Will Bomberman bomb on the Wii?

Bomberman games tend to appear like buses - three come along at once. Recently there have been a couple of titles up for grabs on other formats, so it's about time the Wii saw some of the action. Now we're being promised an exclusive Wii Bomberman game in January 2008, so is it time to get excited? Hudson has released the following bits of info on their 'explosive' Wii title: (Groan... -Ed)

Title: Bomberman Land
Launch Date: January 2008
Platform: Wii
Genre: Action
ESRB: Everyone / Cartoon Violence
Publisher: Hudson Entertainment
Developer: HUDSON SOFT

Game Description
Adventure, Mini-games, and Multiplayer Action.

Embark on a fun-filled, theme park adventure as you discover intrigue and a host of addicting mini-games throughout 5 unique Zones. Also included, is the original Bomberman Battle game. Battle up to 4 friends and find out who is king Bomberman.

Key Features

* 50 Mini-games - Extreme sports fan? Try your hand at the Skateboarding mini-game...Do you love Sci-Fi? Try out the Laser Ball mini-game. With 50 unique, addictive mini-games there's something here for everyone.

* Character Customization - Customize and create you very own Bomberman character with

* Fun-filled Adventure - Bomberman Land has broken into pieces, uncover the mysteries and restore Bomberman Land by collecting all the pieces and put Bomberman Land back together again.

* Multiplayer Action -Go head-to-head and battle up to 4 players in either all 50 mini-games or the original Bomberman Game.

* Original Bomberman Battle Game Included! - The Original Bomberman Battle game is included with all new maps and power up items. Multiplayer Strategy Action doesn't get better than this!

But, does it though? We think it does. Up until now, every single time a Bomberman game has veered away from what makes the franchise truly great (a square screen with players battling it out with bombs) it has, if you'll excuse the pun, bombed big time. So to Hudson, we say this:

Stick to what works well, and don't sell out to cheesy platform nonsense. Mini games work well, but the history of Bomberman platform games reads like a list of train wrecks.