Publisher: D3Publisher
Developer: Vicious Cycle
Genre: Shooter/Side-Scroller
Release date: Available now

Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond marks the second appearance of extreme action hero parody Hazard in an all-new Xbox Live Arcade downloadable game. A direct sequel to Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard, Blood Bath decides to go retro, placing Hazard into a throwback of 8-bit side-scrolling action. Unlike the first Hazard, which was completely 3D, Blood Bath is completely 2D, linear and platform-based, very much akin to old classics such as Contra and Metal Slug.

A super mega corporation (aptly named Marathon MegaCorp) has concocted the ultimate evil plot: go back in time and kill the titular hero, Matt Hazard, in some of his old games. Logic be damned, Hazard suits up and travels through time to replay his old game levels and stop the evil MegaCorp from wiping him out of existence. Armed with an arsenal of machine guns, grenades, flamethrowers and rocket launchers, Hazard battles soldiers, ninjas, skeletons, pirates and even lighthouses in this non-stop adventure.

Go right, shoot everything, don’t die. That’s essentially what you’re getting in Blood Bath and Beyond. The game offers no apologies for being an obvious parody and homage to the side-scrolling arcade shoot-em-ups of old. There is a “plot,” but it’s really just comedic, sarcastic banter making fun of over-the-top bad guy/good guy relationships. The levels are consistently unique and entertaining, taking you from cruise ships to Canada to the Revolutionary War. The game is essentially just one big excuse to mow down waves of enemies in different locales.

The design of the game will instantly cause smirks on the faces of anyone who has spent hours upon hours trying to beat Contra (thank you, Konami code). It’s essentially the formula many gamers knew in their youth, only on steroids. The new touches are welcome, such as a more interactive environment, mini puzzles, and the ability to shoot into the background to take down flanking enemies. Much thought went into the look and feel of each level, with comedic flair in the smallest of details.

If I have a major qualm with Blood Bath, it’s the difficulty. I often review games on their easiest settings so that I can run through as much of them as possible, and then play again on the hard settings just to see how challenging they can be. On the easiest setting, Blood Bath and Beyond is super frustrating. There are tons of attacks that kill in one hit, and many times it’s impossible to survive the plethora of bullets on the screen. Granted, you get infinite lives, but there are no game saves, so you have to either run through the whole thing (which can be a bit repetitive) or start all over the next time you try.

Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond offers exactly what it’s selling: a updated throwback to a classic run-and-gun genre. You can even play in a co-op mode, which does give it a few more points in the positive column. But be cautious; in revisiting a classic genre, developer D3Publisher has brought all of the genre’s frustrating aspects along with it. Definitely fun, but lack of replayability could be a factor.

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