Posts Tagged ‘Monolith Productions’

May 24th, 2019 Featured, PC, Reviews No Comments »

Blood: Fresh Supply Review

Developer: Monolith Productions, Nightdive Studios
Publisher: Nightdive Studios
Platform: PC – GOG, Steam

I first tried to play Blood years ago but failed due to extreme inability on my part. The game seemed way too tough to even survive the first level! All these years later, Blood: Fresh Supply is out attempting to be the “best” version available. Fans seem to disagree, but from my vantage point, it’s a fine release.

My reason to try the game again after disliking it initially was simple. A friend (Anne from Chic Pixel) brought up playing it in co-op. So we did. This might be why the game was easier this time around. Either way, it took just around ten hours to finish the game.

As far as gameplay is concerned, it’s very much a title in the style of classic Doom. You fight cult members, zombies, gargoyles, and awful disembodied hands from a first person perspective. Enemies are still 2D, and sometimes get stuck on level geometry.

There’s very little strategy required in Blood: Fresh Supply. Mainly you just need to stay stocked up with weapons and shoot anything that moves. The real challenge (and annoyance) comes in level designs which sometimes prove confusing. That, and platforming which proves difficult with the control scheme. Also, maybe this was a bug, but the co-op mode never played any cutscenes!

While Blood: Fresh Supply may not have been the most astonishingly enjoyable and bug-free experience out there, it still whet my appetite for more retro FPSes.

2 out of 5 alpacas
October 23rd, 2014 Featured, PC, Reviews No Comments »

Blood: One Unit Whole Blood Review

Blood: One Unit Whole Blood Boxart

Developer: Monolith Productions, 3D Realms
Publisher: GT Interactive, Atari
Platform: PC – GOG*, Steam

Blood: One Unit Whole Blood might just be a game with the most redundant title around. It also happens to be a classic FPS from the 90s. Well, classic to some. I’d always heard murmurings of Blood alongside Doom and Quake but never got around to playing it myself – until now. I’ll tell you one thing, it certainly lives up to its name.

Of course a game called Blood is full of bloodstained nastiness but is there more to it than that? There’s a storyline, although it doesn’t seem to convey very much of interest. The scenes instead seem focused on showcasing awesome 3D models and lighting (awesome for the time, that is). Once you get beyond that it basically devolves into your standard older-style FPS.

Blood: One Unit Whole Blood Featured

Areas are all enclosed, although some are much larger than others. Movement is incredibly fast, almost as if the protagonist is wearing roller blades while decimating enemies. Said weapons are brutal although so are enemies. Even on the easiest difficulty the pace of Blood is fast and never lets up. If you can survive then there are a good deal of “episodes” to play. This is further enhanced by both the GOG and Steam versions including the Plasma Pak and Cryptic Passage expansion packs.

When compared to other games of the time period I feel that Blood was attempting to thematically outdo other games while maintaining a classic aesthetic. It has a neat Gothic feel at times, sure, but otherwise fails to stand out. Blood: One Unit Whole Blood is one of the many average shooters that have graced PCs over the years.

Score: 2.5

2 1/2 out of 5 alpacas

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