Bloodrayne Betrayal is brutal, bloody, and brilliant. Also beautiful, bellicose, bombastic… bespoke…
In the 2000s, Bloodrayne had a cross-media blitz. Two console 3D action games, three Uwe Boll films, a slew of comic books… Betrayal in 2011 is the final instalment in the franchise it seems, and this is a shame. I can’t speak for any other works in the series, but this action sidescroller from WayForward is fantastic.
The concept is not unfamiliar: Rayne is an overly sexy leather-clad dhampir (half-vampire) who hunts the actually bad vampires and violently dispatches them, but unlike Castlevania’s Alucard she relishes her anti-hero status. She’s got vampire powers and is also ridiculously acrobatic, and proficient in dual arm-mounted blades and guns, all of which comes into play in her set of in-game abilities. The aesthetic for this instalment is near-future gothicpunk, with bold colours and cartoony character designs which sit oddly well against the detailed backdrops.
As far as my experience goes, this sets a new high standard for complex but smooth and fun gameplay among WayForward’s catalogue. Rayne’s absurd agility lets you do all kinds of melee combos, especially in mid-air, not to mention the dash dodge which can also be an air dash. Slicing enemies’ heads off, knocking them into each other, feeding on them or exploding them, it all feels great and works well together. Betrayal uses the beat-em-up convention of locking the screen and dumping a bunch of baddies on you, but I never became impatient with it because the combat is so fun.
To directly compare it with my last review, Rayne is a delight to control unlike the plodding Thor, and between fights levels are inventive with their platforming challenges and light puzzles. As you progress your moveset doesn’t expand significantly but you do get the ability to become a bird, and find a “sun gun” which is risky but fun for fights and is used for both puzzles and traversal. Hidden skull pickups can improve your health or ammo capacity; I chose to max health first, as the challenge really does ramp up over the course of the game.
I was really pleased by Bloodrayne Betrayal. In a way it’s typical WayForward but it’s a high point for them, and not to be overlooked. But more than that, I’d place it quite high in my own estimations for the genre; I had a great time with it. Just be aware that it gets difficult, and the subject matter, while a wee bit tongue in cheek, is not family friendly!
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