Blue Force
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| Blue Force | |
|---|---|
 3½-inch floppy disk cover art | |
| Developer(s) | Tsunami Games |
| Publisher(s) | Tsunami Games |
| Designer(s) | Jim Walls |
| Composer(s) | Ken Allen[1] |
| Engine | TsAGE |
| Platform(s) | MS-DOS |
| Release | 1993 |
| Genre(s) | Adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Blue Force is an adventure game for MS-DOS released in 1993 by former Police Quest designer Jim Walls.
Gameplay
[edit]The game has certain similarities to Police Quest, but has a constant inventory menu and points counter at the bottom, a dynamic displaying menu with five options (look, interact, walk, talk and options menu) and a police motorbike interface system. On the motorbike, the player can use the Ignition to travel to a destination and must use the radio to contact police headquarters when necessary and click the appropriate codes that match the situation. It is essential that the player calls for backup when dealing with criminals.
Plot
[edit]In 1995, Jake Ryan is a rookie police officer. Jake's father was a police officer, which prompted Jake to join the force. Jake's father was killed in the line of duty in 1984 and his case has not yet been solved. While playing the game, Jake uncovers clues to his father's murder.
Jake graduates at the top of his class and joins the Jackson Beach PD, the same force his dad was on. He makes several arrests in connection with a National Guard armory break-in. Just as he is about to tie these crimes in with his father's murder, Jake is in a car accident while riding his police motorcycle. After spending weeks in rehab, his father's old partner offers him a job as his assistant in his private investigation firm, and Jake accepts. Eventually, the two discover a massive gun smuggling ring, tied to three main individuals: a man named Bradford Green, Stuart Cox, the Jackson Beach district attorney, and Nico Dillon, the person who murdered Jake's father. The game ends with Nico being sentenced to receive a lethal injection, Bradford Green being sentenced to 20 years in prison, and Stuart Cox being sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Reception
[edit]| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| GameRankings | 40% (1 review)[2] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Adventure Classic Gaming |   [3] |
Computer Gaming World's Charles Ardai in 1993 stated that Blue Force "is simply not as strong as Walls' previous games". He criticized the game world ("prop-up facades"), "abysmal" dialogues, "appalling spelling errors and factual inconsistencies", and slow speed. Ardai concluded that "Walls and Tsunami both have better work in them ... they have nowhere to go but up".[4] PC Format's 1993 review complained about restrictive progression often requiring trial and error and about repetitive bureaucracy. In the conclusion "some good sequences and average graphics" were outweighed by "clicking on the mouse to keep the conversation moving, too many sudden deaths, a storyline that's way too tight, sterile unpopulated settings, characters walking at a snail's pace and no apparent logic in some situations".[5]
In 1996, Computer Gaming World declared Blue Force the 37th-worst computer game ever released.[6]
See also
[edit]- Codename: ICEMAN, another game designed by Jim Walls
References
[edit]- ^ "Tsunami - the Definitive Digital Soundtrack Collection, by Ken Allen".
- ^ "Blue Force (1993) for PC - GameRankings". Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "Blue Force - Adventure Classic Gaming". Davide Tomei. 5 April 2009. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ Ardai, Charles (November 1993). "Unnecessary Force". Computer Gaming World. pp. 52, 54. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
- ^ "Blue Force". PC Format. September 1993.
- ^ Staff (November 1996). "150 Best (and 50 Worst) Games of All Time". Computer Gaming World. No. 148. pp. 63–65, 68, 72, 74, 76, 78, 80, 84, 88, 90, 94, 98.