Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds

Welcome to Sunnydale. Home of the Slayer. Population 300,000 (more than half are undead). Enjoy your slay!

Chaos Bleeds is not a sequel to last year?s Buffy Xbox title, and with a new developer and publisher behind the game, there?s no reason it would be. And yet, the game might as well be a sequel because its character/level design and solid gameplay are almost identical to the original title.

Dusting Makes Me Feel Good
In Chaos Bleeds, you take on the champions of the First Evil, fighting as members of the Scooby Gang as well as the titular slayer?and Sid the dummy (don?t even ask). Dusting vamps and other baddies is immensely satisfying, even with the frequent camera problems. On the whole, the puzzle construction is logical and rewarding, but it has major lapses of logic that prove maddening.

The multiplayer mode is where Chaos Bleeds really shines. Whether it?s Slayer Survival mode (three against one) or the completely silly Bunny Catcher (sometimes a name says it all), nothing beats laying the smack down on your friends in an every-man-woman-and-night-creature for themselves fight.

You Slay Me
Fans of the show will love the witty script, which includes the occasional Joss-worthy bon mot. Unfortunately, the voice acting is uneven at best, and the most realistic readings come from Buffy, who is not portrayed by Sarah Michelle Gellar. Willow, on the other hand, is a breathy, whiny shadow of the show?s character. The likeable character models don?t seem to have advanced much beyond those in that other Buffy game; this becomes strikingly evident in the lengthy in-game cinemas that slow the pace of the game.

While Chaos Bleeds is not a marvel of modern gaming, it is a thoroughly enjoyable title. A must for Buffy fans, this is one vampire that doesn?t suck.

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