When you use the great classics as a basis for building a game, you have to take into account that these titles carry weight and that, obviously, comparisons are inevitable. As I’ve written in previous articles, the boomer shooter is a sub-genre that’s on the rise and that highlights the immortality of a classic like Doom. That in itself is an attraction for a broadcast, but there are cases where even basing a game on a classic or a genre on the rise can’t sustain it.

Unfortunately, this is the case with Bloodhound, a recent indie release based on this very premise.

Basic gameplay with nothing really new

Although the gameplay doesn’t have any major flaws, the game doesn’t impress, and it presents most of its gameplay ideas right at the start of the journey, bringing nothing new or an identity of its own. Scenarios with no identity of their own, graphics that try to be realistic but are already dated from their conception, as well as gratuitous nudity included in the game’s characters, without even having a meaning or motivation in itself, serving only to shock.

For a stream, this type of theme can annoy the audience, even for streamers who broadcast to adult audiences, in addition to the discomfort with the streaming platforms, although it doesn’t strictly forbid a game that has nudity during gameplay, it doesn’t necessarily make games that exploit this type of theme gratuitously permitted.

Despite having the censorship option, the discomfort of playing a game and coming across appealing content that is at odds with the basic idea or with what the game necessarily sells or shows causes a certain amount of discomfort for players too.

Bloodhound demands a lot from the computer and the player

Bloodhound isn’t well optimized, as it demands very high computer requirements for a graphics experience that doesn’t stand out compared to other recent titles, and also makes it difficult to access the game to create content via streams.

Its replayability factor doesn’t seem to be very high, especially when it comes to achievements, since despite having 100 achievements, the game unlocks several of them very easily (it’s possible to get 40 achievements by playing, for example, for around an hour or less). In terms of general content, too, the game doesn’t seem to have much to offer in terms of what it’s shown, being boring and not living up to its genre.

Bloodhound

PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series (2023)

Performance

Streamability

Audience Engagement

Replayability

Summary

With only the basic gameplay, Bloodhound is forgettable and unfortunately wastes a lot of potential in a genre that has been massively exploited recently. The appeal to shock, with excessive nudity that isn’t disclosed within the game’s standard content, makes the disinterest and irritation with the game bigger. Apart from that, it doesn’t have its own identity or a great replayability factor, being just a flawed reproduction of the games it is inspired by, the boomer shooters of the 90s.

1.4

Ludovicoluka

I have 25 years, I produce content to internet for 4 years and I like retro games, indies and I’m an enthusiast for new launches. I have as my favorite games Donkey Kong Country 2, Super Mario World, Hollow Knight and Red Dead Redemption II, per example. I like to experiment everything and the more, the better, but I never get sick of my comfort games!