Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold
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| Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold | |
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| Developer(s) | JAM Productions |
| Publisher(s) | Apogee Software |
| Engine | Wolfenstein 3D engine |
| Platform(s) | PC (DOS) |
| Release date(s) | December 3, 1993 |
| Genre(s) | First-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: M OFLC: M Self-applied: PC-13 |
| Media | Floppy disks |
| Input methods | Keyboard, Mouse, Joystick |
Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold is a first-person shooter computer game created by JAM Productions and published by Apogee Software. It uses the Wolfenstein 3D game engine to render graphics in first person, while adding many features. The shareware version of the game was released December 3, 1993. The registered version of Blake Stone shipped with a comic book, called a "Blake Stone Adventure". To date it is the only title in the company's product line to do so. In 1994, a sequel called Blake Stone: Planet Strike was released, which continues where Aliens of Gold leaves off.
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[edit] Story
The story is set in the year 2140. Robert Wills Stone III—a.k.a. Blake Stone—is an agent of the British Intelligence, recruited after a highly successful career in the British Royal Navy.
His first major case is to investigate and eliminate the threat of Dr. Pyrus Goldfire, a brilliant scientist in the field of genetics and biology, known for his outright disrespect of professional ethics. Backed by his own organization, STAR, Dr. Goldfire plans to conquer Earth and enslave humanity using an army of specially trained human conscripts, modified alien species, and a host of genetically-engineered mutants. Agent Stone is sent on a mission to knock out six crucial STAR installations and destroy Goldfire's army before it can assault the Earth.
[edit] Gameplay
The gameplay of Aliens of Gold is very similar to Wolfenstein 3D. Playable areas are single-leveled, with orthogonal walls and textured floors and ceilings. Special level features include: locked doors which can be opened by four types of colored keys (gold, green, yellow, blue), one-way doors, secret rooms accessible through pushable wall blocks, and teleports that instantly take the player into another location within the level.
Another unique feature of the game is the fact that Dr. Goldfire appears periodically in certain sections on different levels and will actually attack Stone. After being hit a few times, he activates a teleporter on his watch and escapes. There are several weapons available, more than there are in Wolfenstein 3D. Also included are features such as clipping, invisibility, and auto-mapping. The game also includes non-hostile 'informant' scientists who can provide information, ammunition, and tokens when spoken to. Part of the stage bonus for completing a floor includes how many informants are still alive on that floor. Non-hostile and hostile scientists look exactly the same, and can only be told apart when a player attempts to speak to them; hostile scientists will say things like "You shouldn't be here..." or "Do I know you?" before whipping around and firing.
[edit] Level structure
The game consists of six episodes, each of which features 11 levels, nine regular and two secret. A main elevator goes through levels 1 through 10 and is the only means of moving between the levels. The goal of each level from 1 through 8 is to secure a red keycard and use it to unlock the next floor. The elimination of all enemies on the current floor or the collection of all treasure items are optional objectives that provide bonuses upon completion.
Level 9 of each episode contains a one-on-one battle with Dr. Goldfire himself. Defeating him forces him to teleport away, leaving behind a gold keycard. Then the key is used to unlock the way to the boss, which holds another gold keycard for the level's exit - the episode's end. Each episode features two secret levels. One of them, floor 0, can be accessed through a teleport hidden somewhere within the same episode. The other secret level is floor 10, directly accessible through the main elevator. A red keycard is required to enter, and it is usually hidden very well on floor 9. Secret levels do not have special objectives; their only purpose is to boost the player's score.
[edit] Sales
id Software released Doom one week after Apogee released Blake Stone.[1] Doom quickly eclipsed Blake Stone, which sold poorly after initial success.[1]
[edit] Credits
- JAM Productions: Michael Maynard, James T. Row, Jerry K. Jones
- Contributing Artists: Cygnus Multimedia Productions, Debra Berry, Jeff Dee
- Music: Bobby Prince
- Publisher: Apogee Software
- Texture Mapping Engine: id Software
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Blast - The Old Shoebox: Download Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold - The Online Magazine". Blastmagazine.com. http://blastmagazine.com/the-magazine/technology/2008/08/the-old-shoebox-download-blake-stone-aliens-of-gold/. Retrieved 2008-11-29.
[edit] External links
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