Fans of the iconic White Bomber rejoice, we’re lighting the fuse and running for cover as we ignite the 10 best Bomberman games of all time.
Bomberman exploded onto the gaming scene back in 1983, and his colourful and bombastic exploits have been keeping gamers entertained for four decades.
The little guy in the blue suit has starred in over 60 titles across his career including puzzle games and platformers, and he’s even jumped behind the wheel in his own kart racer.
Bomberman has also bounced around like a beach ball at a Nickleback concert, appearing on almost every platform imaginable since the late 80s.
With so many games featuring Bomberman, it’s understandably overwhelming for newcomers looking to give the series a blast for the time. Fear not intrepid bomb-chuckers; we have you covered.
We hope you’ve washed your feet this morning as we’re about to blow your socks off with the 10 best Bomberman games of all time.
Table of Contents
1. Saturn Bomberman (1996)
The best Bomberman game of all time is Saturn Bomberman for the Sega Saturn.
Saturn Bomberman took all the elements from previous Bomberman games and wrapped them up into one neat package.
The undeniable highlight and appeal of Saturn Bomberman is its staggering ten-person local multiplayer modes. Sitting around a TV with nine of your pals all attempting to blast each other off the map is a sure fire way to ignite bursts of laughter through chaotic action.
Playing Saturn Bomberman in multiplayer back in the mid-90s was great fun but did have its drawbacks. The multiplayer maps featured tiny sprites that were difficult to see on an older CRT screen and games were often won or lost because of blurry optics.
Skip forward to the present, and hooking a Saturn up to a large modern display using a cable capable of line scaling like the RAD2X means those initial gripes about ten-person multiplayer are a thing of the past, making Saturn Bomberman the perfect party game.
Despite sporting a title that was clearly agreed upon last thing on a Friday afternoon, Saturn Bomberman is the first point of call for anyone looking for a great multiplayer game full of charm and more incendiary devices than Dr. Strangelove.
2. Mega Bomberman (1993)
Mega Bomberman was the first game in the series I encountered, and it features all the elements that fans will love including a solid multiplayer mode and a host of characters to control.
The character roster introduced several new Bomber-people to the franchise, several of which make appearances in news games to this day.
Another new addition to Mega Bomberman are the animal power ups known as Louies. Once found, a Louie allows Bomberman to quickly manoeuvre around the stage atop a colourful kangaroo-like creature as if he’s Han Solo riding a Tauntaun.
PC Engine players may recall Mega Bomberman under a different moniker, as it was released in Japan as Bomberman ’94.
Regardless of its title, Mega Bomberman was a hit when it launched thanks to work from developers Hudson Soft and Westone. Westone handled the Mega Drive port that preserved the essence of Bomberman ’94, despite only allowing up four players to battle together instead of the usual five.
Mega Bomberman spruced up the series with new levels including Jammin’ Jungle and Thrashin’ Tundra and an overhauled rogues gallery for Bomberman to face off against in its campaign mode.
3. Super Bomberman (1993)
Easily one of the highlights of any SNES collection, Super Bomberman is the quintessential multiplayer game.
Plug a multitap into the SNES and invite three of your nearest and most fire-retardent friends over for a chaotic and explosively good time.
Super Bomberman’s Battle Mode pits up to four players in a deathmatch with two minutes on the clock, with the last bomber standing taking the prize.
Super Bomberman isn’t just a fantastic party game either. The solo experience is one of the best the series has to offer with an extensive collection of levels to master and bosses to blow up.
Players must venture across six stylised worlds, dropping bombs on enemies until they’re able to escape each level.
Gameplay is fast, and Bomberman himself feels particularly fluid in his first outing on the SNES. If Super Bomberman resonates with you, then it’s four sequels may also tickle your fancy.
4. Super Bomberman 3 (1995)
The first Bomberman game for the SNES to make our list of the best Bomberman games of all time is Super Bomberman 3.
A direct sequel to Super Bomberman 2, Super Bomberman 3 sees our diminutive hero confronted by the Five Dastardly Bombers once more after their defeat in the previous game.
Series antagonist Bagular has been up to their old tricks again, and it’s down to the White and Black Bombers to save the day.
Super Bomberman 3 strips back some of the superflous flair of its predecessor and makes each maze easier to read and comprehend during frantic multiplayer battles.
The change in art direction is a controversal one, but it certainly made Super Bomberman 3 easier for inexperienced players to jump into the action and understand what on earth is going on!
Stripping the graphics back also reflected a change in gameplay design, which also drilled down into the core Bomberman experience. For gamers looking for a pure Bomberman experience without any needless gimmicks, Super Bomberman 3 is the game for you.
5. Bomberman Generation (2002)
Bomberman Generation is nothing if not adorable. The titular demolition expert can roam around fun and lively stages, collecting items and uncovering secrets.
There’s a huge amount of charm on display in Bomberman Generation, with Bomberman bounding around with his lanky legs and catchy tunes bringing each stage to life.
Bomberman Generation still looks brilliant today, in no small part, thanks to its wonder cel-shaded graphics that make colours pop off the screen.
Over two decades before Palword, Bomberman Generation paid homage to Pokémon by including its own brand of monster battles in one of its many mini games.
Players could tame wild ‘Charaboms’ after defeating them in battle and could even utilise them when exploring the world and solving puzzles.
The Charaboms can even be levelled up by giving them food, increasing their stats in the process, just like in Palworld, I mean, Pokémon…
6. Bomberman 64 (1997)
Considered an anomaly among fans of the series, Bomberman 64 surprisingly drops the ball with its multiplayer offerings but comes out swinging in its single player mode.
The campaign sees our plucky hero fighting back against a horde of space pirates. The plot is surprisingly compelling for a game about a man that lobs explosives, and it all somehow meshes together in a brilliantly coherent game.
Navigating the world is a joy and there are plenty of environmental puzzles to be solved and obstacles to be blown up using Bomberman’s favourite weapons.
Where the single player portion of the game excels, the multiplayer options in Bomberman feel barebones by comparison.
Maps are basic, game modes are sparse, and the Bomberman multiplayer magic is strangely absent.
If Hudson Soft had managed to stick the landing with Bomberman 64’s multiplayer mode it would have been a strong contender for the top spot in our list.
7. Bomberman (PSP) (2006)
You may be questioning how well a multiplayer game like Bomberman transitions onto Sony’s original handheld gaming device, and I don’t blame you.
It’s not immediately obvious, but Bomberman for the PSP has a secret weapon up its sleeves.
And that weapon, is PSP Game Sharing.
Through some mysterious magic (ok, it’s Wi-Fi), PSP players can share one copy of Bomberman with their friends to engage in frantic local battles.
Sure it requires everyone in the party to own a PSP, but only needing one copy of the game to get a battle royale going means Bomberman on the PSP is an essential pick for our best Bomberman games list.
So we know we can dive into multiplayer matches on the PSP, but what’s the game actually like to play?
The good news is that the core Bomberman gameplay is allowed to shine through with minimal gimmicks and unnecessary extras muddying the experience.
The simplicity of the experience and the sheer chaotic fun of each round also secures Bomberman’s position as one of the greatest PSP multiplayer games.
8. Bomberman 2 (2008)
I’m a bit of a sucker for the movie Tron. I love the idea of being warped inside cyberspace and getting a cool neon jumpsuit to romp around in while riding my lightcycle around The Grid.
Unfortunately for me, The Grid only exists in movies and a few Tron spin offs. But thankfully, Bomberman 2 dodges Disney’s best lawyers to bring us a game set in Grid City.
Just like in Tron, Bomberman 2 takes place within cyberspace, with our bomb-bowling protagonist out to save Grid City from a deadly virus.
Bomberman 2 has the perfect set up for a game on the Nintendo DS. Each level is broken down into bite-sized missions for players to tackle. Having smaller, shorter missions is a godsend when you’re fiddling on your DS as you wait for the bus or killing time between meetings.
Bomberman 2 is also a more accessible and forgiving game than many others in the series, partially due to the inclusion of a health bar.
Where other Bomberman games will see you bite the dust after a single blast, Bomberman 2 gives players a fighting chance as they tackle 70 challenging stages across Grid City.
9. Bomberman World (1998)
Bomberman World is a charming (if a little ropey) Bomberman adventure that sees our little destruction mad bomber once again tormented by the evil Bagular.
Gameplay remains mostly unchanged from previous Bomberman games, with players having to destroy obstacles and enemies as they move through each level.
Gamers will also be on the look out for several crystals in each level and will need to collect them all against a time limit as if Richard O’Brien was waiting for them, but this time without any fans starting.
A squad of devious bosses await Bomberman on his adventures, but defeating each foe unlocks a powerful new armour to wear that grants special abilities.
Multiplayer returns with a bunch of game modifiers. Using the modifiers helps to keep the multiplayer mayhem feeling fresh even after hundreds of matches.
Tweaking the amount and type of power ups that appear during a match provides an almost unlimited amount of carnage. Bomberman World would have appeared higher up our list if it wasn’t for the painfully slow movement speed and cursed aesthetics.
10. Super Bomberman R 2 (2023)
Super Bomberman R 2 keeps things simple by delivering top-down bomb chucking action with crisp, modern graphics.
There’s the obligatory single player mode that really doesn’t amount to much but that’s fine when the multiplayer portion of Super Bomberman R 2 is so deep and fleshed out.
Super Bomberman R 2 features a raft of customisation options including a versatile level editor that’s surprisingly versatile if a little unwieldy to use.
The crown jewel for me is the list of playable guest characters from other Konami games that show up in Super Bomberman R 2.
Cameo fighters come in all shapes and sizes from iconic series such as Castlevania, Silent Hill and Metal Gear. Seeing a cute chibi version of Pyramid Head is enough to bring a smile to even the coldest-hearted bomber.
Super Bomberman R 2 doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it does give it a lovely fresh coat of paint and throws in a heap of fun extras for modern players to enjoy.
