Blue Stinger

"A rather forgettable survival game"

Upon getting a Dreamcast for Christmas, games would be needed to go with it, so my mom took a shot in the dark and bought Blue Stinger for me, among others. I decided that it couldn't be too bad, and that I might as well give it a shot. I was already an hour into the game, when I had no clue what the hell was going on, where I was, or what I should be doing next. This is Blue Stinger's downfall: it's often confusing (misleading at times), and sometimes leaves you with little to no idea as what you next objective is. Let's take an in-depth look, shall we?

Gameplay - The gameplay here is pretty good. It's basic controls, much like you'll find in...well, any other survival-type game. So there's nothing incredibly new or anything you've never seen before in Blue Stinger, but it's nice to have the comfortable feeling as soon as you load up the game. I've found that sometimes the controls can be a little tough, and getting your character in and out of tight spots or clutch situations can be a hassle.

Story - This is where I have to show some disrespect to BS. What the heck is going on? All I really know is that I'm on a dinosaur island. Or dinosaurs are going to be coming after me, sometime. I think. The game does a terrible job of explaining to you, the gamer, just what's going on and what must be done next. It just seems like a lot of running around, some sparse shooting, kindergarten-level puzzles, and keycard finding. Nothing in the game holds it all together, sad to say. This game could have had much more promise if there was something really gripping happening in the early-goings to draw the gamer in, but there is not.

Graphics - Not bad. That about sums everything up. Stinger was a Dreamcast launch game, so it obviously didn't make full use of the little gray box's capabilities, but it looks nice anyway, better than what could have been done on the PSone. There are many jagged edges in the game, but what can you expect? Good enough.

Sound - The music in the game is your generic suspense/survival music, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but nothing memorable here. The voices in the game are just awful however, and should not have been included.

Replayability - I guarantee that if you buy Blue Stinger, you will get sick of it VERY quickly, or you will put it down after some time of play and never come back to it. The game just doesn't have anything innovative enough to draw you in every time, making the whole experience seem rather worthless.

Rental/purchase? - Neither. Go buy Resident Evil instead. I see no reason for anyone to purchase this game. That being said, anyone want to buy MY copy...? Anyone?

Reviewer's Score: 3/10, Originally Posted: 06/21/02, Updated 06/21/02