A fun cheesy romp, held back by its ties to Far Cry.
Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon is a love letter to the cheesy action films of the 80’s. Set in the dystopian future of 2007 and filled to the brim with cyborgs, lasers, neon and shoulder-pads, it is a truly unique world rarely explored in gaming. As a standalone release for XBLA and PSN, it is a streamlined version of Far Cry 3’s engine, fuelled by machismo and synthesisers. Despite some mechanical problems and its relatively short length, Blood Dragon is a gaming experience you certainly will have never had before.
Players take control of Mark IV Cyber Commando, Sergeant Rex “Power” Colt, a bird-flipping, one liner quipping old school action hero trying to save the world and rescue the girl. After infiltrating the military island of Colonel Sloan, Colt is tasked with infiltrating bases, liberating “science nerds” and saving the day from a deadly nuclear threat. Colt plays and feels like the action hero in a Stallone movie, cursing and killing his way to saving the dame. He feels one-dimensional and simple, but because of the world he inhabits and the tone the game creates, it fits perfectly and is a ton of fun to play.
The game plays very similarly to Far Cry 3, leaving Blood Dragon feeling like new coat of paint more than an a unique gameplay experience. The large open world with wild animals and garrisons to liberate is back, and is still a delight to inhabit. There is a strong tongue-in-cheek vibe to everything, from the scientists wailing their arms as they run away from a cyber-panther, to the collectible VHS tapes scattered around the wildlife. It’s a fun world to inhabit, but ultimately there isn’t a whole lot of content to go around - a 100% completionist run through will take around 6 hours.
Few additions are made to the gameplay, leaving Blood Dragon feeling like a streamlined version of the predecessor, similar to Bioshock 2’s Minerva’s Den DLC. Colt can move faster, fall further and swim longer than Jason from Far Cry 3 could, slanting the game further towards action than stealth. The other major addition comes behalf of the wild Blood Dragons, hulking, neon-glowing lizards roughly the size of a rhino that can shoot lasers from their mouths. Similarly to the animals from Far Cry 3, they can be used to help decimate enemy forces through t he use of bait-style cyber-hearts, luring the Dragons laser-based wrath towards the indicated area. They are a fun, albeit scarily strong addition to the game and allow for some more unique strategies when overtaking enemy garrisons.
Blood Dragon is a visual tour-de-force. From the dichotomous bright neon and dark lighting all throughout the world to the old-school menus and HUD, Blood Dragon encapsulates what a game with today’s technology would look like if it was made in the 80’s impeccably. Small elements prevalent throughout the entire world, like the massive computer terminals or old-school VHS loading screens help permeate a sense of style and originality throughout the entire product. It ensures that the high points of the game are incredible moments that you will remember long after the game is completed. Combined with an incredible synthesised soundtrack from Power Glove, it is a true audiovisual treat.
Ultimately, the increased focus on action-based gameplay ends up being of the bigger shortcomings of the game. Whilst Colt’s increased combat capabilities and the overall tone of the game seem to bias towards a more action-oriented experience, the strong stealth mechanics of Far Cry 3 hold it back. The shooting, whilst not awful, never feels particularly rewarding, with enemies taking far too many shots to go down. Conversely, it seems as though Colt’s cybernetic implants are made of tin-foil, as more than a couple seconds exposed to enemy fire will easily fall him.
Through killing enemies and the completion of open-world side missions, Colt can level up and gain access to better weaponry; however, this causes the needle to flip too far the other way. Colt’s increased strength and better weaponry eliminates all challenge in the gameplay and creates a boring experience. There never seems to be the correct balance - Colt is either too weak or too strong. The net result is that the shooting, which comprises a large portion of the gameplay, never really feels all that satisfying or fun.
Ultimately, Blood Dragon is hampered by the direct relationship it shares with Far Cry 3. It presents an interesting and unique world, but it is wrapped around mechanics that don’t do their best to exploit them. Humorous games live and die by their ability to keep players engaged in their worlds, in order to see all of the content there is to see. Ultimately, it feels as though Blood Dragon doesn’t do enough to keep the player entertained whilst traversing the world. It’s a game that has to be endured to see the best content - one where the satisfaction comes not from the act of playing it, but rather from watching the world and listening to the characters along the way. There is true joy to be derived from Blood Dragon’s incredibly unique world, but how much of it the player will see depends on how long they can handle middling gameplay for.
