Eric and the Floaters (MSX) Playthrough

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Published on September 13, 2023 11:58:49 AM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_6k3Ajm_0g

Game:

Super Bomberman R 2 (2023)

Category:

Let's Play

Duration: 20:45

2,120 views

85

A playthrough of Kuma's 1984 maze-action game for MSX computers, Eric and the Floaters.

As you might expect from a game that weighs in at just 16K, there is no end goal, so in this video I played until I lost my last life on level 21.

Bomberman, perhaps the best-enduring icon of Hudson Soft's legacy, turns forty this year. As Konami -cashes in on- commemorates the history of the company it ground to dust under its corporate heel with the release of Super Bomberman R 2, I wanted to take a look back at the roots of the franchise.

Though Bomberman's NES debut (1985 in Japan, 1989 in North America) was the game that propelled him to stardom, it was preceded by two lesser-known games produced for 8-bit computers in the early eighties.

The first, Bomberman (爆弾男 / Bakudanotoko), was released in Japan in 1983 for a wide range of PC platforms, including the MSX, PC-88, and FM-7.

The following year, the game was brought to Europe with releases on the MSX and ZX Spectrum, though it was sold under a couple of different names. In the UK, it was "Eric and the Floaters," and in Spain, "Don Pepe y los Globos" (Don Pepe and the Balloons). As active as the IRA was in England at the time, I can only imagine that the change was made in an attempt to dodge controversy over any of the tasteless implications a name like "Bomberman" might carry.

So, sorry to disappoint, but "Eric and the Floaters" has nothing to do with a man who has yet to learn the value of the courtesy flush.

The game is extremely simple, but many of the series' central mechanics are established here. Eric has to use his bombs to clear the maze of enemies in order to finish a stage. He can drop up five at a time, and along with killing, they can be used to blow up soft blocks in order to corral enemies and reveal bonus items. There are no ability upgrades, and since Eric and the floaters can pass through bombs, the gameplay centers on timing your blasts instead of the trapping of your enemies as was seen in the later games.

It's not pretty and it's not deep, but Bomberman, Eric, and Don Pepe's adventure helped to lay the foundation for one of gaming's most beloved heroes.

Happy Birthday, Bomberman!
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