Mighty Bomb Jack
| Mighty Bomb Jack | |
|---|---|
 NES PAL cover art | |
| Developer(s) | Tecmo |
| Publisher(s) | Tecmo |
| Composer(s) |
Tsukasa Masuko Michiharu Hasuya |
| Platform(s) | Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Game Boy, Commodore 64,[1] Famicom/NES |
| Release date(s) |
NES/Famicom
|
| Genre(s) | Platform game |
| Mode(s) |
Single player 2-player alternating |
Mighty Bomb Jack (マイティボンジャック Maiti Bon Jakku) is a 1986 Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) game released by Tecmo, which was later ported to the Amiga, Atari ST and Commodore 64.[2] Within PAL-A regions, the NES version was only released in Australia. The NES version was released on the Virtual Console on May 7, 2007 for the Wii, on December 6, 2012 for the Nintendo 3DS[3] and on January 23, 2014 for the Wii U.[4][5] Mighty Bomb Jack is a sequel to the 1984 game Bomb Jack.
Plot
Jack, the protagonist of the game, must make his way through 16 levels set within a pyramid in order to defeat the demon Belzebut and rescue the royal Pamera family.[2][6]
Gameplay
Each level is split into two parts; an action zone and a Royal Palace room. The mechanics and level designs of the Royal Palace rooms are directly lifted from Bomb Jack. Action zones can be split up into several portions, and contain power-ups usually hidden in treasure chests such as money bags, Mighty Coins and Mighty Drinks. Mighty Coins allow Jack to change colors; blue allows Jack to open orange treasure chests, orange allows him to open any treasure chest by simply touching it from the side, and green transforms all enemies on the screen into coins for 5 seconds. Mighty Drinks add 10 seconds to the game's timer. Secret passages can also be found in the action zones, activated by finding a Sphinx in a visible or hidden treasure chest.[2][6]
To prevent the player from becoming too "greedy", the game automatically sends the player to a Torture Room if they obtain more than 9 Mighty Coins or 99 seconds on the game's timer. The only way to escape a Torture Room without losing a life is to complete a number of jumps, which are counted down on the screen. Once the player exits the torture room, Jack automatically loses all Mighty Coins, the timer is reset to 60 seconds, and the game recommences from the beginning of the current level.[2][6]
VS. System version
A Nintendo VS. System version of the game was released in 1986 for the Japanese market (not to be confused with the original dedicated arcade version). Differences between the original and VS. versions include adding a two-player mode, changing the locations of some secret passages and removing a warp in the Royal Palace rooms.[2]
Reception
| Reception | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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The game received mixed to negative reviews, with GameSpot calling the game "repetitive" and "broken",[9] while Eurogamer called it "[kind of] clever", though "not exactly deep."[8] IGN called the Wii Virtual Console version of Mighty Bomb Jack "a poor candidate for your time investment."[11]
Nintendo Life criticized the game's platforming and level design, stating that "dynamics of [the game] are somewhat broken" and that "the key to success is anticipating how [enemies] will move in order to get past," because their behavior is "almost random." On the other hand, Nintendo Life praised the Mighty Bomb Jack's secrets for adding some replay value, as well as the game's sense of humor.[10]
References
- ↑ fgasking (2014-11-28). "An interview with Geoff Phillips". Games that Weren't. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Mighty Bomb Jack". Video Game Eden. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
- ↑ "Mighty Bomb Jack for Nintendo 3DS". Nintendo.com. Nintendo. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
- ↑ Winslett, Ryan (2014). "Mighty Bomb Jack, Life Force Explode On Nintendo Virtual Console". Cinemablend. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
- ↑ Cavalli, Earnest (2014). "Mighty Bomb Jack leaps to Wii U Virtual Console this week". Joystiq. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
- 1 2 3 "Mighty Bomb Jack Game Summary". Nintendo Enthusiast. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
- ↑ "Mighty Bomb Jack". Gamerankings.com.
- 1 2 Whitehead, Dan (2007-06-15). "Virtual Console Roundup". Eurogamer. p. 2. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
- 1 2 Provo, Frank (2007-05-18). "Mighty Bomb Jack Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2013-04-13.
- 1 2 Calvert, Darren (2007-04-24). "Review". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
- ↑ Thomas, Lucas M. (2007-05-07). "Mighty Bomb Jack Review". IGN. Retrieved 2014-12-17.
External links
- Mighty Bomb Jack at MobyGames
- Mighty Bomb Jack at MAWS