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Blood Alloy - GAFfer made Metroidvania inspired by Vanquish, Hotline Miami; on KS

Blood Alloy
A 2D, urban scifi Metroidvania featuring the combat mechanics of Dark Souls as applied to gunplay + the dynamic speed of Vanquish!
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Kickstarter
Trailer
Official site
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Drawing inspiration from the stamina-based combat mechanics of From Software's Dark Souls and Demon's Souls, Blood Alloy applies a similar stamina mechanic to gunplay - attacking, blocking, and dodging all draw from your character's cybernetic energy reserves. In the heat of battle, every action or inaction counts. Do you deplete your energy just to finish off that troublesome enemy with a few more clips, or do you save some so you can dodge out of the way of a counterattack? Do you weather the impact of bullets against your shield, or do you attempt a risky parry and riposte? Your playstyle is your own to customize.

27b08c8ddae80b8c52ea832b9141cd44_large.png
dd4d2b6cbd30e9ee36e1ef1bd892a71e_large.png

Explore a world teetering on the brink of apocalypse. Upgrade your cybernetic body with power-ups, including those you literally rip from the smoking remains of your foes. Amass a growing arsenal of diverse weaponry, each with unique tactical uses. And as you explore the catacombs, skyways, and streets of a dystopian future you'll change the very destiny of humanity itself.
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Planned Features:
- An enormous world to explore with a wide variety of environments: secret laboratories, fetid sewers, frozen meat-packing plants, roaring factories, and even abandoned space-stations
- Fast-paced combat that demands and rewards skill
- Dozens of powerful weapons to collect and use against your enemies
- Unique ability upgrades, each with uses in both combat and exploration
- Vicious bosses
- A gripping storyline that culminates in true, branching-path narrative choices at the end featuring unique objectives and areas to explore (Inspired by the narrative choices featured at the end of the original Deus Ex)
- Beautiful hand-drawn pixel art sprites and backgrounds
- Heart-pounding soundtrack by Goncalo "Shiryu" Lopes
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Inspired by:
Metroid: Rich worlds, environmental storytelling, discovering secrets, gaining new abilities and weapons
Turrican: 360-degree aiming, level design that rewards exploration
Hotline Miami: Savage gunplay, ruthlessly aggressive enemies, pounding soundtrack
Demon's Souls/ Dark Souls: Stamina-based combat mechanics, cohesive world-building,
Vanquish: Extremely mobile main character, blisteringly fast-paced combat
Abuse: Dark atmosphere, terrifying enemies, simultaneous run-and-gun gameplay with 360 degree aiming
Deus Ex: Brilliant storyline, gameplay and narrative that completely branch for the last half-hour of gameplay depending on your choices
 

Fireblend

Banned
B]Inspired by:[/B]
Metroid: Rich worlds, environmental storytelling, discovering secrets, gaining new abilities and weapons
Turrican: 360-degree aiming, level design that rewards exploration
Hotline Miami: Savage gunplay, ruthlessly aggressive enemies, pounding soundtrack
Demon's Souls/ Dark Souls: Stamina-based combat mechanics, cohesive world-building,
Vanquish: Extremely mobile main character, blisteringly fast-paced combat
Abuse: Dark atmosphere, terrifying enemies, simultaneous run-and-gun gameplay with 360 degree aiming
Deus Ex: Brilliant storyline, gameplay and narrative that completely branch for the last half-hour of gameplay depending on your choices

This is getting somewhat ridiculous.
 

Vamphuntr

Member
I love the pixel art of this one and I'm a fan of apocalyptic stories but I can no longer count the number of metroidvania games on Kickstarter.

Not sure name dropping a bunch of games that plays nothing like a metroidvania will help his case.
 

Dance Inferno

Unconfirmed Member
Dark Souls inspired combat as applied to gunplay? Wat? That's like me building a game inspired by The Last of Us's plot as applied to a 2D platformer.
 

Odrion

Banned
Wow, it's inspired by that game I really like? Now I really got to donate.

All joking aside, I donated $40.
 

KarmaCow

Member
This is getting somewhat ridiculous.

Super Mario Galaxy: You can jump.
Bayonetta: Has combat where you play as a female character.

It does look neat though, so I'm in. Just stop with inspired by stuff, let the players draw their own comparisons.
 
I love the pixel art of this one and I'm a fan apocalyptic stories but I can no longer count the number of metroidvania games on Kickstarter.

Not sure name dropping a bunch of games that plays nothing like a metroidvania will help his case.
But it's more incorporating gameplay elements into the metroidvania formula. Doesn't matter that those games don't play like a metroidvania

By citing certain games as influence, you instantly paint a picture in a person's mind.

For example, when I read a game is influenced by Dark Souls, I don't think "Oh, it's going to be a Gothic fantasy action RPG." I think that the game in question will be challenging, will have a focus on exploration and atmosphere, will have combat and gameplay where caution and playing defensively is important.

So by invoking the name of a popular game, a developer can easily and quickly give a player ideas of potential concepts and gameplay mechanics.
 

diffusionx

Gold Member
Inspired by:
Metroid: Rich worlds, environmental storytelling, discovering secrets, gaining new abilities and weapons
Turrican: 360-degree aiming, level design that rewards exploration
Hotline Miami: Savage gunplay, ruthlessly aggressive enemies, pounding soundtrack
Demon's Souls/ Dark Souls: Stamina-based combat mechanics, cohesive world-building,
Vanquish: Extremely mobile main character, blisteringly fast-paced combat
Abuse: Dark atmosphere, terrifying enemies, simultaneous run-and-gun gameplay with 360 degree aiming
Deus Ex: Brilliant storyline, gameplay and narrative that completely branch for the last half-hour of gameplay depending on your choices

Hahaha
 
Lol everyone is making a dark souls inspired metroidvania. As if that means anything even...
My thoughts
For example, when I read a game is influenced by Dark Souls, I don't think "Oh, it's going to be a Gothic fantasy action RPG." I think that the game in question will be challenging, will have a focus on exploration and atmosphere, will have combat and gameplay where caution and playing defensively is important.
 
it takes more than just the hot terms "dark souls", "metroidvania", "old school" , etc to get me to believe in these indie games nowadays...

these games need actually good level design and gameplay to matter.

not just stylistic game design and inspiration from hit games and genres...
 
I think KS should stop listing what their inspirations are, especially vague ones. The rest people will pick up on their own.

This game looks interesting and instead everyone is focusing on what it is inspired by. Inspired by does not mean to copy it simply means that it is a source of inspiriration, the end result may look nothing like the the source that inspired. The Last of Us listed ICO as an inspiration and no one is complaining about that.
 
This looks to be a burgeoning trend on Kickstarter.

Someone in another thread said that everything on KS is either "inspired by Chrono Trigger or Dark Souls." My MC has red hair, it's inspired by Chrono Trigger! You have a sword and shield, it's totally like Tales of Phantasia
 
What the hell...Everyone turned into the rapper, Game and started name dropping on Kickstarer now??? There is no such thing as Metroidvania besides Castle, that's it. Anyway, looking forward to the final product....
 
I'm glad the Metroidvania genre is having a bit of a renaissance thanks to crowdfunding, but I'm not going to fund any more of them. I gave $25 to Ghost Song (partly because it was a fellow Gaffer and I could really see his passion), and $10 I think to Legend of Iya (which I only found from browsing at Matt White aka Jobbs' KS account!).

If any of them come to PS3 or Vita I will gladly buy them, but I won't be paying up front for the development.
 
Looks pretty cool. The Vanquish inspiration is the most obvious.

Made a few GIFs:
Is she absorbing the attacks to give them back or is that just how the shockwave works?
iZC3IKJniiub1.gif


Hyper Swordsmen look ace
ibiJQ2cjQMQLhC.gif


Jetpacks!
i2ZUgDQmkjA1I.gif
 

Dantard

Neo Member
Seriously, everyone should stop complaining about the inspirations already, at least this:

Inspired by:
Metroid: Rich worlds, environmental storytelling, discovering secrets, gaining new abilities and weapons
Turrican: 360-degree aiming, level design that rewards exploration
Hotline Miami: Savage gunplay, ruthlessly aggressive enemies, pounding soundtrack
Demon's Souls/ Dark Souls: Stamina-based combat mechanics, cohesive world-building,
Vanquish: Extremely mobile main character, blisteringly fast-paced combat
Abuse: Dark atmosphere, terrifying enemies, simultaneous run-and-gun gameplay with 360 degree aiming
Deus Ex: Brilliant storyline, gameplay and narrative that completely branch for the last half-hour of gameplay depending on your choices

...Tells me exactly what kind of game the designer is attempting to build. Making comparisons is a pretty good way to explain gameplay and also avoid the "this is stealing from [this game]" fiasco (but apparently creates another one...), since it admits their influences.

Would you all just rather they said "I want to build a fast-paced twitch shooter"? Or "a moody game set in a post apocalyptic scenario!"?

Also, yeah, they may have gone a bit overboard with the comparisons, but at least a lot of these influences can actually be seen on the alpha trailer already.

I'm getting sick of everything being inspired by Dark Souls

Finally, please tell me where are all those "everything" inspired by Dark Souls, because I want to play them and can't seem to find them...
 

jokkir

Member
Looks pretty cool. The Vanquish inspiration is the most obvious.

Made a few GIFs:
Is she absorbing the attacks to give them back or is that just how the shockwave works?
iZC3IKJniiub1.gif


Hyper Swordsmen look ace
ibiJQ2cjQMQLhC.gif


Jetpacks!
i2ZUgDQmkjA1I.gif

Looks good but the main characters animation seems a bit clunky. Hopefully it will be fixed until release :p
 

shuri

Banned
I think it looks interesting, this something I would had bought during the 16 bits days (well even if its technically more advanced than anything made from that era, but its in spirits).

It actually reminds me a lot of Aliens 3 on the snes, which was a great game
 

CTLance

Member
Sorry, fellow Gaffer, but Jobbs and his Ghost Song beat you to this, at least for now, and at least as far as I am concerned. Besides, this month I'm bled dry with all these different kickstarters. Will have to hold back for a while.

I hope you can still make it without my meager donation. I will buy it later on when I'm done with Ghost Song. Will also spread the word. There can never be enough Metroid.
 

LGom09

Member
Inspired by:
Metroid: Rich worlds, environmental storytelling, discovering secrets, gaining new abilities and weapons
Turrican: 360-degree aiming, level design that rewards exploration
Hotline Miami: Savage gunplay, ruthlessly aggressive enemies, pounding soundtrack
Demon's Souls/ Dark Souls: Stamina-based combat mechanics, cohesive world-building,
Vanquish: Extremely mobile main character, blisteringly fast-paced combat
Abuse: Dark atmosphere, terrifying enemies, simultaneous run-and-gun gameplay with 360 degree aiming
Deus Ex: Brilliant storyline, gameplay and narrative that completely branch for the last half-hour of gameplay depending on your choices

Ocarina of Time: is a video game.

This looks pretty cool.
 

Dantard

Neo Member
Looks good but the main characters animation seems a bit clunky. Hopefully it will be fixed until release :p

Yeah, character animations are what's worrying me the most so far, but it's still alpha. (and I don't particularly like the bland look of the character either)
 

Azih

Member
The Kickstarter mentions a lot of artists, designers, music, and audio guys.

Who's doing the actual programming?
 
It sounds interesting from a conceptual perspective and am a fan of most of the games that this seems to be inspired by, but I'm not quite sure that this will be up my alley. I'll keep an eye on it.
 

mclem

Member
Inspired by:
Metroid: Rich worlds, environmental storytelling, discovering secrets, gaining new abilities and weapons
Turrican: 360-degree aiming, level design that rewards exploration
Hotline Miami: Savage gunplay, ruthlessly aggressive enemies, pounding soundtrack
Demon's Souls/ Dark Souls: Stamina-based combat mechanics, cohesive world-building,
Vanquish: Extremely mobile main character, blisteringly fast-paced combat
Abuse: Dark atmosphere, terrifying enemies, simultaneous run-and-gun gameplay with 360 degree aiming
Deus Ex: Brilliant storyline, gameplay and narrative that completely branch for the last half-hour of gameplay depending on your choices

Y'know, this sort of thing is starting to set off alarm bells for me. It's like the Kickstarter hardcore gamer version of marketing buzzwords so adored by PR folk in the industry.

That said - and proof that such a policy might cynically work - looks intriguing.
 

PureGone

Banned
I have backed 7 kickstarters over the past year or so. Guess how many actually came out... none.

Yeah I'm going to wait till this comes out.
 
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