SeaBlade - IGN (original) (raw)

Unplugged Select: VisionScape's in the air and underwater rescue game is indeed coming along nicely.

Simon & Schuster are bringing us SeaBlade, an innovative take on the air combat genre. It's been awhile since we've had some good old-fashioned pick-em-up & drop-em-off rescue action on a console (the Strike series comes to mind), but SeaBlade will have us searching high and low for a bunch of poor scientists who need rescuing. The folks at VisionScape, the game's developer, are known for the visuals they delivered on games like EverQuest and the Shadows of Luclin expansion set.

The game's innovation comes from the fact that your vehicle can soar through the air and dive underwater to get the job done. It's all done seamlessly and in real time with all of the appropriate physics. Each of the different vehicles is articulated in some way so that you can actually see wings or weapon mounts twitching and moving as you bend around buildings and structures.

The intention is for SeaBlade to be a fast paced, nonstop, action-packed title with a little structure to keep you from getting lost. In the far-too-distant future, the sea levels on Earth have risen dramatically, which explains why there's so much stuff underwater that needs your attention. The only environment we've seen so far is a kind of atoll with a ring of mountains wrapping around a shallow pool of seawater. There's a city in the middle of the ring that reaches as high as the mountain range and spreads out considerably below sea level.

Your SeaBlade unit has basic machine guns to use on those pesky bad guys, but the fun weapons have to be picked up throughout the level. All of the power-ups are re-generating, so if you find a good one you like, it's only a matter of having some decent short-term memory if you want to go back and get some more missiles, grappling hooks, etc.

SeaBlade is still very early in its development, so we haven't been able to assess the depth of the enemy A.I. or evaluate any additional levels. The basic gameplay mechanic of air/underwater combat is solid enough to lead to some engaging gameplay. Because they want you to worry more about enemies and powerups than anything else, the controls in SeaBlade are extremely responsive and tight. The visuals are still rough, but you can see where VisionScape is going with the overall look of the game. With their history, the graphics department is likely the last thing we have to worry about.

--Aaron Boulding

Developer: VisionScape Publisher: Simon & Schuster Interactive # of Players: 4 Rating: RP Release: October 29 2002

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