Collingwood21 the Vampire Slayer (Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Chaos Bleeds (PS2))

Member Name: collingwood21

Product:	Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Chaos Bleeds (PS2)
Date:	02/12/03 (189 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Huge levels to explore, Mostly voiced by actors from the TV show

Disadvantages: Poor multiplayer gaming

"Chaos Bleeds" is the second Buffy the Vampire Slayer game to be produced as part of the franchise from the now finished but still highly popular TV show. The previous release was simply titled "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", but as I am only a recent convert to this syndicate, then I'll have to admit to never having played it (so no comparisons, I'm afraid). This game, as the name well suggests, is centred around the characters in the show and has been marketed heavily towards fans of Buffy rather than fans of action games in general. There is no good reason for non-viewers of the show not to enjoy playing this game, but those who did watch it will get an awful lot more out of Chaos Bleeds.


- The Setting
You take the controls as one of six characters from the Buffy-verse: normally the slayer herself, but at times you also get to play Spike, Faith, Xander, Willow or Sid the Dummy. The plotline is set up as a "missing episode" from the latter part of season 5 (from between episodes 17 and 18 is you want to be a real geek). The game opens with a pretty much typical evening in Sunnydale, with Buffy and Co fighting off an attack of vampires in the friendly local magic shop (as you do), when one accidentally lets slip that uber-vampire Kakistos is back in town. Which is rather odd considering Faith dusted him the last time he put in an appearance in Sunnydale, but there you go, I guess some guys never learn. What follows is part puzzle game and part battle against the hellmouth's various beasties, culminating in a big show down the very epitome of evil itself, The First.


- Gameplay
This is a third person game, so you can see the character you are playing - giving the game designers ample opportunity to create models based on the actors from the Buffy show. This is done to varying degrees of success. The Xander model looks so scarily like Nicholas Brendon that you have to wonder whether he has been
sucked into the game in a Tron style accident. Giles, Willow and Spike are perfectly recognisable for who they are - even if they do look a little like caricatures of themselves - while the Buffy model unfortunately only bears a passing resemblance to Sarah Michelle Geller. And if I were Eliza Dushku (Faith) I would be left wondering if the designers had ever actually seen a picture of me (or if it were really necessary to give me breasts THAT big). The game also adds a sense of atmosphere by providing the voices of most of the cast. Only Sarah Michelle Geller and Alyson Hannigan are AWOL, apparently too big and important to revive their characters for the gaming public. Still, the stand-in soundalikes do a competent job of replacing them, and I only realised they weren't the genuine article when I read the credits.

The involvement of multiple playable characters is an excellent addition to the game. It not only assists the storyline by making it more than a simple "Buffy killing vampires" game, but also increases playability hugely. The game designers have taken into account the differences between the characters when creating their handling and fighting moves. For example, Buffy, Faith and Spike would be naturally expected to have more strength, style and reality-defying moves, whilst Willow would not have anywhere near as much physical power, so she fights with magic spells that she learns during the game. Xander and Sid, meanwhile, have neither of these skills: you have to learn different styles of fighting again to succeed with these characters. This all adds a great deal of depth, challenge and fun to the game. But don't worry too much about this being a serious beat-em-up with complicated moves to learn. You have the same exaggerated fight scenes and sense of irony as you would expect anywhere in the Buffy-verse - such as finding super soaker guns filled with holy water just handily laying around for anyone to find. ;-)

The
re is more to Chaos Bleeds than just combat, though. In order to complete each level, you will need to solve puzzles of increasing fiendishness, although mostly they rest on the principle of finding and retrieving objects. I was reminded very much in places of a tongue-in-cheek version of the Resident Evil games! Although the continuing fetch-quests can get a little samey, the strong storyline and regular injections of humour into the game stop this from being a problem. For the majority of Chaos Bleeds, I found the balance of puzzle and combat elements to be satisfying and well done.

Away from the main game, Chaos Bleeds also offers an additional two components - a multiplayer option and a bundle of extras, both of which can become gradually unlocked as you play through the single player mode. There are four different multiplayer games: survival (fight against the other player, last one standing being the winner); bunny catcher (try to catch more point scoring bunnies than your opponent); slayer challenge (where one player is Buffy and the other controls the monsters) and domination (a king-of-the-hill style game). These modes each support up to 4 players, with there being 24 characters to play once you have unlocked them all. It is a nice addition to consider multiplayer gaming (not enough PS2 games do in my opinion) although it really isn't well done. The camerawork is poor, playability is low and they feel just like something that has been tacked on to the end of the game for the sake of it. The extras, on the other hand, are a welcome addition to Chaos Bleeds, and will appeal to any fans of Buffy. Included are cast and writer interviews, out-takes, voice-overs and a photo gallery.

Chaos Bleeds has 12 levels in total, all created with a loving attention to the world created by the TV show. Each level ranges in length, taking from between 30 minutes and 90 minutes to play through, and is equipped with up to 5 "secrets" for you to
find. As finding these secrets not only helps you to beat the level, but also is the key to unlocking multiplayer characters and extras, there is a great temptation to replay levels and try to find the things you missed previously. This means there is plenty of gameplay to be had!


- My Opinion
Visuals - Although good, especially in the detailed cut-scene animations, I can't help but think that the graphics for Chaos Bleeds look the tiniest bit dated. (I'm told that they look better on the Cube and X Box, though). 7/10

Sound - The music is mostly all lifted directly from the TV show, but it has been used to good effect to convey both times of tension and danger, and those of humour. The voice acting is of a very high standard, both from those involved in the Buffy show and the stand-ins, and the little sound bites introduced into the game remain amusing even after hours of gameplay. 9/10

Difficulty - You can learn the basic moves you need to play Chaos Bleeds within about 20 minutes; although the game does naturally get steadily harder as you progress. The difficulty curve is good, although it really takes some practice to defeat those end of level bosses! However, help is available in the form of the slayer challenge multiplayer option: this can be played in single player mode, and used as a training arena to practice your fighting moves. 7/10

Lifespan - The clever inclusion of hidden "secrets" increases the lifespan beyond what you would normally expect from a 12 level game. There is a huge incentive to go back and try and find the hidden areas so that you can access more extras. It is not until you have found all of a level's secrets that you can get access to all of the locked material assigned to it. I would reckon this would give most gamers a good few weeks of happy playing. 8/10

Playability - A bit variable. While some levels are compulsive and absorbing, others can get a bit frustrat
ing. On balance, though, the good outweigh the bad. 7/10

Originality - An action/puzzle game is not the most original concept (Resident Evil, Tomb Raider, etc...) and this is not the first Buffy game. However, it is well done and has more wit and humour than any other game I have played (with the exception of Grim Fandango). 7/10

Atmospherics - Like really being in Sunnydale! They could have perhaps been improved by using the dualshock function of the PS2 controller, though. 8/10


I am very glad that I bought this game; I have only recently come to appreciate the joy of vampire slaying and this is the first part of the franchise that I have bought. There is something endlessly appealing in being able to kill baddies, and Chaos Bleeds does it with fun, imagination and with the sort of irony and humour you would expect from the show itself. It is not the best PS2 game I have ever played, but I certainly think I have got my £35 worth out of it so far, and I am not finished yet. I would feel confident in recommending it to any gamers that are fans of Buffy - non-fans may want to borrow/rent a copy first as they may find it a bit impenetrable without the background knowledge.

Any downsides? Well yes, but they are really nothing more than minor niggles. Such as the use of the button for opening doors being the same one for throwing hellfire bottles at enemies - this means you can sometimes end up having the bottle explode in your face when you are trying to open a door whilst equipped with them. Not pleasant, but avoidable with a little practice. There are also a few minor visual errors, but again nothing really to detract from the overall fun and playability of Chaos Bleeds.


- My Hints & Tips
- Use the training arena to your advantage by practicing your moves for each character in there
- If you are short of stakes, chairs and boxes can be broken up to create them
- Look for doors/ledges/stairways away fro
m the main linear route through levels to find secrets
- Learn what weapons work best in each situation and against each enemy
- There are some boxes and treasure chests that can be opened to reveal goodies; keep you eyes open for them!


- Game Details
Chaos Bleeds is made by Sierra Games and costs £35 to £40 in the shops. It is rated as suitable for 16+, but this is as much for the innuendo in it as for the fighting!

Official game site:
www.buffygame.com

Hints, tips and FAQs:
www.gamefaqs.com/console/ps2/game/36573.html

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