Bloodrayne games

    Not too long ago I reviewed the movie Bloodrayne, so now it’s time to review its sequel. Bloodrayne is actually a series of video games, and the movies are “based” on them. Also since I watched and reviewed the cinematic turd known as the first Bloodrayne movie, I played through both games, so I might as well talk about them briefly. Also, tomorrow I'm reviewing the second Bloodrayne movie - and holy crap is it a doozy.

    I'm surprised; the Bloodrayne games are actually quite fun. It's hard to recommend the first game as it has a weak story and outdated gameplay (no blocking with your knives,) but to sum it up - you play as a hot half vampire chick and you kill Nazis. You're trying to eliminate a special group of them while stopping them from bringing an ancient demon back to life. You can either slice up enemies with the blades attached to your arms or you can shoot them with the various WWII weapons you pick up throughout the level. You suck blood to regain health and you have a small variety of powers to use. Besides the Nazis, you also fight monsters and several vampires. The characters are stereotypical at best and there isn't too much location variety. I also found that the game is too easy for its own good. Even so, the game's simple and it works for what it is, but there's nothing overly special about it. Long story short, it's the ultimate testosterone game.

    Bloodrayne 2 on the other hand is awesome. This story takes place in modern times. You learn that the vampire lord Kagan, who is Rayne's father, murdered her mother's entire family. After Kagan was killed by a grenade which Rayne witnessed (robbed of her revenge), she's spent the last 70 years hunting Kagan's vampiric offspring in return. Something's bringing nearly all of Kagan's remaining descendants together and you spend the majority of the game figuring out what. It turns they’re planning the Vampire apocalypse and you end up trying to stop it. It's actually a pretty good storyline, and while the antagonist characters aren't what I would call deep, Rayne and her friend Severin are still fleshed out enough for you to care. The gameplay is much improved from the first, and more challenging at that, but I still fount it a bit too easy. Would I recommend this one? Well, if you like action games that combine shooting, platforming, and a bit of fighting then sure. By no means is it the best game I've ever played, but it's definitely the most fun game I've played in a while.

    So how do these games compare to the first movie? Well, considering the first movie took place in the dark ages and Rayne wasn't born until the early 1900's according to the games...the movie already makes no sense. It's also contradictory how Kagan is killed in the movie even though he was still alive during WWII. Also, the artifacts from the movie (the eye, the rib, and the heart) are also in the first game, but for completely different reasons. In the game, the eye, rib, and heart are three of many body parts to an ancient demon known as Belair. When Rayne absorbs the eye, it gives her a new vision mode. I'm not completely sure what the rib does, but the heart resurrects the demon in whoever absorbs it. There are supposed to be plenty more body parts spread throughout the world, but the game only shows these three. OK, fair enough. So here's the question, how did Bowl take these and turn them into vampiric artifacts that protected them from the elements that would normally kill them? In the movie, the eye makes vampires immune to water, and the other two are supposed to protect from religious symbols and the sun (not sure which does which, but whatever.) So if this artifact protects her from water, then WHY DOES WATER BURN YOU IN THE GAMES THAT TAKE PLACE HUNDREDS OF YEARS LATER?

     I have to hand it to Bowl though; listening to the director's commentary is one of the funniest things I've experienced in quite a while. He keeps talking about how awesome various scenes are. Seriously, Uwe believes he is a great director and that every movie he's done is a masterpiece. He even compares his movies to beloved classics and claims that his are even better. Even funnier is how Kristanna Loken also thinks that the movie is brilliant. Everyone else in the commentary is insulting Loken and Bowl and yet the two are too dense to realize this. I've read that all his director’s commentaries are worth the price of the DVDs, and from what I heard I'd have to agree.