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Looking
for a totally new concept in multi-player, video game
entertainment? Well, look no further ...Blast Chamber has arrived.
It takes place in the year 2096 in a twisted, amoral future.
People are being genetically engineered into superior athletes for
only one purpose ...to enter a game called Blast Chamber.
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You
enter the chamber with a pre-set timebomb strapped to your back
along with up to three other players. The purpose ...be the
last one in the chamber to survive before the bomb goes off...
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Blast
Chamber is presented in PlayStations high-resolution mode. The
graphics for the most part are rather stunning. The animation of
the blast chamber rotating is a marvel to see. Everything in the
chamber turns in perfect unison (except the characters of course
...they are falling all over the place!). No slow-down anywhere to
be found in the game. I was amazed at the fine details included in
the chambers. There are fan blades that rotate nicely, well
animated springboards, good use of lens flare in the plasma pits
and reactors and generous use of the now famous Playstation light
sourcing throughout.
The player characters, while being a bit on the small side, are
very well animated. They jump, dodge, run, punch and blow-up quite
convincingly! Each character is a different color and very easy to
distinguish from the others. As I mentioned, the characters are a
little small, but they fit into the blast chamber perfectly. Any
other size and it just wouldn't be as right.
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Crisp,
clean, futuristic sound effects abound in this game. Wonderful
laser blast sounds and poor helpless souls screaming are very
tastily done. The bomb explosions have a wonderfully deep, rice
bass quality to them. Spacey, futuristic music is also in
evidence. All in all, the sounds and music add nicely to the
overall feel of this game.
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As
with any game, this is the department that really counts and Blast
Chamber certainly delivers. You are presented with multiple game
playing options. These options are as follows: One or two player
practice mode. One player - Solo Survivor. Two to four
Player/computer - Free-for-all and f-f-a tournament modes .
Eliminator/eliminator tournament modes.
Each mode offers specific challenges to the gamer. The overall
object though in any of the games is to be the last person to
survive with the most time or be the person with the least amount
of deaths at the end of each match. You start each match with 60
seconds on your bomb and 3 minutes on the chamber clock. In each
chamber there are four reactors colored to match each player. You
scramble around the chamber trying to obtain a crystal. Getting
the crystal stops your bomb clock. You now have the option of
dropping the crystal in one of the other players reactor, which
diminishes the other players bomb clock or dropping it in your own
reactor and increasing the time left on your bomb before it
detonates. Now is where the fun comes in ...as if getting the
crystal wasn't hard enough (in some levels it is "stuck"
above your reach and you must rotate the chamber to knock it
loose), just try keeping it! As soon as the crystal hits the
floor, it's a mad dash by the players to obtain it. You can kick,
punch, push and otherwise ram your opponent to the ground in an
effort to get to the crystal first. Once you have it, it's a mad
dash to one of the reactors to drop the crystal off.
The computer players are nothing short of brutal and think nothing
of double teaming you to get the valuable crystal for themselves.
The intensity level increases even further as the bomb clock
reaches 10 seconds and your backpack begins to smoke. You become
frantic trying to obtain the crystal, fight off your opponents,
turn the chamber and reach your reactor in time!!!
In the multi-player modes, you have 20 chambers to play through.
If you are not in tournament mode you get the option of selecting
which chamber you would like to play.
At the end of each chamber you are awarded points according to how
many lives you DIDN'T burn and how much time is left on your bomb
clock. At the end of the tournament, the player with the most
points wins!
In the solo survivor mode (single player), you have 40 all new
chambers where you race against the clock to drop the crystal into
your reactor before you explode. Sound easy? No way ....the later
chambers are a real challenge. Luckily you can save your progress
to the memory card at the end of a chamber game. Your best times
are also saved to the card.
There are four difficulty levels ranging from "low burn"
to "thermonuclear" and lots of little handy items
sprinkled throughout the chamber to pick up and put to good use.
Even when you end up finishing the game, you will want to go back
and see if you can beat your own times in the solo mode or
increase the difficulty level a notch to see what your really made
of!
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Blast
Chamber is quite literally a blast to play. There are many
different types of offensive and defensive strategies that can be
employed throughout the game. I personally like pushing players
into the plasma traps or guarding my reactor, knocking the player
with the crystal down as it approaches me, stealing the crystal
and adding time to my bomb. The game pace is frantic and intense,
and when playing with a group of people, you can choose to double
or triple team an opponent. The game is one of the few reasons for
you to actually want to go out and buy a multi-tap. This is easily
one of the most original games to arrive for the Playstation this
year and I can highly recommend the purchase of it!
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TOM |
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GRAPHICS: |
13/20 |
In
multi-player mode I have completed all 20 levels and actually
managed to win the tournament (of course I was only in medium boil
mode). I have only reached the 10th chamber in solo mode, but hey,
with some more practice I know I can get to the end! Blast Chamber
is one of those games that will always be brought out when a few
mates are around. |
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SOUND: |
9/10 |
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PLAYABILITY: |
44/50 |
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VALUE: |
13/20 |
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OVERALL
79% |
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JIM |
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GRAPHICS: |
Good |
You
will tire of this as a single player game, but as a multi-player,
its a classic. My scores are based on you playing this game with a
group of people. |
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SOUND: |
Good |
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PLAYABILITY: |
Brilliant |
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VALUE: |
Good |
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OVERALL
8.5/10 |
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