Blackthorne. A few words about the prince of Persia with a shotgun
Surprisingly, once Blizzard were a cool company. They used to create cool games, not just mobile games Diablo And the next additions to World Of Warcraft.Usually, speaking of the best releases of the company, people recall Warcraft 3, Starcraft, Diablo 2, However, the developers could please gamers with good video games, remember at least The Lost Viking, Released in the 90s. At the same time, they introduced the world to one platformer, which, unfortunately, few people remember, but this does not mean that he deserves this. Oh no, this game is a real diamond of the library rich in masterpieces SNES. And the name is to her Blackthorne.
Although I have been familiar with this game for a long time, I was too inexperienced to master it, my attention was captured by modern releases. It seems to have been breaking through an hour, We Body IS Ready. I decided to go through the game on Xbox, Buying a collection Blizzard Arcade Collection, which I want to talk about a little before moving on to the discussion of the platformer directly. This is not the worst collection. As many as 5 games: Blackthorne, Rock N ‘Roll Racing 1, Rpm Racing, The Lost Vikings 1-2. It’s not rich, of course, but Blizzard I released little on 16-bit consoles. In principle, c The Disney AFTERNOON Collection also only 6 masterpieces from Capcom, So we enjoy what they offer. Almost all video games have several versions, Blackthorne And The Lost Vikings They even have Definitive Edition, where some visual or gameplay improvements are represented. In console versions, you can turn on the filter, change permission, and also put a frame, in general, the standard situation for such an edition. For lovers of modern amenities, they added rewinding and preservation at any time. In bonuses, you can find sketches, manuals, covers, photos of developers, music, however, for some reason there is a soundtrack only from Blackthorne And The Lost Vikings, whole subjects-objects that allow you to better understand the plot of the presented games, and, most importantly, interviews with employees Blizzard – A great selection of additional materials for fans of the company’s games. Take a discount collection when nostalgia for the golden times of the gaming industry woke up – a great solution. Ideally, you need to take for a portivation, but the price was too tempting, so I preferred the Seckhoval Korobox.
Interviews have subtitles translated into Russian. Marvelous.
You think I joked when I wrote that there are stories in the collection?
IN Definitive Edition Added a map. Very useful innovationse.
One “But“: For some reason, in this version, you can not choose a filter or remove the frame.
For comparison: this SNES-version.
Basically, we learn about the events that are taking place https://bullspinscasino.co.uk/ through the Katsets shown to the player when visiting the new zone, you can also find important quest characters that will lead a dialogue with Kail, but also at the locations are full of friendly NPCs who are always ready to talk. However, we can find out about the state of the world and through the environment. In the dark mines, some slaves mines ore while they are driven by the whims of the antagonist’s minions, others are tied to the wall, and some have long died, and no one is going to clean the skeletons. In the swamps, where it pours rain endlessly, you can see the rebels that are fighting with traitors and orcs, and they can even help them. The lifeless desert, where the neighboring kingdom is located, is full of dangers, and local predatory plants do not spare anyone, even the orcs of Sarlak. Blizzard They wanted to create a gloomy and cruel world, and, as for me, they did it.
There are stylish katsets between the missions, during which Sarlak indignant at his helpless servants. Yes, version Definitive Edition Also has a translation.
It is useful to talk with slaves and rebels. They not only complain about the tyrant, but also give advice or give the necessary objects for passing.
People here are not immortal, but the orcs do not care, who to shoot at, and Friendly Fire No one canceled. But don’t forget about the pluses! Slaves can be a great living shield. Life for Black!
To the elaboration of details Blizzard came up with incredible scrupulousness. Blacks and the enemies interfere the forearm of their pompom rifles after a shot, the used sleeves fly out of the boom, after hitting the enemy, the blood also reacts to shots. If Kyle jumps into the wall, then it crashes into it and falls, and when it caught a bullet, then it will definitely throw it back. The locations are full of animated objects like bright torches, flowing water of underground waterfalls, drops of endless rain, shaking in the winds of plants dried up in the desert. Yes, once cartridges, where even a gigabyte of information could not be recorded, contained games that could surprise today.
Now I understand why the hero wears sunglasses: he does not want to blind from the outbreak of his own shotgun. But take a look at the red orc! How painful he is now. And this is great! I have been looking at this for 5 hours.
Sounds also tried to choose memorable. There are few of them, mostly you will hear all sorts of Kyle grunts, the noise of his steps when running, occasionally explosions from grenades, but, most importantly, shots. The guns are beating well, and this, of course, is not a shotgun from Trepang2, but for the 2D games of those years is impressive. When you get an automatic gun, sound accompaniment turns into a delight for the ears. Unfortunately, there are few music, just one topic for each zone, but it is atmospheric. Sometimes there is a feeling that you are listening to a 16-bit rock, and the composition playing in the mines can sell you Blackthorne. I love the soundtrack of games SNES. It is worth mentioning that there is a version of the game for Sega 32WITH, which is available in the collection, and, believe me, you do not need to turn it on OST – my ears did not curl into the tube when I listened. Although you can take a chance, everyone has different tastes. There is still DOS version, But I can’t say anything about her.
I think it’s time to go to the main dish. It is worth talking about the gameplay, which consists of three elements: Platforming, The solution of puzzles And battles. As I said earlier, in fact, before us is Prince of Persia. We move around the screens, so we always need to be careful when moving to the next, because we can wait for a dangerous enemy or an unexpected break. Kyle is a sports guy, he knows how to climb up, go down the ledge, squat, somersault, jump from a place or on the run. You cannot control the jump in the air, you have to learn the distance that the hero is able to overcome. In general, it is pleasant to manage the prince with a shotgun, except that you have to get used to some of his sluggishness. Incredibly, the use of the stick is perfectly implemented, I immediately forgot about the cross. Often, various traps like bombs, exploding OSs, pressing plates that cause turrets, carnivore plants, and no one canceled the ordinary abysses, so no one has canceled the locations to study the locations with caution. There is no particular difficulty in overcoming obstacles, if, of course, not to rush. Blacktorn runs quickly, and the chance is likely not to have time to press the button for a long jump in time – falling off the ledge here is easy. Such movement in “realistic” platformers like Prince Of Persia, Another World, Flashback etc. Not only a pleasant challeng for the player hides in himself, because if you learn local management, you can masterfully jump from the platform to the platform, avoiding skirmishes with enemies, but also unpleasant inconvenience. It manifests itself especially disgusting during the interaction of the platform and quest components of the game.
The game really sometimes resembles a quest. Kyle has a limited inventory where he stores bombs with grenades, heelings, a portable staircase and various keys. An important thing can both be in an ally or enemy, and just lie on earth. Found the desired item – they were able to go further. Somewhere you need to combine objects and look for bypass tracks, for example, to pick up the used key and apply it to activate the bridge in another place. Bombs are useful for the destruction of doors and laser field generators, and some of them can only be reached with the help of controlled OS-Kamikadze. Which is convenient, you do not need to constantly open the inventory, the list of items can be flipped through with the help of left and right bumper. It must be remembered that objects on locations are limited, so the same bombs must be used wisely. There is nothing to blow up the generator – well, slaves will wait for salvation for another 20 years. It also makes no sense to save resources for the next level – on a new location, the hero devastates his pockets so that nothing interferes, and the password retains only your plot promotion. On the one hand, it’s a shame, on the other, if the player could accumulate a dozen OS, then the passage of the level would turn into a broken speedran without details.
How to get to that rebel above, who probably has an important quest item? Think for yourself.
Ah, these wonderful times when you could use passwords in games. Glory to a wide fille, now you can cost screenshots, and not to exhaust the entire notebook. And no, this is not a spoiler password, I entered the random code, so don’t worry.
Sometimes there are pressure slabs that open iron doors for a while, and you still need to guess what exactly has changed. Here, platforming manifests itself in all its glory. There is one door in the desert, which opens with a stove for several screens from it, and getting there is not easy, because you need to jump on a fragile bridge, and then you need to go back in time. You see, the Kyle, although a prepared warrior, and reacts to pressing the buttons quickly, but while he fits, jumps, catch the edge of the cliff, stands up, will pass for ten years. And you also need to burn the buttons in time, because you have to take the run on one screen, and jump the abyss on the other. At one point, I learned to go through this place perfectly, but in some similar sections where you need to quickly think and react instantly, the hero’s Persian slowness failed me. Uncritical, sometimes irritation caused. I can also note the lack of visual clues in some places where you need to climb up. This was only a couple of times, but I had to bounce at every step to understand where the ledge on another screen is located.
I sympathize with the children that such sections have passed without quick conservation. One wrong movement, and this spider will drop the hero directly into hell.
There were no secrets. Hidden passages behind the walls and waterfalls in stock. Remember: if the game has a secret for a waterfall, then this is a masterpiece of all time, otherwise it cannot be.