Blood will be Spilled
- May 29, 2019
- Doublequote Studio
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"Blood will be Spilled" is a story-driven spaghetti western platformer with turn-based combat, featuring a mosquito bounty hunter named Jack on a quest for revenge against the Calaveras gang. Set in a hand-drawn world inhabited by insects, the game boasts an epic adventure with guns, explosives, and trains, accompanied by a narrator and a cast of over 15 fully voiced characters, including Jack .
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features stunning visuals and excellent voice acting, creating an immersive experience.
- The turn-based combat is enjoyable and offers a variety of tactical options, making battles engaging.
- The unique insect-western theme and compelling narrative provide a fresh take on the genre.
- The game is plagued by numerous bugs and technical issues, which can disrupt gameplay and lead to frustrating experiences.
- Platforming sections are clunky and unresponsive, making them tedious and difficult to navigate.
- The overall execution lacks polish, with many gameplay mechanics feeling rushed or poorly designed.
- gameplay14 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The gameplay is a mix of platforming and tactical shooter elements, with combat being enjoyable yet marred by some unpolished mechanics and control issues. While the strategic aspects and unique enemy designs are praised, the platforming sections can be frustrating due to unresponsive controls. Overall, the game offers a solid experience for its price, but players may encounter some jank that detracts from the overall enjoyment.
“The core gameplay is mainly platforming with tactical shooter battles as the cream of the crop.”
“+ solidly strategic gameplay so far.”
“- the bullet mechanics and unique enemies are great.”
“The tactical gameplay is limited and not terribly exciting, but I could live with it.”
“- unpolished gameplay - it is details that make a big difference in the end - grabbing on ledges and ladders should run smoothly and automatically, sliding should work without stopping the character, aiming during fights should work in 360 degrees, otherwise enemies in sharp angles can't be targeted, etc.”
“The combat mechanic isn't nearly as polished as SteamWorld.”
- story14 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The story has been praised for its compelling narrative, excellent voice acting, and engaging characters, drawing players into the experience. While some reviewers noted the presence of familiar western tropes, many found the storytelling unique and enjoyable, with a strong desire for potential sequels or additional content. However, the platforming elements were criticized for their challenging controls, which detracted from the overall experience.
“The story was compelling, the voice acting was top tier, the combat wasn't difficult to get a hang of, and the hidden secrets, collectibles, and achievements made me want to be better at it.”
“I loved the premise and how I was drawn into the story right away.”
“Well-delivered story and pretty good voice acting.”
“The story is bogged down with all the western tropes that have been in the genre since Dirty Harry.”
- graphics11 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 18 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are consistently praised for their stunning hand-drawn visuals and excellent aesthetic, earning high marks for their artistic quality and clean user interface. Reviewers highlight the effective use of visual design in enhancing the western atmosphere, making it a standout feature of the gameplay experience. Overall, the artwork and graphic stylization contribute significantly to the game's appeal.
“The visuals are 10/10, very nicely drawn and conceptualized.”
“I still haven't made it through the entire game, but the combat was a lot of fun (especially when AI misses the one shot that should have killed you) and the hand-drawn visuals are incredible.”
“It works well for its purpose - co-creating the whole western atmosphere with the visuals.”
“Fun 7 hour experience with tactical combat and puzzles, typical western cowboy story that manages to be unique and uses the bug aesthetic to its advantage.”
- stability8 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is widely criticized for its instability, with numerous reports of bugs affecting combat and platforming mechanics. Despite some enjoyment found in the gameplay, many players note that the persistent issues significantly detract from the overall experience, even after updates. Overall, the game's stability is a major concern, leading to frequent reliance on checkpoint reloads.
“This is still a buggy mess, and the platforming is awful.”
“The 'recommend' comes with some pretty huge caveats, this game is fairly buggy and you'll find yourself having to use that checkpoint reload feature a fair amount.”
“The game is sadly a giant buggy mess.”
- music4 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The music effectively complements the western setting and remains engaging throughout the game, though some players feel that a more dynamic or suspenseful soundtrack for battle sequences would enhance the experience. Overall, while the music is described as nice and fitting, it lacks standout qualities.
“Music is nothing special, but it doesn't have to be.”
“The music is suitable to the western environment and doesn't wear out in the game's length, though a more suspenseful or livelier soundtrack for the battle sequences could have been desired.”
“Music is nothing special but it doesn't have to be.”
- atmosphere3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its impressive visuals and strong western atmosphere, effectively immersing players in its setting. Memorable characters and enjoyable turn-based combat further enhance the overall experience.
“The game looks great; it has atmosphere, memorable characters, and I find the turn-based combat also a lot of fun.”
“It works well for its purpose - co-creating the whole western atmosphere with the visuals.”
“The game has a good western atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, lacking the depth needed to immerse players.”
“Despite the visuals, the overall ambiance fails to evoke any real emotion or tension.”
“The game tries to create a rich atmosphere, but it ends up feeling hollow and lifeless.”
- grinding2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the grinding aspect of the game is marred by poorly executed platforming mechanics, which are described as tedious and frustrating. Players find the animation lacking and the frequent interruptions for climbing and crawling detract from the overall experience.
“Imagine this 'spiced up' with painfully rudimentary platforming that's woefully animated and constantly grinding to a halt to ledge-climb and crawl up ladders.”
“Even when it was working okay, a lot of the platforming tasks felt tedious.”
- humor1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by its subtlety, particularly evident in the dialogue, which many players found enjoyable.
“I really enjoyed the subtle humor in some of the dialogue.”
“The witty banter between characters kept me laughing throughout the game.”
“The game is filled with hilarious moments that caught me off guard.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -500 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is enhanced by the presence of three distinct skill trees—Good, Bad, and Ugly—each offering a unique approach to combat, encouraging players to explore different playstyles in subsequent playthroughs.
“Having to choose from three skill trees (fittingly named the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly) adds significant replayability, as each tree offers a unique spin on the combat, making each playthrough feel distinct.”
“The variety of character builds and choices ensures that no two playthroughs are the same, keeping the game fresh and engaging every time.”
“With multiple endings and branching storylines, the game encourages players to explore different paths, enhancing its replayability.”
“Having to choose from three skill trees (fittingly named the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly) adds some replayability because all three provide a unique spin on the combat and make it different from the others.”
“Once you've completed the main story, there's little incentive to replay the game. The side quests feel repetitive and don't offer much variation.”
“While the game has multiple endings, the journey to get there is so linear that it doesn't feel worth replaying to see the different outcomes.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game has been criticized for its unpolished gameplay, with players noting that essential mechanics like ledge grabbing, sliding, and aiming need to function more smoothly and intuitively. These details significantly impact the overall experience, as they hinder fluid movement and combat effectiveness.
“The unpolished gameplay highlights that it's the details that make a big difference in the end. Grabbing onto ledges and ladders should run smoothly and automatically, sliding should work without interrupting the character's movement, and aiming during fights should allow for 360-degree targeting; otherwise, enemies at sharp angles become difficult to target.”
