The Battle Game (バトルゲーム), also known as Battle Mode, VS. Mode, Battle or Battle Stage, is a recurring gameplay element in the Bomberman series.

Description

It is usually the mode used in multiplayer, where the player can compete with other players, either human or computer. It was first introduced in Bomber Boy (Game Boy) as VS. Mode for 2 players, then it became Battle with up to 5 players in Bomberman (PC Engine), and since then, it has been pretty much present in most of the Bomberman games. The main objective is to be the last player standing to win the round (though some game variants may change the victory conditions).

Game Modes

• Normal/Standard/Survival: Traditional battle game mode. Last player/team standing wins.
• Hyper Bomber: Collect 3 Target Panels from the Soft Blocks (or from other Bombermen), then get to the center gate before your opponent(s) does.
• Submarine: Players and the field are split into two sides. Each of their Bombs have a visible timer, and when the Bomb timer hits 1, that Bomb will be transported to the opposite side of the field (unless that tile is occupied, then it will be transported right back). Last side standing wins.
• Panel Paint/Reversi: Bomb explosions now paint the tiles to that player's color. Most tiles owned when the time runs out (or when there's the last player standing, or when everyone is eliminated in some games) wins.
• Ring Match/Point Battle: Each times a player defeats someone, they'll get a point, but each time they defeat themselves, they'll lose a point. Most points after time ran out wins.
• Coin Battle: Destroy Soft Blocks to release the Coins inside them (or loot from other Bombermen or from Bandits). Most Coins accumulated when the timer hit zero wins.
  • Star Battle: Similar gameplay. The key difference is that the Star Panel doesn't bounce around when released from Soft Block, also not all Soft Block contain Star Panel.
• Dodge Battle/Air Raid: Bombs is raining down onto the arena, players may try to dodge the explosion, or use Special Abilities (such as Kick and Punch) against the Bombs. No one may set any Bomb in this mode.
• Castle Mode: This mode can be played with up to 16 players, 1 Vs. 15. It is divided into two teams; "Attack Side" (15 players) and "Castle Side" (1 Player).
• Grand Prix Mode: This mode is for 2 teams of 3 players.
• Battle 64 Mode: This mode can be played with up to 64 players.
• Charabom Battle: As a Battle Mode, it is featured in only Bomberman Max and Bomberman Max 2, for 1 or 2 players only. Players uses Charaboms to battle against another.

Rules & Options Settings

These are the options that you can change before the battles start. Below are listed the most recurring options in the Battle Games.

• Player Select: Determine how many players are in the battle and if they either are controlled by the player, or a computer.
• COM Level: Determine the difficulty of CPU players. In some games, you can set each CPU player level individually.
• Matches: Determine how many games that the player needs to win the match.
• Time: Determine how long each round will last, usually in multiple of 1 minute to 5 minutes and even 30 seconds. Some games offered an infinite time limit.
• Sudden Death: If this option is ON, when the timer reaches a certain point, Pressure Blocks will start raining until there is nothing left to be filled. If this option is OFF, either the game will leave the center open or there'll be no Pressure Blocks at all.
• Team: Whether or not you want to set a team game (this requires at least 3 players or more, with the exception for the DS and Blast).
• Start Position: Determine where each player's starting position is. Fixed means that each player will start at their exact position each round. Random means that each player's positions are swapped with other players' positions in each round.
• Bonus Game: If this option is ON, the player who won the match will have a chance to win Items for the next match.
• Revenge Bombers: If this option is ON, defeated players will appear on the edges of the battle map and throw bombs at the other remaining players while riding Bad Bomber carts.
• Item Select: Allow you to set a number of items that appear in the battle.
• Handicap: Allow you to select which items (or how much hp) the players will have before the battle.
• Skull: If this is option is ON, Skulls will spawn from Soft Blocks during the matches. In some games, this option is merged into the Item Settings instead.
• Power-Up Settings: Allow you to set the power-ups if there are Burnable or Fireproof. Burnable are destroyed with a bomb blast, while Fireproof they cannot be destroyed.

There are also some other options that existed only in a few games:

• G-Bomber: In some games, if this option is enabled, after winning an entire round, the player will return as Golden Bomber on the battlefield.
• Ghost: Similar to Revenge Bombers, when this option is ON, the defeated players will turn into ghosts and will be able to get "revenge" on the other living players.
• Scavenger: Whether or not the defeated player Items is scattered on the map.
• Select Level: Determine which set of character, stages and certain rules option can be used.
• Slots: If this option is ON, a Slot Machine will appear at the start of each round, setting a starting Item for each player (first introduced in Bomberman Land 2).