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 Blood
Wake
Stormfront Studios
Microsoft
Action/Racing
XBox
Blood Wake is gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous. The water glistens in
the sun as a lone boat skips from wave to wave as the waves crash
on the rocks to the left and right. But is Blood Wake something
other than a fifty dollar tech demo.
Sort of. Blood Wake is an intriguing game that starts off on a
slow foot. Water borne combat is slightly sluggish because boats
aren't nearly as responsive as the cars in Twisted Metal or even
the R-Wings in Star Fox. But what it does have is the interesting
addition of water. In Twisted Metal, all you needed to worry about
was how the terrain varied and in Star Fox, there were merely
objects to get in the way. But in Blood Wake, because you're stuck
to the water, the water is always changing depending on if you're
in the wake of another boat or if there's explosions surrounding
you or even if the wind's strong enough to create waves.
 Control
is fairly simple. The left analog or the D-pad controls both the
throttle and the rudders. This can be both a good and a bad thing
because at times the reverse will kick in if you turn to hard
which will tweak your turn in the opposite direction. The right
analog lets you look around and zoom in from afar, while the left
trigger is your machine guns and the right trigger is the
secondary fire. The buttons on the right include functions of
weapons cycle, HUD toggle and boost.
The story starts off rather slowly, you are Shao Kai, a boat pilot
who is picked out of the sea by Pad Zang, a pirate and leader of a
group of mercenaries called the Shadow Clan. He offers you a
position in the Shadow Clan. As you climb the ladder of leadership
in the Shadow Clan you meet many characters including your
Co-Pilot, Lady Helena, Lord Brana of the Jade Kingdom and the
leader of the Iron Guard, your brother; Shao Lung. The story gets
more complicated and weaves the missions fairly well and gets much
better later.
 As
far as missions are concerned, there are a few that stand out and
are fun as heck. But there are others that are frustrating not
because of difficulty, but because of overwhelming odds. It comes
down to the fact that if there are shore batteries on a level,
your chance of survival drops significantly. Also, protecting
junks can prove to be difficult under these conditions because
loss of a junk isn't taken too light-heartedly.
Multiplayer is interesting too, but again, boat combat is a bit
slower than other vehicle combat games. Two newbies playing is a
little frustrating to watch, but its a fairly easy learning curve.
There's a fair number of modes available other than typical
death-match combat. But unfortunately, every level is restricted
to arenas.
But the best part is the interaction with the water. Be it stormy
or rough waters, the physics engine does an outstanding job of
simulating wakes of water and splashes appear and affect your
boat. Be it waves from the concussion of a torpedo or the wake of
another boat, it makes a difference where you pilot your vessel.
It also makes for some interesting flying boats once in a while.
 However,
a downfall of this game is its variety. While the weapon selection
of torpedoes, mines, rockets and even some energy weapons is good.
It doesn't have nearly enough customization that it craves to
have. Not to mention that you're forced to take one approach to
each mission with one boat.
All in all, this game starts off very slowly, but it gradually
gains speed and picks up the pace into some fairly heated battles.
With a good host of weapons to choose from, a very good control
scheme, a decent story and a solid multiplayer, this game cashes
in at the end. But it just leaves me craving a little more after
28 missions. Some better Easter Eggs perhaps?
Final Verdict: 8/10
Stormfront
Studios
Planet
XBox |
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