A Bigger, Better Blast
The Blast Factor Advanced Research add-on completely overhauls the original game and, best of all, makes it good all over again.
Published: August 25, 2007
For what it was, the original Blast Factor was a surprisingly decent shooter, and a harbinger for the glut of dual-stick shooters that would soon bum-rush the PlayStation Store. Using the SIXAXIS to control a wave that swept from one side of the little hexagonal arenas, it offered a PS3-centric take on what most would admit was something of a Geometry Wars clone. In fact, it was arguably the best download on the PlayStation Network for a while.
Of course, that was before Super Stardust HD, and PS3 twin-stick shooters all soon paled in comparison. While I'm still the throes of addiction to SSHD (apparently the rest of the TPS staff are all effing robots or something with the scores they've got), I've managed to be pulled away by the Advanced Research add-on, which not only makes the game faster and smoother, but adds completely new modes. It also incorporates the multiplayer add-on that was released a few weeks after the original game came out that added a new mode and changed the sensitivity of the SIXAXIS-fueled wave, so with one update you can get all of the benefits.
The biggest thing that's changed (beyond the visual upgrades, which I'll get to in a second) is the Advanced Research Mode. Though the gameplay is largely the same, the variety in place is far, far better. Rather than moving through a series of hexes, Advanced Research takes you down a longish corridor, and though initially it just looks like a prettier backdrop, the levels grow increasingly more elaborate. Gone are the hex shapes for the arenas; now they're formed by any number of sides, from triangles out into squares and near-circles. Because things are constantly being changed up, it's far more interesting and fatigue takes much longer to set in.
It's also a whooole lot more difficult. Either because of the slightly quicker, smoother movement of the ship, or the different shapes of the levels or just because the enemies are a little more varied now, the challenge was ratcheted up quite a bit -- and that's without using the game's two faster game speeds. The bosses, too are more than just spinning, multi-armed stationary targets in the middle of the arena. Now, they move, they rotate, the spit out beams that arc from one end of the level to the other or they dash at you at a speedy clip. More variety actually means more fun, whoulda thunk?
So Advanced Research is well and good, but the original game mode has benefitted too. Just as in the AR Mode, moving your ship tilts the camera ever so slightly to give the stuff behind the level a little more depth. The increased smoothness also makes the game a little more fun to play. The increase in difficulty also made me a better player, so going back through the original game was quite a bit more rewarding, though if you really want to experience the difference between the two modes, you can pick a hybrid mode that shuffles the original and AR levels together one after another. It's a little jarring to go from something so familiar to the all new levels, but with the updates, the old stuff at least doesn't feel terribly different from the new.
I realize this isn't a terribly long review, but it really doesn't need to be. Blast Factor can't really hold a candle to Super Stardust HD, and I hate to compare the two, but it's impossible given that they're two of the best shooters on the PSN right now. As a nice distraction, it's perfect, and if you played the original game, you owe it to yourself to check out just how much better this add-on makes things. Blast Factor was already a pretty game, rife with particle explosions and running at 1080p, but now it does all that, runs faster, smoother and controls better than it originally did. Not bad for an add-on pack.
Of course, that was before Super Stardust HD, and PS3 twin-stick shooters all soon paled in comparison. While I'm still the throes of addiction to SSHD (apparently the rest of the TPS staff are all effing robots or something with the scores they've got), I've managed to be pulled away by the Advanced Research add-on, which not only makes the game faster and smoother, but adds completely new modes. It also incorporates the multiplayer add-on that was released a few weeks after the original game came out that added a new mode and changed the sensitivity of the SIXAXIS-fueled wave, so with one update you can get all of the benefits.
The biggest thing that's changed (beyond the visual upgrades, which I'll get to in a second) is the Advanced Research Mode. Though the gameplay is largely the same, the variety in place is far, far better. Rather than moving through a series of hexes, Advanced Research takes you down a longish corridor, and though initially it just looks like a prettier backdrop, the levels grow increasingly more elaborate. Gone are the hex shapes for the arenas; now they're formed by any number of sides, from triangles out into squares and near-circles. Because things are constantly being changed up, it's far more interesting and fatigue takes much longer to set in.
It's also a whooole lot more difficult. Either because of the slightly quicker, smoother movement of the ship, or the different shapes of the levels or just because the enemies are a little more varied now, the challenge was ratcheted up quite a bit -- and that's without using the game's two faster game speeds. The bosses, too are more than just spinning, multi-armed stationary targets in the middle of the arena. Now, they move, they rotate, the spit out beams that arc from one end of the level to the other or they dash at you at a speedy clip. More variety actually means more fun, whoulda thunk?
So Advanced Research is well and good, but the original game mode has benefitted too. Just as in the AR Mode, moving your ship tilts the camera ever so slightly to give the stuff behind the level a little more depth. The increased smoothness also makes the game a little more fun to play. The increase in difficulty also made me a better player, so going back through the original game was quite a bit more rewarding, though if you really want to experience the difference between the two modes, you can pick a hybrid mode that shuffles the original and AR levels together one after another. It's a little jarring to go from something so familiar to the all new levels, but with the updates, the old stuff at least doesn't feel terribly different from the new.
I realize this isn't a terribly long review, but it really doesn't need to be. Blast Factor can't really hold a candle to Super Stardust HD, and I hate to compare the two, but it's impossible given that they're two of the best shooters on the PSN right now. As a nice distraction, it's perfect, and if you played the original game, you owe it to yourself to check out just how much better this add-on makes things. Blast Factor was already a pretty game, rife with particle explosions and running at 1080p, but now it does all that, runs faster, smoother and controls better than it originally did. Not bad for an add-on pack.