Page 1 of 1

Bomberman is back.  Hudson Soft returns to the DS with another installment in the Bomberman Land Touch series.  Having recently witnessed the mounting barrage of casual yawners and gimmicky mini-game mockeries, I must admit I had my reservations about this one.   But within about 10 minutes, Bomberman Land Touch 2 blew all those expectations away. 

If you didn’t get to play the original Bombmerman Land Touch title on DS, don’t pass up the opportunity this time around.  This title marks a clearly merited milestone for Hudson in breathing life back into their previously dormant demolitionist.  The game is a blast by itself in the Single Player adventure mode.  Throw in the multiplayer and classic battle modes with a welcome helping of online play, and you have an explosive feast of frantic delight. 

Cultivating the continuing success of the first entry, Bomberman Land Touch 2 puts players in the familiar role of Cheerful White once again.  The adventure mode serves partly as the catalyst by which players will complete mini-games, thereby unlocking them for the other modes in the game.  Hudson Soft has nearly perfected this mechanic, as exemplified in Bomberman Land Touch 2.  Quite a compliment, considering the unsettling number of minigame titles out there with abysmal “unlock” systems and ridiculous so-called “story” or “adventure” modes. 

Upon embarking on the single-player adventure mode, you’ll be whisked away to a colorful theme park world waiting to be explored.   Endearing Bomberman characters populate the many different zones, usually drumming up some kind of commotion or paying reverence to the glorious “Star Bomber”.  As you explore the surrounding areas, you’ll play mini-games, interact with NPC’s, solve puzzles and collect tons of items that will, in turn, help you on your journey and grant access to new frontiers in the whimsical microcosm.  My only (nitpicky) gripe is the overlong text-bubble intro at the beginning. After that, all the conversations in the adventure are quick and quite often pretty funny.  If you get a chance to play this game, make sure you experience the absolute joy of this addictive & innovative RPG-esque romp. 

Even after you’ve played through the adventure mode, Bomberman Land Touch 2 still never fizzles to a dud.  All the unlocked mini-games are available for quick play (and play, and play, and play).  Yep, these games are as addictive as should be expected in a Bomberman game.  The smartly designed “Attractions” are diverse, addictive and just plain fun.  You’ll find yourself scratching frantically with the stylus to ‘bend spoons’, tapping bomb-notes to play a haunting tune and screaming “FLY! FLY!” to coax a magic carpet into the air.  The varied selection of games means there should be something to fit everyone’s fancy.  And if not, you can always resort to the primitive violence found in the classic brick yard battleground.  Explode or be exploded.

The graphics and sound in Bomberman Land Touch 2 are certainly up to par.  Vibrant, festive melodies that won’t pain your ears and colorful cartoony graphics comprise the sensory stimuli.  But as far as the aesthetics of the game, no factor excels like the playability.  Many of the mini-games would be reduced to frustratingly broken chores without the super smooth stylus controls and spot-on touch detection.  Navigating through the Theme Park is a dream and the consistent precision imbued into the mini-games will surely impress. 

BLT2 rounds out the streak with solid entertainment and replay value. Loads of unlockable content including games and characters should keep you busy from the get-go.  Later on, you can always get your fuse-fizzling fix in the online battle mode or just chasing high scores on mini-games.  DS owners really have no excuse not to add this one to their libraries.