Review: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Chaos Bleeds

Speaking of beat'em ups (well at least I was until the buzz was mellowed on Yakuza) here's my take on the second Buffy game.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Chaos Bleeds
Xbox, PS2, Gamecube

September 10, 2003
You tread a dangerous path basing a game on a television show/movie. If it’s no good you’ll have earned the ire of rabid fans, if it’s a success you’ll have the same fans numbering themselves as your fans. That being said I should also preface this review by saying that I was a big fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. As such I looked with trepidation upon the first Buffy game and ultimately gave up on it as it failed to balance the concepts of difficulty and the “continue” option. Still, I felt the game did use the license well and was not revolted by what they had done to my beloved TV series. So when I saw “BtVS Chaos Bleeds” at E3 this year I met it with enthusiasm. I hoped that the developers had learned their lessons on the first game and expected a better game this time around. Then I learned that “Chaos” was being produced by a different development studio altogether. These new Turks did manage to avoid some of the pitfalls of their predecessors. However, they also dug some of their own, leaving us with a freshman attempt that doesn’t completely satisfy, but does entertain from time to time.

Story
As with the first game what we’re playing is billed as a “lost episode”. And does play out like an episode of the series, perhaps a little light on the dialog & humor and a little heavy on the action. Still the plot was developed and sanctioned by all the right people and it shows.

Gameplay
As with the first Buffy game the player is expected to fight vampires and demons (most of the time 2 or 3 on one) and solve fetch puzzles (e.g. looks like I need to place that candlestick I found in the study here on the dinning room table next to Colonel Mustard) which are far too difficult as the items are almost always hidden away in the most inexplicable of places. Still one can appreciate the attention to detail in some of the levels (you can’t get past the metal detector until you empty your pockets of metallic items) and some of the puzzles are quite ornate in their complexity.

Fighting the bad guys feels very similar to the first game. Sometimes there are camera issues and it doesn’t feel as fluid or responsive as a Soul Caliber but what it lacks in that department it almost makes up in the brutal way she brings the hurt to the vamps. The impact, especially when using weapons feels very satisfying and you can also beat the hell out of the baddies once they fall down, which can lead to very easy dustings. The focus here is still on multiple-hostile management. You will have to face 2 vamps far more often than just one and sometimes they will pile as many as 4 on you at a time. Being as such I wish they had worked on the perimeter-targeting so that Buffy could string combinations that would hit everyone surrounding you a-la “Enter the Matrix”. Say what you will about that game, at least Niobe could throw 3 kicks to hit 3 different people in a row, and she made it look good, or at least as good as a mediocre game can make it look.

Buffy 2 sports a plot convention that lets players assume the control of some of the other series’ characters, such as Willow and Faith. While this does make for a good change of pace, it also is a bit redundant as Buffy, Faith, Spike and Xander all have essentially the same moves. So really you get to play as 3 different character models when playing as the 6 different characters.

Presentation
I think it looks pretty good, but when my little sister (who’s also a fan of the series, but no gamer) saw it the first thing she said is “That doesn’t look like her (Buffy).” And it’s true, the characters bear a slight resemblance to the actors that portrayed them on our TV sets (and in most cases lend their voices to the game) but everything still looks a little blocky and dated and Willow looks really really scary.

The interface is serviceable with one setback from the first game. In the original game when cycling through your weapons and items you used to be able to see them all in a long row so that you knew, for instance, that the health pack was only 4 clicks over to the right. This feels like a great idea compared to how it works in “Chaos” where you have to blindly fumble through your inventory, sometimes more than once, while trying to evade that killing blow the vamps are trying to connect.

The sound is top notch; the voice acting is done well but feels a bit strange at first, however after the first chapter you get used to it and learn to enjoy most of it – the glaring exception is Anya, who is not voiced by Emma Caulfield as in the series. Thankfully she doesn’t get to say much. The sound effects and background music are right out of the show and help give the game an authentic feel.

Since there is no carry-over from level to level (since oftentimes you’re playing as a different character) it makes sense that the game would allow you to replay any of the levels that you’ve passed previously. However since these all take about an hour each and they all hinge on figuring out the trick to the puzzle or end boss I don’t foresee myself going back for too many seconds. On an interesting side note you do unlock new features every time you finish a level. These features range from DVD-esque interviews and outtakes to other playable characters in the games multiplayer mode, which allows for 4 player action.

So what we have here is a competent entry and a decent if oft frustrating way to waste 10-20 hours. I would recommend this game to Buffy fans (of course) as well as anyone who enjoys a decent platform/action game. Nothing spectacular, nothing revolutionary, but a respectable first effort in a series two in number.