Blood will be Spilled (2019)

Blood Will Be Spilled is a side-scrolling, tactical shooter game that goes in similar veins of Steamworld Heist. But instead of being about robots in space, it's about bugs in the western. The main protagonist is Jack, the grounded mosquito bounty hunter, who is on a path of revenge against old acquaintances.

The core gameplay is mainly platforming with tactical shooter battles as the cream of the crop. Even though you only have one character to fight against the mobs in the first half of the game, there are just enough varieties of weaponry and abilities to even the odds. Other aspects of the gameplay is covered by obstacle levels, requiring even your grasp of control maneuvering to progress.

The controls are clearly clunky and lacking of intuitiveness and smoothness in both UI and the platforming aspect, though the latter isn't dominating over the battle aspect, where it's fine enough. The music is suitable to the Western environment and doesn't wear out in the game's length, though a more suspenseful or livelier soundtrack for the battle sequences could have been desired.

As I finished the game after 7 hours, I am surprised by how memorable the game is, what with the unordinary, bug society premise and the intrigue in the West. The characters are likable, even the enemy bosses, which has been helped by meaningful dialogues and decent voice actors. I only wish that dialogue scenes could be skippable since they replay it again during retries with the boss fights.

Blood Will Be Spilled is less polished than the game of its inspiration but if gamers are looking to scratch the Steamworld Heist itch, this product is good enough if you can catch it on a sale and don't mind the design flaws.