Get Equipped Analysis: Hyper Bomb

by Redmage1987

Time to get hyped for Hyper Bomb!

Damage Data: The numbers represent the amount of hits it takes to kill each enemy. If there is a zero, then the enemy isn’t hurt by the weapon.

The Hyper Bomb is a high power explosive than can be thrown at an arc in front of Mega Man, and is obtained by defeating Bomb Man. After being on the screen for two and a half seconds, the bomb detonates into a huge explosion. Please note that the bomb doesn’t have to be sitting still for two and a half seconds, it just needs to be on the screen for two and a half seconds. You can only have one bomb on the screen at a time, and each bomb consumes two bars of energy, thus giving you 14 uses to a full bar of weapon energy.

The Hyper Bomb is as powerful as it gets in Mega Man 1. With the exception of Big Eye, these explosives can take out any stage enemy in just one hit. However, getting the enemies to sit still long enough to be hit by the explosion is a whole different story. Two and a half seconds might not sound like very long, but it’s more than enough time for almost any stage enemy to either move out of the way or put up their defense. Even if you pair the Hyper Bomb with the Ice Slasher to freeze enemies while you blow them to pieces, it’s still not worth it in the long run because other weapons can take them out more quickly and easily.

The best boss to use Hyper Bomb on is Guts Man, and it also does significant damage to Ice Man. However, it’s just as easy to fight Guts Man with the Mega Buster because he can simply jump to the side to avoid the Hyper Bomb’s explosion before it detonates. I would also recommend using the Mega Buster over Hyper Bomb on Ice Man if you don’t have the Thunder Beam at the time because trying to place the Hyper Bomb in a good enough position while avoiding his Ice Slashers just isn’t worth it. Furthermore, you can score just as much (or more) damage on both of these Robot Masters by shooting them with the Mega Buster in the same amount of time it takes the Hyper Bomb to explode.

The Hyper Bomb is also tied for the weapon that deals the most damage to the Copy Robot. It’s tied with the Thunder Beam and Fire Storm, both of which are not only easier to use, but also quicker at dealing damage since you don’t have to wait for anything to blow up. Furthermore, you would have to make sure to hit the Copy Robot with every Hyper Bomb because it deals as much damage to him as it consumes from your energy. I would, however, recommend trying to fight the Copy Robot with Hyper Bomb at least one time just for a fun personal challenge.

So where would be the best place to use this weapon? Well, you’re honestly better off using other weapons for pretty much every situation, but there are a couple of places where Hyper Bomb can work…

On the Pickel Men in Guts Man’s Stage. Once these guys hop on to the screen, they immediately drop their shield and start throwing pick axes at you. Throw a bomb where they jump at and then avoid their pick axes until the bomb explodes.

By using the Super Arm or Thunder Beam to get Mega Man into a safe position, you can use Hyper Bomb to destroy this Big Eye with no trouble.

The Hyper Bomb is also good for taking out Gabyoalls pretty much anywhere.

Adhering Suzis and grounded Screwdrivers are also easy to wipe out with the Hyper Bomb.

In Dr. Wily Stage 2, there are three places where you can throw a bomb down to a lower area to lessen the threat below.

Likewise, in Dr. Wily Stage 3, there are two places where you can also do that.

Before we move on to discuss where the Hyper Bomb is rated when compared to the other weapons, let’s fill in those “N/A” marks on the damage chart shall we? Normally you couldn’t hurt the Yellow Devil or Dr. Wily during either phase of the final battle because the Hyper Bombs take too long to explode and thus are out of the range of your enemy. However, by inputting the first Game Genie code above (YSKZLYAE), you can cause the detonation time for the Hyper Bomb to go from two and a half seconds down to one second. By inputing the second Game Genie code above (AZTOOG), you can lower the gravity, thus letting Mega Man jump about half a screen high. This also allows the Hyper Bombs to stay in the air longer, thus letting you throw them further. By using these two Game Genie codes you can keep the Hyper Bomb in the air long enough to hurt the three enemies you previously couldn’t damage. And thus the damage changes. Observe:

As you can see, Hyper Bomb doesn’t hurt the Yellow Devil at all, and even using a Game Genie to deal damage to Dr. Wily, it still isn’t worth it because the damage is minimal. You’re much better off using other weapons against all three of these bosses.

With no secondary functions to improve its usefulness, this weapon has to rely on its sheer power to measure up to the other weapons, but high power means nothing if the enemy can easily avoid the attack. On top of that, being a weapon of destruction also means that it has competition with some of the other Mega Man 1 weapons like Thunder Beam, Fire Storm, and Rolling Cutter. All three of which are not only easier to use than the Hyper Bomb, but they can also take out the various stage enemies just as quickly.

The Hyper Bomb has its uses throughout the various stages, sure. The problem, though, is that the other attack weapons are better suited for every one of those situations because they cost less weapon energy, are easier to use, and can take out the enemies faster. Even Guts Man, the one boss who is truly weak to Hyper Bomb, is just as easily dealt with by using the Mega Buster.

If the Hyper Bomb exploded on contact with an enemy, or if the detonation time was shortened, then this weapons usefulness would be drastically increased. This weapon also could have been more useful if there were more high spots to stand on to throw bombs down below at. The few areas where you can do that, you can only kill a couple of enemies with that strategy and the Thunder Beam can do the job better with its downward beam.

The Hyper Bomb is a very powerful weapon, yes, but the lengthy detonation time really hurts its usefulness. Again, high power means nothing if the enemies can avoid it so easily. The bosses who would go down quick to this weapon go down just as easily with the standard Mega Buster, and you’re always better off using a different attack weapon throughout the stages. Overall, I would have to rate this as the worst weapon not only in Mega Man 1, but also as one of the worst in the entire Classic series.

—

Redmage 1987 is a member of The Mega Man Network’s User Content Submission System, and the views expressed here reflect the views of the authors alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Mega Man Network.