Blast Radius for PlayStation 1

One of the knocks against Colony Wars was that some of the missions were kind of, well, boring. Blast Radius, from the same folks who brought us Colony Wars, tries to change that and mostly succeeds, but the game still suffers from some of Colony Wars' other flaws, most notably with its save system. With the game now in bargain bins selling for $15-$20, it is something to consider as it can grow on you.

Blast Radius' story line revolves around a war between the Vorn and the Kotan-Kai. You are a mercenary, hired by the Vorn, with the ultimate goal of wiping out the Kotan-Kai. The Vorn promise to make it worth your while, giving you money and the latest and greatest ships to use. Like Colony Wars, Blast Radius puts you in the cockpit of a starfighter and pits you against some pretty mean opposition. This game's control scheme is a simplified version of Colony Wars' controls, and that is a good thing if you haven't played Colony Wars before. Armed with lasers and missiles that vary from ship to ship, you make fulfill certain mission objectives, which generally involve destroying certain enemy craft. The intelligence of the opposing pilots does increase as missions go on, so players must learn the control scheme quickly.

Blast Radius does have a more arcade-like feel to it, relying more on action than on storyline, like Colony Wars did. Players are gunning for score now, with extra points being given for completing missions in rapid times, shooting down certain enemies, and others. Blast Radius also has a 2-player function, utilizing the link cable. Unfortunately, not too many PlayStation owners have the link cable, or two TVs, two PlayStations, and two copies of the game. Still, it's a neat feature, and link cable gamers may find this to be an interesting option, especially considering the low price of the game.

Blast Radius retains the spiffy graphics that Colony Wars is famous for. Everything smacks of high-resolution, from the craft to the planets and stars on the background. Blast Radius is definitely nice to look at. Soundwise, the game utilizes more varied background music than Colony Wars' symphonies. Rock and techno music rule the soundtrack, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. The clean sound effects are there, as well as deafening explosions. The only complaint here is that the game looks just like Colony Wars, with no real distinguishing graphical characteristics.

Blast Radius does have some flaws, as most games do. The biggest one is the save system. Players do not have the ability to save their progress after every mission, but only can save when the program prompts it. Sometimes there are three or four missions that must be completed before another opportunity to save again. Imagine the frustration that sets in when you get shot down after not being able to save for three straight missions! You have to replay all of them... not cool at all. The gameplay also seldom changes, so for some games, Blast Radius may become boring after a while, giving that "more of the same" feel to it. If you give the game a chance, though, it may grow on you!

Blast Radius is, quite simply, a simplified version of Colony Wars; it retains the beautiful graphics of the game and brings space combat to a level that most gamers can understand. It brings an arcade-like spin to space combat as well, something that fans of shooters may like as well as casual gamers. Blast Radius is not groundbreaking nor very original, but it's not a bad game game in its own right and deserves a look, especially with its low price right now. Take a chance with Blast Radius... you might be surprised!