A few games have tried over the years, but none have really captured the spirit of explosive, sometimes-manic arena combat quite like Bomberman. Candygun seems to have its sights on the genre king with Dollar Dash, opting for an even-less-controlled dynamic and an interesting scoring system.

What it is: In Dollar Dash, you play as a person of questionable character. See, you’re trying to steal money. That’s the game. The thing is that other people are also trying to steal the money, so you shoot them with various weapons and drop various hazards to let you grab the money first and, when the opportunity presents itself, bank the money in a vehicle.

Why we’re excited: There’s something crazy going on at any given moment. In the mad dash to gather powerups and shoot them at friends, and pick up cash as it appears around the area, you’re bound to do something dumb and lose some of the cash you already picked up. Having three separate slots, comprising weapons, dropped hazards and healing or boosts, makes for a bit more variety in combat. Also, there are a few other modes that change things up within the same framework, though the main Dollar Dash setup is clearly the most curated.

What we’re wondering: There seems to be no rubberbanding mechanic in the game, meaning that if you’re playing someone skilled, there’s very little you can do to stop them. There’s always the chance of teaming up to shoot a guy and keep him from depositing his cash and winning the game, but it’s unclear whether that’s a viable strategy at this point. Also, the precision on the controls isn’t great. It leads to more manic battles, but we’re not sure if it will remain fun and avoid frustration over the long term.

Dollar Dash will land on 360, PS3 and PC later this year.