Spies have always been thrilling and full of mystery, adventure, and suspense. A good vs. evil story is being told. From books to TV shows to movies to games, the spy and action genre is something that some of us at one time or another, wanted to be part of from the story to being the lead hero to having all the one-liners and charisma. But does Developer London Studio bring the action and bring those wants to an immersive adventure? I am just going to say it now; yes they do in every way. Let’s find out more about Blood & Truth for the PlayStation VR.
Before we begin, I am not going to spoil the story in any way, as it wouldn’t be fair to anyone. But before you get started, you really want to make sure you have your Move controllers fully charged, make sure nothing is around you at arm’s length, and get ready for the action. So with that said, let’s continue.
In Blood & Truth, you play as an ex-SAS (Special Forces) soldier, Ryan Marks, who is returning home to London to save his family from an evil crime overlord. So you will have a lot on your hands doing what you do best. This isn’t a move-back-and-forth type of game, as this is an on-rails type of game that you are in for. But even if you are not a fan of that type of movement, the story, the graphics, the sound, and the action all make up for everything else. For me, I have a special place in my heart for the on-rails type of movement, so I welcomed this in every way.
But as I mentioned, the action is where you might be having the most fun. Being able to have a weapon in each hand to freely shoot and that each weapon has its own feel and sound is pretty awesome. But when the action is heating up and you have a weapon in each hand, what is the one thing you wouldn’t want to happen in real life? Reloading. Yes, you will need to reload and reload a lot, so make sure if you find any ammo, that you grab it and bring it to your chest. But what you may need to get used to is reloading with a weapon in each hand. At first. Some may find a little learning curve is needed, but it’s a very small one to be learned. And if you want some dramatic action and awesome reload moments, just throw the ammo up in the air and catch it with your gun to reload. Just don’t do what I did a few times and miss said ammo only to be shot with blood pouring down my face and see Ryan Mark’s life flash before my eyes.
Speaking of weapons, there is a great variety of guns and weapons in Blood & Truth for you to explore. From handguns with silencers that can be placed on your hips in the holsters, there are grenades that you can throw (even pull the pin with your teeth if your hands are full) or catch and throwback, which I have to say just adds to the greatness that is Blood & Truth. Just make sure you don’t drop them or throw them and hit a wall and not get out of the way. I really don’t want to talk about the few times this happened to me. I mean lead by my example. There are also weapons that you can carry on your back, which sometimes I found wouldn’t go on my back and I really needed them to, especially when I was in a car trying to shoot motorcycles and my weapon just wasn’t doing it for me and then the unthinkable happened… R.I.P Michelle…R.I.P.
But it’s not all guns blazing all the time. There will be parts where you will need to pick locks or clip wires, so when this happens, your toolkit appears and if you are not sure what tool to use, after a short time, you will be given a hint. But having to take a screwdriver and turn it as you would in real life or having to use both hands to pick locks is something that didn’t have to be added in, but I am glad that it is. When you are not shooting, conversing, or trying to unlock that next section, you will be using your hands to climb ladders or help you get across different sections; just don’t let go because it will not be pretty.
Not only does each scene bring its own, but the action of these different scenes plays and fits nicely in the greater puzzle that is Blood & Truth. One of the things I really like is how there will be communication between the characters (again, not going to spoil anything) and then you give your explanation that is shown through the action of the scene. But it’s when that action, such as jumping through a window, goes into this dramatic slow motion that keeps the smiles on my face going.
Let’s talk about the sound here. The sound here is phenomenal, with the heavier action scenes being plenty loud to the quieter ones that have just enough sound to where you feel like you are trying to not attract any noise from the enemies. When you fire the weapons, you can hear the bullets hit the ground. Narration between the characters has plenty of emotion and you start to really feel like you are part of the conversations going on. The soundtrack that plays along with the story really helps everything flow to the point that I am going to need to check out to see what else Joe Thwaites & Jim Fowler have done. You can tell that London Studios spent a lot of detail and time on the sound and that is a very good thing.
Let’s talk about the graphics. From the moment you interact with the characters, the motion capture is also some of the best I have seen in Virtual Reality. The amount of detail of light when I jumped through a window at nighttime and you can see the individual pieces of glass just makes me feel proud of what you are experiencing. In scenes where you are in a vehicle, either talking or shooting, everything looks sharp from inside the vehicle to the surroundings outside, regardless of speed and other parts of the action going on. Like the sound, a lot of time went into detail, which again is a very good thing.
Blood & Truth does give you a lot, but it’s not stopping there. When you are playing, you will notice target symbols that are outlined in white that you will want to be on the lookout for. They can be easily missed if you are not aware and because this is an on-rails movement, once you beat the game, you should really go all the way until the end (I am speaking of the end credits as well); you are able to go back to any scene to hopefully get those missed targets. If you would like to see how good your timing skills are, there are also time attack challenges for you to try and master. Also, there are unlockables for you to find that could be a statue or, well, I am going to leave that up for you to discover. But at this point, what more could one hope for? What else could London Studio give us? How about free DLC? That’s right, free DLC, a brand new score and time attack challenges as well as difficulties, a new mode, and online leaderboards.
But I really love how Blood & Truth is not your typical game. This is more of an interactive, immersive storytelling gaming experience that puts the center of the action around you and makes you the hero that you always wanted to be. The TV shows, books, and movies made us want to be part of it which only could be possible in Virtual Reality. London Studios has set a new standard that should be the foundation for new ideas, from the writers to directors of the small and big screens to the games that we play. Blood & Truth really is just too sweet to be missed and should be part of your PlayStation VR collection.
Blood & Truth is out now as well as a free demo on PlayStation VR. A review code was provided.
Also, check out the interview with Stuart Whyte of London Studio.
To learn more about London Studio, please visit their site, like them on Facebook, and follow them on Twitter.
In case you missed the trailer, please enjoy. Until next time, I am going to work on my challenges and find more of those missing targets and unlockables.
