Something I noticed today is that I’ve now posted over 2000 screenshots on this blog which considering I started out saying I wasn’t going to take many is quite a few but its a lot easier than taking notes.

I start out today trying to free the human being held by mutants in one of the villages.

I kill off all the guards then grill him for information.

He tells me about a plot by the human leader to implicate mutants in the capture of Captain Equitus and thereby cause a war.

I go back to give the oracle the news. He sends me back to Yvrium. He tells me I will need a collar to get in which I picked up ages back.

I put the collar on and walk straight in.

I ask around and find out that a mutant is being held captive in the city.

I kill off the guard then release the mutant.

He gives me a password to the mutant underground so my next job is to find it.

It turns out to be in Zero City. there is a room in one of the towers with a couple of guards. I tell one the password and he gives me instructions to press the fire alarm in the next room.

When I do this a trapdoor in the floor opens up.

There are new graphics for the subway and it definitely looks the part.

I’m given instructions to report to the leader down here but I have to get through the barriers first.

I find out that using a token (found in the building above) opens the barrier and I can get through to the rest of the level.

The Himukk knows me by reputation and mentions a human being held in Dominix’s palace. This has to be Equitus.

Before I go he tells me about an underground city beneath the palace which I may be able to use to gain access + I will also need the key to the cells from the captain of Dominix’s guards.

I head back to Yvrium and get attacked by a giant red bear thing on the way. This thing doesn’t seem to want to die so I run away.

Back in Yvrium I find a rogue who tells me how to get into the underground city and sells me the rope I will need to do it. I still need to get this key though.

When I mention the Captain to the guy at the bar he gives me a meal to deliver to him at the barracks.

I now spend about 15 minutes walking around the city trying to find the barracks. Eventually I discover it in the far north. The guards let me in. I attack the captain, take the key, then make for the town well. Everyone in town is attacking me at this point but I manage to avoid too much combat and climb down safely.

The underground city is a lot less hostile than the 2 underground areas I remember from Times Of Lore but I do have to take out a few rats in the first room. There are also green tentacles that burst out of the floor when an alarm goes off. I’m well stocked up with hearts so there is nothing to pose a problem.

The city here is basically a maze with buttons all over the place to press, which call lifts, open doors, call elevators etc. I just have to figure out the correct order to press them.

After a lot of wandering around I get to some barbed wire which I hack with my vibrablade weapon. Behind this are some guards and the prison cells I’ve been looking for. I try and few cells and when I get to the right one the end cutscene starts.

This has to be one of the shortest games in this entire blog. I’ve not spent much more time on it than I did on Akalabeth months back. Having worked my way through the whole thing and I can’t say I’m much the wiser than when I started. There is quite a bit of plot during the intro and ending but everything inbetween is pretty much throwaway.

Times Of Lore was a nice game technically as it was clearly ahead of its time with adlib support and the game engine looking massively better than Origins other products at that time. The gameplay on the other hand was relentless and despite the game being short, I had definitely had enough by the time I finished it. I’m surprised at just how similar Bad Blood turned out to be and was expecting a lot more from it. There is clearly more variety in graphics and weapons but the underlying game is even simpler. It is also quite a lot shorter and easier which is surprising for a sequel.

I really don’t know what market Origin were targeting with the enhanced version. The gameplay doesn’t warrant it and despite the enhancements it is still very outdated. I’d reasoned that I should leave it until nearer the re-release year (1994) rather than jumping forward then back but even after the update its still far less impressive than Wing Commander and Ultima 6 both of which came out in the same year as the original (1990). For all this I didn’t really dislike Bad Blood but I didn’t like it much either. It basically failed to make any impression whatsoever and is ultimately the most forgettable game I’ve played since Wing Commander Academy.

Next: Strike Commander