representative of his other games, albeit not as fun). I want some crazy costumes thrown in to really make him as fun as he deserves to be. Yes, Mr. Destructoid should certainly make an appearance.


Classy Smasher? Or classiest Smasher?

I envision his stage to appear much like his levels already do. It would be a large square stage with tons of tiny blocks to jump on (obviously it would be more vertical than isometric) as well as a bunch of other destructible blocks (like in his games) which would allow for larger stages to be present. Although it would look like his stage, it wouldn’t be quite so big, to allow for heated battles. The four sides would also be completely included. Throwing opponents, items, and blows towards the walls would weaken them until they collapsed, allowing for KOs (think Snake’s stage). This would be a cool mechanic, making the stage feel almost claustrophobic while also being very dangerous should the floor be destroyed. The walls would respawn after a little while, forcing things to repeat, but the destructible blocks would not. Plus, players would spawn in the four corners of the map, like they do in his games. Sweetness.

Unlike Mega Man, I also envision Bomberman bringing to Smash a robust number of items that could affect the match for everyone. I want to see his roller skate pick-ups available, speeding players up. I want to see bomb pick-ups, increasing explosive damage radius. I also want to see the ones that slow people down and allow for longer tosses of items. Others are welcome, too. I just DEFINITELY want to see these. These could make the matches even more frantic and would really cement his status as a solid inclusion.

Bomberman = Win. For obvious reasons, Bomberman needs to make an appearance in the next Smash title. His moveset is whacky and fun enough to warrant inclusion AND he brings with him a good number of items and new mechanics that could really change the way people play Smash in general. Get on it, Nintendo.

Thanks for reading. Come back tomorrow for the critique of Peach and Yoshi!

Or read my review of the game!

Or, if you need to catch up on old critiques try these:

Mario and DK
Link and Samus
Kirby and Fox
Pikachu and Marth
Mr Game & Watch
Luigi and Diddy Kong
Zelda/Sheik and Pit
Meta Knight and Falco
Pokemon Trainer
Ike and Snake

And my bonus characters who should have made the roster:

Mega Man

Thanks for reading!