Home > Games > RPG Maker 2000 Games > A Blurred Line
A Blurred Line Review
Great for any Newbie, Player, or Developer
Review by Rydin
There are many times when people, new to the amatuer game developement community, waltz in and think they can whip out this kick-butt game. I know because I was one of them. However, it takes more than knowing what you want to do to make a good game. It takes knowing what a 'good game' is with the limited skills a one-person developer can take advantage of. A Blurred Line, in my opinion, is the perfect example of a game that's most enjoyable to play, even without all the fancy perks everyone 'thinks' a game needs to be good.
When you first play the game, you're hit with instant classic flashback. I won't ruin the scene for you, but the game's storyline sort of runs backwards and play up to the point. My first impression of the game, was the graphics.
I said, "Boo! This game gets so much hype, but it looks like sh*t! Flawed maps, over-used sprites--it's horrible!"
I was WRONG. The graphics were indeed flawed, but Lysander86 took advantage of what he got. Computer screens were animated, there many nick nacks scattered like dispenser machines (that worked of course for double the normal price =p), freeways with cars, and everything just completely put you in a whole realn of gaming that made it 'fun' to play. There was so much detail that made everything interesting.
Not only was the atmosphere friendly, but the gameplay is also worth mentioning. To stereotype, sum up the game's style, and make it easy for all gamers to understand, I'd say A Blurred Line's gameplay resembles a beat togethor mixture of Earthbound and Final Fantasy 6. I know, I originally said 7 because, like 7, it was a couple hours before you left the antagonist's hometown. However, the way the world map and areas were set up reminded me a lot of Final Fantasy 6. The other gameplay itself was very similar to Earthbound; For example, the battle system:
/ Wack the enemies with a bat!
/ Eat a Sandwhich-HP
/ Wack some more.
/ Enjoy the funny antics of your weird party members.
/ Finish off killer Rat Bosses.
Continue.
Although the battle system seems friendly, don't underestimate the difficulty of this game. The gameplay and battle system is very well balanced and tuned for average-hard gameplay. I believe it was Lysander86's goal to not make this a breeze, get-through game. The battles make up a majority of the action in RPGs, and Lysander86 didn't want you to feel cheated. However, the battles aren't tedious, boring, and long either. The only way you'll know if it fits your style is to play it!
The storyline of A Bluured Line is one to mention. I really 'don't' want to ruin that for you because it was a nice experience the first time I played through it. However, I'll try my best to outline it. You see, the game starts off small and comedic. As you progress in the game, the world expands and more situations arise that drag the protagonist deeper into the real problem. After seeking paradise from his 'problems', the antagonist enjoys his fortitude but finds out that it's not all great. Soon, another story unravels that will draw you even deeper. I know, it's a very vague description. However, it's complexity rivals that of your great console RPGs, but it also contains the simplicity of an amatuer game. The story did have its holes, but it was enjoyable... that's what's important.
You see, whenever somebody comes to me and says, "What's a good game to play to get some experience on how I should make my game?" I will always point them to this game, here. This game gets top score not because of its fancy-butt scripts and n00btacular maps, but it's just fun to play. Unfortunately, this game does have its flaws so it's not perfect. Of course, it's very rare that you will find a game like this one, and it's more rare that you'll find a game like this one that has all that fancy junk. A developer, who has math skills in designing their game brilliantly /and/ has a mix of what makes A Blurred Line great, will have the right state of mind for creating one legendary game.
Reviewer's Score: 8 / 10, Posted Thu, 29 May 2008 11:33:51 -0700
|
|
Game Details
|
|
Developer:
|
Lysander86
|
|
Platform:
|
RPG Maker 2000
|
|
Genre:
|
RPG
|
|
Status:
|
Complete |
|
Last Updated:
|
2003-02-02 |
|
Views:
|
14634 |
|
Downloads:
|
1372 |
|
User Rating:
|
  23 Vote(s) |
|
|
Submit Your Article
Guild Wars 2 Forum
RPG Maker VX.com
