Bomberman Games

In Bomberman games you move a character through a maze of blocks and plant bombs to open a path and take out enemies, without getting caught in your own blast. There are about 40 games, including versions of the classic, clones and spin-offs.

How it works

The setup is simple and well thought out. You drop a bomb, back away, and a few seconds later it explodes in a cross shape, with flames shooting out in a straight line in all four directions. The blast destroys the soft blocks, which is how you clear a path, and it also takes out any enemy it catches. The fixed blocks in the maze stop it, and that's the trick: stand behind one, or turn a corner, and the flames can't reach you.

Among the blocks you'll often find power-ups that improve your character, like more bombs at once or a longer blast range. The longer the range, the farther you have to run, so upgrading isn't always an advantage if you can't control the space.

The original appeared in 1983 from Hudson Soft, and it has had plenty of sequels and copies since. You can see that legacy in the list.

What you'll find

Bomberman, Bomberman Ninja, Bomberman Pyromasters, Bomberman Land, Crazy Bomberman and Mini Bomberman stay closest to the original. The Bomb It series has numbered entries from 1 to 7, so you can start with the first and work your way up. Super Mario Bombers, James Bomb 2 and Bomb Droid swap in a different hero. And Bomberman Memory (matching pairs) and a Bomberman jigsaw use the character for a different kind of game, with no maze or explosions.

The golden rule: before you drop a bomb, know how you're getting out. A dead-end corridor is the most dangerous spot on the map. And if enemies are close, it's better to drop the bomb and back off than to try to finish them up close.

To start, Bomberman or Mini Bomberman are the closest to the original and hold no surprises. If you want more variety after that, try Bomb It 1 and work up through the series. You move with the arrow keys or WASD and drop the bomb with one key, usually space. When there are several enemies, don't chase them: set a bomb on the route they usually take and wait for them to arrive. Soft blocks hide power-ups, so it's worth destroying a few before moving on, even if it takes a little longer to reach the exit.