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Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds
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Graphics & Sound:
Saying that I liked last year's Buffy the Vampire Slayer on the Xbox would be an understatement of Hellmouth sized proportions. Read nearly any review I posted after that game, and you're more than likely to see some sort of Buffy parallel or comparison. The game is just that damn good -- which is even more remarkable when you consider the less-than-great track record of licensed games. Even harder is trying to follow up that game with one that is equally good. This task fell on the shoulders of Eurocom, who have done an admirable job of keeping with the spirit of both the original game and TV show, but fail to capture the same magic as the previous incarnation. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds looks great in both the special effects and animation departments, but doesn't offer much beyond what we saw in the previous game. All of the game's cast look spot on like their real-life counterparts. One noticeable difference is that Willow finally looks like Alyson Hannigan, rather than that -- well, whatever she was supposed to be in the last game. This upgrade does come at a cost though since the stand-in voice actor (Alyson's voice isn't in the game this time around) sounds nothing like the character. Animation is good, but seems a bit off at times. Most of the time, the fighting moves flow beautifully, but there are times when it looks like a sad production of Riverdance. This is especially noticeable when using two-handed weapons. Environments create a nice virtual representation of the show's locales, complete with all the recognizable landmarks like The Magic Box, Slayer Training Room and massive graveyards that seem to take up 90 percent of the real estate in Sunnydale. Though the game looks good, there is a noticeable lack of craft from what was present in the first game. It may be a minor detail, but the simple things like having characters blink and twitch during cut scenes (as well as having realistic mouth movements instead of marionette up-and-down motions) really helped to make the first game stand out and gave it a life Chaos Bleeds doesn't have. Sound is a high point, especially when you take into account that most of the show's cast have returned to voice their characters. Anthony Stewart Head (Giles), Amber Benson (Tara), Nicholas Brendon (Xander), James Marsters (Spike) and even Eliza Dushku (Faith) reprise their roles and all turn in excellent performances. As with the last game, Sarah-Michelle Gellar doesn't make a vocal appearance, but in the long run that doesn't matter because the sound alike is just as good. Many of Buffy's trademark quips also return, although they do get a little tiring halfway through the game. The soundtrack fits the game's mood perfectly, giving that old-eerie, yet hip feeling to the game. |
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Gameplay:
For those not familiar with the show, a quick recap is in order to get you up to speed. Every generation a young girl is chosen to be a slayer, someone who is imbued with abilities beyond normal people and charged with keeping the world safe from all sorts of evil, vampires or otherwise. Buffy is one such slayer who lives in the quiet community of Sunnydale, which happens to sit atop a Hellmouth, a revolving door into Hell for spirits and demons. As with the first game, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds is written as a lost episode of the show, this time taking place in the show's fifth season. Old adversary Ethan Rayne is back in town and trying to revive Kakistos (an ubervampire that was killed by Faith) as well as The First -- a force which is literally pure evil. Though most of the game follows the adventures of Buffy, players also get the chance to play as five other characters from the show: Faith, Xander, Willow, Spike and Sid the Dummy. Yes, you read the last name on that list correctly. I'm not really sure what toy chest Eurocom dug Sid from, but he's in the game. Again, to get our non-Buffy readers up to speed, Sid the Dummy is a character from the first season. Sid was once a demon hunter who, some how or another, was revived into the body of a ventriloquist's dummy. Yes, if the notion of a ventriloquist's dummy isn't scary enough, this one walks and talks on its own. But anyway -- back to the game... Each of these characters brings something different to the table in terms of abilities. Since they are both slayers, both Buffy and Faith are near-carbon copies of each other. Spike, a vampire, has enhanced speed and strength and generally kicks ass. Willow relies heavily on her magic while Xander, having no real skills other than his quick wit, uses a variety of weapons. A new addition to the game is a Multiplayer aspect, which is a great addition to the game. Chaos Bleeds features four modes of play that help to give the game a little more replay power. Domination is a deathmatch-type battle where you try to control points on a map, Survival is a last-man standing affair, Bunny Catch has you trying to catch as many rabbits as you can and Slayer Challenge pits one player-controlled slayer against player-controlled monsters. As you complete challenges in the Single-player adventure, you can unlock up to 24 characters to use in Multiplayer, including Joss Whedon, the show's creator. |
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Difficulty:
Difficulty, or lack thereof, is perhaps one of the game's biggest flaws. The original game was no easy task. Puzzles were tricky, monsters were smart and weapons weren't falling out of the sky. This isn't the case with Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds. The enemy AI has been toned down drastically, making even hordes of vampires easy to dispatch. All of the strategy and skill of the first game is lost in favor of a straight-forward brawler. The game lacks in challenge, even when playing with weaker characters like Xander, who usually gets his ass kicked on a regular basis on the show. Puzzles also require little higher-order thinking.
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Game Mechanics:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds is very action oriented and brings to mind such brawlers as Final Fight, Streets of Rage and The Bouncer (okay... lets forget that last one). You take control of one of the game's characters and fight your way through the level. The trick is that enemies don't stay down once you deplete their life gauge. Instead, you have to stake them -- which requires something pointy (but not necessarily wooden). The original's deep weapon system is carried over into this incarnation. Numerous objects can be picked up and used as weapons which, after extended use, break (most of the time becoming stakes). There are also areas in the environment where you can use 'natural weapons' (such as the sharp fence tops) to stake enemies. This was one of the elements that didn't quite make it over to the sequel. Part of the fun of the original was that it was a really 'smart' game. Instead of just mindlessly beating vampires and demons you had to take your environment into account and work what you had. Weapons weren't scarce -- but at the same time, not overabundant. Rarely would you walk into a room and see a stake laying there. You either had to find something, like a chair or table, and make your own stake or use something in the environment. This is system is carried over in Chaos Bleeds, but seems more like a gimmick that a true gameplay element. Environmental weapons seem out of place and stakes are just way too easy to get. You can still obtain stakes by breaking tables, but since you can literally just pick up stakes off the floor, it feels like you're just breaking the furniture to be an asshole. All in all, Chaos Bleeds is just an okay game. It still manages to capture the look and feel of the original, but is still lacking. For the most part, the game feels like more of the same and lacks much of what made the original so appealing. The craft just isn't there. Fans, or action buffs, are sure to find something they like about the game -- but don't expect much beyond a brawler with a cute ass.
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-Starscream, GameVortex Communications AKA Ricky Tucker |
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