BloodRayne: Betrayal will eviscerate PSN and XBLA during the first weeks of August, representatives for Majesco told us at E3. We had specific dates for both consoles, but neither fit the standard release day schedule for a digitally distributed title and reps changed the date to "early August." It will cost $15 (1200 MSP).
Developer WayForward has completely reinvented the concept of BloodRayne for the better, saying that Majesco pretty much gave them carte blanche to make the license their own. If you've never heard of BloodRayne, this is a great arcade slasher introduction. If you've heard of BloodRayne, forget what you know. If you enjoyed BloodRayne before, sorry.
Update#1
E3 2011: BloodRayne Betrayal Hands-On Preview
My love for BloodRayne is deep in my blood. Rayne and I have a relationship that is both bloody and devious. I spent countless hours playing the first and second Bloodrayne years ago, so when the Bloodrayne: Betrayal was announced not only was I one of the first followers of her on Twitter; I also realized that the time has finally come where she and I will dance in puddles and puddles of blood yet again.
As Majesco brought me into their room to show off their games, as soon as the word Bloodrayne was said, I had the biggest smile on my face. So much so, that one of the people working there jumped up in excitement to see just how happy I was to hear that name. Seems they were aware of my love for her thanks to Twitter. Happy and sporting an evil smile on the inside, I picked up the controller and started playing Bloodrayne: Betrayal. The rest can be described as the best virtual quickie I ever got (nerdgasm).
The art style of Betrayal certainly is different then what we’ve seen before and one that can be hit or miss depending on the gamer. Knowing it’s a pretty dark game, light is not your best friend and you will encounter plenty of angry enemies and surprises along the way. I certainly didn’t mind the amount of blood that was spilling throughout the game, this is BloodRayne afterall and it’s supposed to rain blood. Rayne herself looks great as well as the atmosphere around her. One part I really liked was in a specific part of the demo where it was just her, any obstacles, and her enemies in black while the background was all in white. It certainly wasn’t hard to see what you were doing because after each strike or gunshot, plenty of blood was spread across the level.
The best way to explain the gameplay portion of Betrayal is by saying that dashing will is a must if you wish to live. When it comes to avoiding attacks or getting past specific obstacles, you will need to use Rayne’s dash a lot if you wish to survive. You can try not to use it, as I did, but you will end up dying more then you should which I learned the hard way. Utilizing combos and knowing when to dash or shoot your gun will be the difference to getting past each level as fast as possible. The game will have leaderboards keeping track of how fast you kill each wave of enemies and complete each level. Also, you have limited gun ammo but will be able to pick up more along the way. Be sure to use it wisely and at the best time possible (like finishing off a combo and looking badass).
Rayne is still as acrobatic as ever and will be able to get to high spots on a level by jumping and dash jumping. You can even use the jumping mechanic to bounce off the heads of enemies until they die like Mario when he jumps up a Goomba, which I found hilarious.
Now the game wouldn’t be difficult if Rayne was immortal, which she’s not. You will need to suck the blood of your enemies in order to gain health like in previous games. Just be sure to remember that in order to do so, you will need to strike the enemy and then press and hold the B button. However, if you have enough health, feel free to try out the new infection system. After striking the enemy, you can quickly jump on them by pressing B and biting them. Once bitten, they will glow a greenish/yellowish color which lets you know they are infected. You can infect as many enemies on screen as possible. When you’re ready, and with one press of a button, you can blow them all up and create a bloody freaking mess that would make Jigsaw jealous.
If you enjoy a hack & slash type game and were a fan of the BloodRayne series a few years ago, you owe it to Rayne to play Betrayal. I honestly believe Developer WayForward did their best to bring Rayne to the next gen consoles and while it may not be a retail game, I certainly can’t wait for it. BloodRayne Betrayal will be hitting the Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network in “early” August for $15 (or 1200 MSP). You can also donate some blood if you like, but I don’t think you’ll be alive to play the game afterwards.
Before I go, for the sake of Babes and BloodRayne, here is a photo of the Rayne I ran into on my way to the E3 show floor. I have to admit they, or she, did a great job with this costume.
http://sfx-360.com/newsite/e3-2011-bloodrayne-betrayal-hands-on-preview/
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