Super Bomberman R 2 blasts onto the scene September 12

Act Zero

Konami has announced that Super Bomberman R 2 is slated for physical release on September 12, followed by it hitting digital storefronts on September 13. I have absolutely no idea why they’re doing it this way, but that’s what it says.

I feel like Super Bomberman R 2 was announced about a zillion years ago, but it turns out it was just last year. Maybe I’m getting it mixed up with all the ports and rejiggering of the original Super Bomberman R that originally dropped on Switch in 2017.

The trailer shows off some interesting new modes. For example, the 64-player “battle royale” mode introduced in the short-lived free-to-play Super Bomberman R Online returns. New to this title, however, is the team-based Castle mode that has you compete with the other team to open up all the chests. There’s also a level editor mode for it.

Crossplay ties all this together. On top of that, looking over the trailer, I see that some of the Konami costumes that got added to the first game are returning in Super Bomberman R 2, such as the Vic Viper, Dracula, and…

What in the good golly!? That’s Princess Tomato! From NES/Famicom adventure title Princess Tomato in the Salad Kingdom. Talk about a deep cut. What is she doing here? Oh, right, that was a Hudson Soft game, and Konami bought Hudson’s properties. Damn!

Tomato-hime aside, Super Bomberman R 2 is looking pretty good. I enjoyed Super Bomberman R, but when it launched, it felt a little barebones. It got various improvements over time, but I never really went back to it after the launch window. Obviously, the new title looks like the result of all the work that Konami has done on the previous title. Hopefully, all that content allows the game to get its claws into me. I’m willing to let it try.

Super Bomberman R 2 launches physically on September 12, 2023, and digitally on September 13, 2023. It’s coming to PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, and PC.