| Tomba! / Tombi! | |
|---|---|
NTSC version cover art. PAL version cover art. |
|
| Developer(s) | Whoopee Camp |
| Publisher(s) |
|
| Designer(s) | Tokuro Fujiwara |
| Artist(s) | Hideki Hosokawa |
| Writer(s) | Masayoshi Kurokawa Akiro Kinoshita |
| Composer(s) | Harumi Fujita Nao Hatsutani |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation, PlayStation Network |
| Release date(s) | PlayStation PSN |
| Genre(s) | Platformer, adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Rating(s) | |
| Media/distribution | 1 CD-ROM |
Tomba!, known as Ore! Tomba (オレっ!トンバ) in Japan and Tombi! in PAL regions, is a side-scrolling adventure game developed by Whoopee Camp for the Sony PlayStation. Tomba! was followed by a sequel titled Tomba! 2: The Evil Swine Return. The imaginative atmosphere and innovative gameplay of Tomba! has continued to keep it nostalgically popular with gamers. The series is the brainchild of Tokuro Fujiwara, who also created the Ghosts'n Goblins and Mega Man series. It was also one of the earliest PlayStation games to take advantage of the Dual Shock feature.
The intro song to the PAL version, No Sweat!, was performed by the CBBC band, North & South, while the one for the NTSC version is an instrumental of Paradise.
Contents |
The game is based around a mission system, where the main character's (Tomba's) skills are employed to complete various tasks. Completion of a mission gives a certain amount of adventure points (AP) which are required for AP boxes which contain food (which gives you AP and restores 1 space of vitality) or items, and you may for example need 50,000 AP to open one. AP is also used to gain access to special places or information later in the game. Not all missions are necessary to progress in the game, however they are required to achieve full completion. There are 130 events (missions) in the game. Many events rely on other events to be completed. Due to the game resetting itself after the true evil pig has been captured, the last 3 events are completed right after another at the end and thus, the player can only play through the game with 127/130 complete. But, they can save the 'Seven Friends' event onto their file by using the Charity Wings or Baron after going into the pig's lair. And then all that needs to be done is use of the save point that's near the true evil pig gate.
Tomba! is set on a group of islands in the middle of an ocean which do not appear on any map. Formed with great provinces in the north and smaller islands in the south, the region was home to peaceful people who lived in tranquility for many years. The island was once a beautiful place, home to birds and plantations.
The protagonist is an energetic pink-haired youngster named Tomba. One day, seven evil pigs appeared, and using their magical powers, they mutated the surroundings into a bizarre landscape. The underlings of The Evil Pigs, called the Koma Pigs, stole Tomba's grandfather's bracelet and a substantial amount of gold through a strange lust for it.
Tomba's quest is to fetch his bracelet, which requires trapping the Evil Pigs along the way. Trapping them involves finding the Evil Pig Bags, which are keys to entering each realm of each Evil Pig. He must also complete missions for other people to get items and the Evil Pig Bags. Some side-missions are purely for fun and irrelevant to the main storyline.
Tomba
The protagonist of the game. He is known for his wild bushy pink hair and his green (and sometimes purple) shorts. His grandfather's bracelet was stolen by Koma pigs. Throughout his journey he befriends the people of the Dwarf village and the Old Wise Men and in return receives the tools and skills necessary to defeat his enemies.
Charles
Charles is a funky yet hip monkey. Tomba meets Charles when Charles gets stuck in a tree and cannot get down because he is tired from starvation. Tomba then brings him food and in return Charles teaches Tomba some unique abilities such as "The Animal Dash" and later in the game also teaches him to swim. Charles can be seen in the game wearing a red baseball cap, a light-blue vest, pink and white striped shorts and white gloves and shoes. Charles also keeps a parasol with him, which he later in the game gives to Tomba.
100 Year Old Wise Man
This wise man helps Tomba in his journey by giving Tomba a key to unlock treasures. He also tells a story about the evil pigs and assigns Tomba the task of rescuing the chicks located in the Kokka Eggs.
Baron
Baron is a dog, that was ill and with the help of Tomba, he was restored to good health and aided Tomba on his journey, by taking him wherever he needs to go in the game that has been previously visited. Also, Baron has unlimited usage, unlike Charity Wings.
Yan
Yan is a mysterious boy who hides in different places of the game to challenge Tomba to locate him in a "hide and seek" manner.
Despite almost universally positive reviews,[4] Tomba! only sold moderately well. Although it failed to acquire Greatest Hits/Platinum status, it gained a sequel; however, the developer Whoopee Camp went out of business shortly afterward.