Blast Factor Review (ign.com)
- ign.com -
November 17, 2006 - Thanks to the immense popularity of Geometry Wars, games of the "Robotron Genre" have benefited from a comeback of sorts. Mutant Storm Reloaded, Crystal Quest, Cash Guns Chaos, and several other titles of the dual stick variety are popping up with steady frequency. This is especially true in the downloadable software arena, where you can't go more than a few months before another one fires at the screen. And wouldn't you know it? The PS3's very first title from the PlayStation Store is one such game. It's called Blast Factor, and boy is it ever familiar.
Developed by Bluepoint Games and Sony's Santa Monica Studio, Blast Factor feels so familiar because it bears a striking resemblance to the aforementioned Mutant Storm (with some stylistic nods towards Geo Evolved). In other words, the player's goal is to drive a nimble yet badass weapon and shoot the bejesus out of anything that flies into view. Movement is controlled with the left analog stick and shooting is handled with the right; while a tap of the R2 button uses the "repeller" to slow down time for more accurate and close-up obliterations. Of course, Blast Factor's true selling point is that it uses the Sixaxis tilt functionality to manipulate the field.
November 17, 2006 - Thanks to the immense popularity of Geometry Wars, games of the "Robotron Genre" have benefited from a comeback of sorts. Mutant Storm Reloaded, Crystal Quest, Cash Guns Chaos, and several other titles of the dual stick variety are popping up with steady frequency. This is especially true in the downloadable software arena, where you can't go more than a few months before another one fires at the screen. And wouldn't you know it? The PS3's very first title from the PlayStation Store is one such game. It's called Blast Factor, and boy is it ever familiar.
Developed by Bluepoint Games and Sony's Santa Monica Studio, Blast Factor feels so familiar because it bears a striking resemblance to the aforementioned Mutant Storm (with some stylistic nods towards Geo Evolved). In other words, the player's goal is to drive a nimble yet badass weapon and shoot the bejesus out of anything that flies into view. Movement is controlled with the left analog stick and shooting is handled with the right; while a tap of the R2 button uses the "repeller" to slow down time for more accurate and close-up obliterations. Of course, Blast Factor's true selling point is that it uses the Sixaxis tilt functionality to manipulate the field.
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But what does that mean exactly? Well the premise here is that you're the pilot of an Innerspace-type Nano Machine that travels into Petri dishes to eradicate viruses from its fluid. Tilting the controller left or right moves said dish in the direction slanted, thereby creating a wave of liquid that rushes towards left or right angles. This is quite a handy feature for fending off opponents that are overwhelming you from all sides because it forces them to collect in a single spot (hence making them more vulnerable). But more importantly, these water waves are the only way to kill some enemies because certain foes have a protective carapace on a particular side or even their entire body -- but flip them on their backs or spin them in another direction and their unprotected soft spots become targets. Boom! Instant micro-death.
While a bit inconsistent (sometimes moving the controller slightly activates a wave, while other times it takes big sweeping movements), the tilt feature is a good addition and adds an extra element to the gameplay that you'll definitely need to use to survive (it's not optional by any means). There's a nice assortment of alternate weapons too, from splitters and heat-seekers to full-on bombs. The sad thing is that the fire upgrades appear very rarely and don't last long when they do. It's a bummer really, because getting the new weapon types make for some of the most exciting moments of the entire experience.
One advantage that Blast Factor has over games like Geometry Wars and Mutant Storm, is that its enemies are pretty diverse. As mentioned above, some can only be defeated if they're knocked on their backs, while others become more aggressive and stream towards you if they're caught in a tilt wave. Other creature types include those that explode, critters that cluster together and break off into an army of individual homing dots, and things that can submerge themselves further into the liquid for temporary breaks. There are even bosses (which are almost identical to each other) that appear at the end of every stage. With those kinds of foes to account for, score-crazy modifiers, and 100 possible levels across seven different "cells," you can see how Blast Factor sounds like it could be a lot of fun on paper.
In practice, however, it's really only fun in small doses. Unlike the current king of the dual analog division (Geometry Wars), the game's difficulty doesn't evolve consistently and it's pretty manageable until you get to the sixth cell. But even when you do hit the point where it becomes challenging, Blast Factor doesn't provide much of a reward because of the small space in the Petri Dish -- it doesn't feel very epic or big, and when you are overwhelmed it's because one of the bad guys looks more like a particle effect than it does a monster.
Visually the game does it job, with some cool little after affects that pop up following explosions. There isn't any slowdown, the moving liquid looks nice, it runs as high as 1080p, and you can certainly distinguish between enemy types... there's just nothing special about any of it. Sadly, there's almost no music to speak of (giving the game's pace a lethargic feel), though the audio effects make big booming sounds and pew-pew noises which are inline with other games of its type.
While a bit inconsistent (sometimes moving the controller slightly activates a wave, while other times it takes big sweeping movements), the tilt feature is a good addition and adds an extra element to the gameplay that you'll definitely need to use to survive (it's not optional by any means). There's a nice assortment of alternate weapons too, from splitters and heat-seekers to full-on bombs. The sad thing is that the fire upgrades appear very rarely and don't last long when they do. It's a bummer really, because getting the new weapon types make for some of the most exciting moments of the entire experience.
One advantage that Blast Factor has over games like Geometry Wars and Mutant Storm, is that its enemies are pretty diverse. As mentioned above, some can only be defeated if they're knocked on their backs, while others become more aggressive and stream towards you if they're caught in a tilt wave. Other creature types include those that explode, critters that cluster together and break off into an army of individual homing dots, and things that can submerge themselves further into the liquid for temporary breaks. There are even bosses (which are almost identical to each other) that appear at the end of every stage. With those kinds of foes to account for, score-crazy modifiers, and 100 possible levels across seven different "cells," you can see how Blast Factor sounds like it could be a lot of fun on paper.
In practice, however, it's really only fun in small doses. Unlike the current king of the dual analog division (Geometry Wars), the game's difficulty doesn't evolve consistently and it's pretty manageable until you get to the sixth cell. But even when you do hit the point where it becomes challenging, Blast Factor doesn't provide much of a reward because of the small space in the Petri Dish -- it doesn't feel very epic or big, and when you are overwhelmed it's because one of the bad guys looks more like a particle effect than it does a monster.
Visually the game does it job, with some cool little after affects that pop up following explosions. There isn't any slowdown, the moving liquid looks nice, it runs as high as 1080p, and you can certainly distinguish between enemy types... there's just nothing special about any of it. Sadly, there's almost no music to speak of (giving the game's pace a lethargic feel), though the audio effects make big booming sounds and pew-pew noises which are inline with other games of its type.
Closing Comments
Blast Factor is an accessible first attempt for the PlayStation Store and Network, but it doesn't stand out in any one area. There are countless games of its genre that do it better, some of which are more than 20 years old, and its use of tilt functionality doesn't change that. With its planned two-player update and eventual specimen additions it does have the potential to get better -- but right now, it's a simple and safe time-eater to test your ten bucks on while we wait for flOw and other downloadable titles.
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