Space Hulk: Vengeance of the Blood Angels

Overview

Space Hulk: Vengeance of the Blood Angels, known in the Japanese 3DO version as Blood Angels, is a sci-fi dark-fantasy first-person tactical shooter developed by Key Game and published by Electronic Arts for the 3DO in late 1995.

The second video game adaptation of the Space Hulk board game (after the 1993 PC game Space Hulk), Vengeance of the Blood Angels puts players in control of a Space Marine Terminator, belonging to the honorable Blood Angels chapter, in the 41st millennium. Like the previous adaptation, this game combines limited grid-based first-person shooter gameplay (similar to 1980's first-person RPGs) with real-time tactics (with a dedicated map-based tactical planning interface).

Along with numerous training "historical" missions (including those based on the original board game and the 1993 PC game), the game features a main campaign where players start off as a lowly recruit in a squad sent to prevent a runaway "space hulk" (infested with Tyranid Genestealers) from crashing into the planet Delvar III. The game starts off with the player taking basic orders from their superiors, and eventually the deaths of the commanding officers result in rapid field promotions that place the player character in control of the entire squad.

It was later ported by Krisalis to the Sony PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Windows PCs throughout 1996. The PS1 version supports local two-player split-screen multiplayer while the PC version supports 10-player LAN multiplayer.

Gameplay

You begin the game as a raw recruit. Your superiors give you orders and mark way points on your HUD for you to travel to and defend. After a few basic missions, your commanding officers start to get picked off, resulting in rapid field promotions that eventually place you in control of the entire squad. The game then takes on a more strategic element. You are must then place your squad of Terminators in the best possible position to achieve victory. Special classes of Terminator later become available, such as flame thrower units and heavy assault cannon units. The game also offers "virtual training" missions where you can hone your skills and practice game play elements.