Super Bomberman R 2 Release Date & NEW Castle Details!

 

On April 10th, 2023 (or 9th in other places), Konami would dump a bunch of info about the game in a new trailer and the opening of a website proper after half a year of nothing!

Because there's just so much to talk about, I'm going to break everything down into a bunch of sections before breaking off to editorialize for a bit, visiting one or two other topics, and wrapping everything up.

1.) The trailer itself:

Taken from IGN

The trailer itself doesn't really show much that's new. The only really noteworthy thing here is that we now get to see the enhanced graphics and improved assets in other modes, including the story mode. Additionally, we learn that Castle Mode has received a major gameplay change. In initial media, we only saw player protecting the fortress while 15 others came after your treasure. Seen both here and on the website, it's now stated that up to 16 players are divided into two teams, meaning that there's now more than one person on the defensive. 

In the background, we hear what I'm assuming is a new song and we see bits and pieces of certain cutscenes. We also learn of the game's release dates: September 13th in North America and the 14th everywhere else, including Japan for whatever reason.

No, where all the MAJOR details that arguably should've been here actually are is actually on the website.

2.) Actual Story mode details:

To quote the website directly:
When an unidentified black moon starts destroying cities in the planets of the galaxy,
mechanical superheroes known as the Bomberman Brothers rise to confront it.
Along the way, they meet Ellons, mysterious lifeforms in the ruins of a planet…

We learn more about who the small denizens are, with the Ellon being these helpful little folks, the Lugion being the quintessential bad guys who're out mining the Ellonite for the still nameless big bad, and then the ACTUAL name for the mecha variants. Previously, I'd been calling them the Lugion, but now we know they're actually called the Lugibon, which marks the first time a Japanese name actually sees use. Instead of 'bom' at the end of certain names, 'bon' seems to be used a lot in lots of media.We also learn that the Lugibon mechas actually vary in two types: ones that focus on speed and one in power. 

We also now know that one of the puzzles is called 'Don't look back', and seem to revolve around tightly getting around pointy corridors. The reward for these overall seems to be Ellonite.

3.) Castle Mode:

Divided into two teams, within a time limit, the goal is to either protect or steal treasure! To get said goodies, the offense team must collect keys first, which puts them in contact with the other team. In addition to collecting power-ups and the like, the defense team gets these big swords that can cause damage to enemies (and probably can only be used once every 30 or so seconds), as well as an artillery of turrets and other gimmicks to get in people's way. 

And as I previously suspected, the new level editor in all reality, actually surrounds castle gimmicks, which is neat until you realize that you'll likely only be editing the layout of certain blocks, turrets, and whatnot while the geography of the surrounding stage will be preset. No springs, bridges, or anything to those sorts. This is all in addition, of course, to...

4.) The Returning Modes:

The basic Battle mode, Grand Prix [regular and crystals], and Battle 64 are all here. No real changes present aside from the addition of the new lighting and explosions. The most I'm expecting to see is the newer set of characters added from Super Bomberman R Online and the Lugibon. 

Now, if I may speak candidly here, I'm still not all too enthralled by the game.

Not a big surprise, I realize. I've already been openly-critical on the game's lack of actual new content, despite Konami's insistence that this is going to be the BIGGEST game in the series. The story mode isn't really catching my attention from what very little we've seen, and the overall look, minus the more dynamic lighting, just isn't my cup of tea. I also may have been huffing some serious copium and deluding myself into thinking that Konami was going to invite series long-time composer Jun Chikuma back on to do a song or two, given all the collabs they've been doing with her as of late.

And while this could very well still be possible, if the trailer music is anything to go by, then my hopes have well since been dashed. It sounds more or less like Elements Garden's typical contributions, which aren't at all bad. Maybe we'll get some good new battle themes. 
But, man. A Redial remix sure would be nice... only time will tell if we'll get it.

...and that's it for now. Thank you all so much for reading my mindless rambles once again, and be sure to stay tuned to the Bomberman Channel website and (hopefully) YouTube channel for all the latest updates. I'll be catching you all on the other side of the BOOM!