In a effort to clean up some of the threads in here, I'm trying to make a list of questions that have been asked many times before. We'll start with the most common.

Bomberman Live FAQ AnOffday 8/03/07

How do I unlock costume balls?
Set up a local game with at least 3 CPU players, and make sure it's at least 2:00 minutes long. (I suggest setting it to at least 3 minutes so you have plenty of time) At around 1:01 or 2:02, depending on how much time you set, a diamond object will appear somewhere on the map. Grab it and you've unlocked a new item. You can now finish the game, or take a loss and leave. Collect 60 to unlock the Extreme Makeover achievement. Be aware that sometimes the balls will not appear. Simply start a new game. They appear more often than not.

How many people does the game support?
Bomberman Live can support up to 8 people playing at once. It's also possible to have up to 3 other friends on the same Xbox play over Live through player matches.

Can you play with BOTS (CPU players) online as well?
No. Real people only on Live.

Can you customize your Bomberman?
Yes! There are 60 unlockable hats, faces, and clothing styles to customize your Bomberman with more on the way. It has been said that right now there are over 10,000 different combinations.

Is there DLC on the way?
Yes. A Hudson developer came into the forums and confirmed it here.

New stages, characters, themes, gamerpics, and at least one new gametype are on the way.

Fellow Xbox forum user Banstyle also posted some very useful information on the upcoming content here.

Here is what he posted:

30 Days after launch:

* 1 new game mode - Most Frags
* 2 stages - Air Ship and Las Vegas
* 10 new characters (which, I assume means 30 new pieces of costume in total)
* 5 Gamerpics
* 1 Theme

60 Days after launch:

* 2 stages - Race and Dreamland
* 10 new characters
* 5 Gamerpics
* 1 Theme

90 Days after launch:

* 2 stages - Candy World and Inferno
* 10 new characters
* 5 Gamerpics
* 1 Theme

What does ______ power up look like and what does it do?
Fire Up (red flame with eyes open) - Increases the bomb blast range by one level.  Maxes out after 5 pickups.
Speed Up (roller skate) - Increases movement speed by one level.  Maxes out after 4 pickups.
Bomb Up (blue bomb) - Increases bomb count by one.  Maxes out after 7 pickups.
Full Fire (yellow flame with eyes closed) - Upgrades bomb blast to the highest level on all bombs.
Bomb Punch (red boxing glove) - Punch any bomb in your path with the X button.
Bomb Kick (foot kicking a bomb) - Kick any bomb by running into it.  Stop it by pressing the RT button.
Power Glove (blue glove) - Plant a bomb, pick it up and throw it with the A button.
Line Bomb (3 bombs linked together) - Drop all bombs in a row at once with the X button.
Power Bomb (bomb with a P on it) - The first bomb you plant has maximized fire power.
Dangerous Bomb (bomb with a skull on it) - The blast expands in a square. Upgrade it by collecting Fire-Ups.
Pass Through Bomb (bomb with spikes on it) - Blast penetrates soft blocks.
Remote Bomb (bomb inside of a heart) - Detonate bombs with a press of the B button.
Land Mine Bomb (light blue bomb divided into 4 sections) - The first planted bomb hides in the ground.

And what about power downs?
Speed Down (roller skate with a down arrow over it) - Decreases walking speed by one level.  Will never hit zero.
Fire Down (blue flame with eyes closed) - Decreases blast range by one level.  Will never hit zero.
Bomb Down (bomb with down arrow over it) - Decreases bomb count by one.  Will never hit zero.

Skulls (4 types, avoid at all costs)

- Invisibility – You become invisible to everyone, including yourself.
- Bombherrhea – You uncontrollably drop bombs.
- Super Fast/Slow – You move incredibly fast or agonizingly slow.
- Fast/Slow Detonation – Your bombs prematurely detonate, or take seemingly forever to go off.

Can these be turned off/on?
Yes. You can choose to play with power ups on/off or power downs on/off.

What about the gametypes?
There are currently 4, with a 5th on the way.

Normal – The classic, last man standing Bomberman mode.
Paint Bomb – The goal here is to paint as many tiles as you can using the explosions from your bombs.  Your bombs still kill other players, and when you get a frag, that player's tiles are erased!  Stay alive and keep painting!
Zombie – Like Paint Bomb mode, but you can’t die!  Your little guy keeps getting back up, over and over, until time expires.  However, there’s still a penalty: you lose all of your power-ups and painted tiles when you get hit by a bomb!  Zombie matches might very well come down to a last-second bomb!
Bombing Run - Just like normal, only everyone is crazy fast.

The fifth gametype on the way will be "Most Frags." Also known as, deathmatch.

What's a "frag"?
A frag is simply another name for a kill.

I heard the vision camera was supported in Bomberman Live?
To an extent. After the match is over, it takes a shot of all the losers (with cams, of course) and posts their picture, while the winner is displayed to show off his victory dance, or whatever he desires. Just remember people, We don't want it to turn into Uno.

"Joy of Painting with Bomberman" and "The Name's Bomb, Dangerous Bomb" made easy!
Hoping that this helpful thread doesn't get lost forever, I'm also linking this very detailed and helpful tip from Maple Grunt here.

I'm sick of waiting 10 minutes after every round for people to hit the A button!
In the above question on DLC, the Hudson developer also confirmed that a fix is coming soon for this as well. Hang tight.

And finally...

Should I buy this game?
YES. No more threads asking. The answer is YES. Bomberman Live is one of the best, if not the best, game on XBLA.

The Skulls do not make you super fast or make your bombs blow up slow.

I know that the games "How to Play" says there are such skulls, but there are not.  My guess is those skulls were turned off right before release.

 

Just thought Id let you know.