March 8, 2000 - NEWSFLASH: Bomberman Max is headed stateside!

EBWorld.com is listing Bomberman MAX Blue Champion and Bomberman MAX Red Challenger due for release on 5/10/2000. You can pre-order now!

Vatical Entertainment, the company publishing the Max titles in North America, has a page up for them which lists a May 9th release date.

April 17, 2000 - Added a multi-lingual (English/French/German) version of Bomberman Quest.

April 19, 2000 - Found out about another game, Baku Bomberman/Tune in the Air/B-Daman Gaiden Final Mega Tune.

May 1, 2000 - A new game released... Super B-Daman!

May 7, 2000 - Check out this link for some info on the Blaster Master Boy/Bomber King 2 fiasco. (As mentioned on page 47 of Gamefan, volume 8 issue 6, June 2000).

May 13, 2000 - Red Challenger is out! Blue Champion has been delayed until May 22nd according to EBWorld.com.

May 21, 2000 - Added gbstation's review of Bomberman Max Red Challenger.

May 24, 2000 - Blue Champion is out!!

June 2, 2000 - Added IGN Pocket's review of the Max games.

June 8, 2000 - Added Gamespot's review of the Max games.

This document is intended to serve as a complete listing of all Bomberman
games for Nintendo's Gameboy.
Known releases:
Bomber Boy/Dynablaster/Atomic Punk (1990/1991)
Bomberman GB 1/Wario Blast (1994)
Bomberman GB 2 (1995)
Bomberman GB 3 (1996)
Pocket Bomberman/Pocket Bomberman Color (1998)
Bomberman Quest (1999)
B-Daman Baku Gaiden (1999)
Bomberman Max: Hero of Light (1999)
Bomberman Max: Shadows of Darkness (1999)
Know of any more? Drop me a line.


You can check out the only other Gameboy-specific Bomberman page I know of here.


Bomber Boy
----------


This game was released in Japan in 1990 (also in Europe as "Dynablaster"),
and the following year it was brought to the US as "Atomic Punk"
(presumably named after the Van Halen song for American recognition).
While "Bomber Man" mode (Game B in the American version) looked and played
exactly like the original Bomberman for the 8-bit NES, "Bomber Boy" mode
(Game A) was something entirely new.

Bomberman GB 1 
-------------- 


This title began a trilogy which is widely thought to be the pinnacle of
portable Bomberman games. Here we're playing a battle mode versus the CPU.
It was badged as a Wario game for its American release, probably because 
high sales weren't anticipated from the Bomberman license alone. Our man 
has been reduced from top billing to a mere "featured" player. It's not
as if we're jumping around on platforms here... Wario is on OUR turf! So
why did he get the starring role? Only the big "N" can answer that one.

Bomberman GB 2
--------------


Oddly enough, this one was released in the US simply as "Bomberman GB."

Bomberman GB 3
--------------


I believe this one never saw the light of day outside Japan.

Pocket Bomberman
----------------


Straying from the original formula, Nintendo bastardizes classic gameplay
with the infusion of platforming elements. Still not a terrible game, but
certainly not up to typical Bomberman standards. Think of it as the "New
Coke" of Bomberman games. A colorized version came shortly after the 
initial release.

Bomberman Quest
---------------


Now we're veering into Zelda territory, with Bomberman trying to find some
scattered parts for his crashed spaceship. I suppose it's worth a mention.

B-Daman Baku Gaiden
-------------------


Not much is known about this Japanese-only release.

Bomberman Max: Hero of Light
----------------------------


Now we're back on track. Incorporating elements of the "Super Bomberman"
series on SNES, we've got a pair of games which follow the Pokemon gimmick
to ensure you purchase both of them.

Bomberman Max: Shadows of Darkness
----------------------------------


The other half of the new Max series. These games also have "trading card"
elements, further evidencing Pokemon's unfortunate influence on even the
most niche corners of gaming culture.