Tobidase! Panibon

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Panic Bomber

Japanese
Tobidase JP.jpg

Japanese cover art
U.S.
Tobidase US.jpg

U.S. cover art


Developer(s): Hudson Soft
Publisher(s): Hudson Soft
Platform(s): Virtual Boy
Release date(s): JP: July 21, 1995
US: December 1995
Genre(s): Puzzle
Mode(s): Single player


Panic Bomber (とびだせ!ぱにボン tobidase! panibon, jump out! Panibon), is a video game developed by Hudson Soft. It is the fifth release in the Panic Bomber series and the only Bomberman game to be released on the Virtual Boy.

Story

Introduction

Japanese manual:

NARRATION: 常に霧に囲まれた島[のいのい島]そこに眠る [黄金のボンバーマン像] を求めて幾多の

冒険家達が旅立ちそしてこ度と帰ってくることはなかった...

BOMBERMAN: 「島に眠る3つのメダルを手に入れたものこそ黄金のボンバーマン像を得るにふさわしい」 か... いくぞ!! のいのい島へ

BOMBPIRE: くっくっくっ 「呪の島」 と恐れられて数十年 久しぶりの客だ。決して生きては帰さないぞボンバーマン! ハ ハ ハ ハ ハ

NARRATION: 「黄金のボンバーマン像」必ず手に入れてみせるぞ![1]

English Translation:

NARRATION: On Noinoi Island, always shrouded in fog, there lies a Golden Bomberman Statue. Many adventurers have set out in search of it, but have never returned...

BOMBERMAN: "The one who gets the 3 medals that sleep on the island will be worthy of taking the Golden Bomberman Statue"... Lets go!! To Noinoi Island!

BOMBPIRE: Kukkukku, it has been many decades since we've had a visitor on this fearsome "cursed island". I'll never let you leave this place alive, Bomberman! Hahahahaha!

NARRATION: You must get the Golden Bomberman Statue!

U.S. manual:

The dark island of Ever-Mist is permanently enshrouded in a deep, dreary fog. Many adventurers have traveled there in quest of the legendary Golden Statue of Bomberman, but none have returned...

The legend states, "He or she who gathers together the three celestial medals of power, which lie on the island of Ever-Mist, shall open the gates and gain access to the statue."

Learning this, Bomberman sets off on another great adventure![2]

Gameplay

This is a standard Panic Bomber game. Only one player may play, and there is only one mode, which follows the story.

Items

These items take up space on the player's field:[1]

  • Bomberman
  • Unlit Bomb
  • Lit Bomb
  • Burned Bomber? "Scorched Bombs" in the U.S. localization
  • Big Bomb? "Decker Bomb" in the U.S. localization;
    a mistranslation of "deka" (big)
  • Block? "Bricks" in the U.S. localization
  • Stone? "Rocks" in the U.S. localization

Skull Mode

When enabled, instead of Burned Bombers, Blocks will appear during boss battles. Destroyed blocks can release Skull effects. The following effects are possible:[1]

  • Obstacle Bomber
  • Big Bomb next
  • Increased falling speed
  • Blocks become bombs
  • Reversed controls
  • All bombs detonate
  • All movement stops
  • All Bombermen disappear

Characters

The game is divided into four areas. Each of the first three areas includes two normal enemies and a boss character.[1] Defeating the boss character earns Bomberman one of the three medals. The final area contains the final bosses.

If enabled, the "automatic pause function" will trigger after the player defeats each of the first three bosses.

Password

Panic Bomber uses a 4-digit password system. A password is given after each boss is defeated, allowing the player to resume at the beginning of the next area.[2] Each difficulty mode has its own set of passwords.

Rules

A demonstration and explanation of the game's rules can be viewed through this menu option.[2]

Options

  • Level - Difficulty settings, including "Very Easy", "Easy", "Normal", and "Hard".[1] In the U.S. release, this option is moved to a new screen that appears when starting the game.[2] Default difficulty is "Very Easy" for the original release and "Normal" for the U.S. release.
  • Boss Battle - Whether boss battles utilize the Skull Mode or Normal Mode mechanics.
  • CONTRAST - The game screen's contrast, from 1 to 10.
  • BG Scroll - Whether or not the background scenery scrolls.

Character Selection

Character sets as depicted in the manual.

Labeled "Blocks" in the U.S. release, this menu allows the player to choose from one of five different sets of characters for the Bomberman items.[1][2] Because the game is displayed in monochrome, most of the sets rely on different shapes rather than different colours.

A seemingly unused character set.

A sixth set, depicting Bomberman heads in various shapes, can be chosen from the game's locked debug menu, but does not appear to be unlockable in the final release.[3]

Special Events

When the player erases characters from the field, other items fall to fill any gaps. This can create chains of erasures. When the player makes a chain of five or more, a Special Event? スペシャルイベント, supesharu ibento will occur, clearing the player's field and generating large amounts of bombs.[1] The following events are possible:

  • Chain of 5: Machine Bomber appears, firing blasts at the field. Five rows of Lit Bombs and one row of Burned Bombers will appear afterward.
  • Chain of 6: A fighter jet flies through the screen, dropping bombs all over the field. Six rows of Lit Bombs will appear afterward.
  • Chain of 7: A portal appears in the background, sucking up all the items. Seven rows of Lit Bombs will appear afterward.
  • Chain of 8+: Sparkling effects draw into the player's field as the entire field begins to glow brightly. Explosions erupt all over the field, and once the glowing stops, all items have vanished. Eight rows of Lit Bombs will appear afterward.

Special Event animations may be viewed here.

Localization

When Tobidase! Panibon was localized for its U.S. release, a number of changes were made:

  • The game's title was changed simply to Panic Bomber.
  • Every character in the game except for Bomberman was renamed. Names of locations were also changed. However, a preview from Nintendo Power contained attempted translations for the characters' names (such as "Bompire", "Bomberwolf", and "Balom"), as well as a different name for the first area ("Bow Wow Ruins").[4] It is unknown if the localization was originally set to provide attempted name translations.
  • A large amount of dialogue and character descriptions were entirely re-written.
  • The name of the Big Bomb was changed to "Decker Bomb". This is a mistranslation of "デカ爆", deka baku, meaning "big bomb". Some other items were renamed as well.
  • The default difficulty setting was changed to "Normal", and a separate screen for difficulty selection was created and implemented to appear when the player starts a new game.

Gallery

View Gallery
View Gallery

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 とびだせ!ぱにボン, VUE-VH2J-JPN, Hudson Soft, 1995, pp. 8-9, 16-17, 19-21, 24, 26-27.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Panic Bomber Instruction Booklet, VUE-VH2E-USA, Hudson Soft, 1995, pp. 4, 8, 15, 17, 19.
  3. Panic Bomber (Virtual Boy), The Cutting Room Floor, October 21, 2017. Accessed September 28, 2018.
  4. Nintendo Power, Vol. 77, October 1995, pp. 72-75.