blood-on-the-sand

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  • Blood on the Sand: the Burnout of shooters

    by 
    Richard Mitchell
    Richard Mitchell
    06.13.2008

    In an interview with Xbox World 360 magazine (as reported by OXM UK), the producer of 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand, Julian Waddows, stated that he hopes Fiddy's new game will do for shooters what Burnout did for the racing genre. He adds further that he wants the game to do, "What Diablo did for RPGs. We wanted to take all that makes the genre fun and exaggerate it." An over-the-top, exaggerated shooter? Oh no, that's never been done before. Seriously though, we kid Blood on the Sand. After all, we certainly wouldn't wish any game to be bad. In theory, there's nothing wrong with Waddows hopes. We just hope that his hopes come to fruition. Otherwise, we'll probably just lose hope altogether. Editor's note: Since we're on the subject, let's get someone started on porting Diablo II to XBLA, mkay?

  • Fiddy's friend says Blood on the Sand "as good as Gears of War"

    by 
    Richard Mitchell
    Richard Mitchell
    06.11.2008

    This should allay everyone's fears about 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand. According to TeamXbox, a member of 50 Cent's G-Unit crew, Tony Yayo, has been quoted as saying that Blood on the Sand is "looking as good as Gears of War." Lofty words to be sure. Of course, given the source, we're a little skeptical. Fortunately, Yayo doesn't seem to be the only one impressed with the game, as TeamXbox also reports that Epic's own Mark Rein told CVG he was "blown away" by the game last year. In fact, even our own Terrence Stasse managed to enjoy the game during a recent Sierra event. Who knows, maybe Blood on the Sand will make us all forget about Bulletproof (or die tryin').

  • X3F Impressions: 50 Cent Blood on the Sand

    by 
    Terrence Stasse
    Terrence Stasse
    04.28.2008

    When the first 50 Cent game was released, it wasn't exactly to critical praise, and many didn't think that it would be anything other than a footnote in the history of licensed games. Surprisingly, the game sold over a million copies and has a sequel well into development. 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand is following in the footsteps of its prequel with its focus on the characters and gunplay, but everything else seems to have been left behind. Despite the commercial success of the first game, it's reported that 50 Cent was unhappy with the first game, and wanted an entirely new team to work on the second game. Hence, Swordfish Studios took the reins on development, with the goal to create a game that was easy to pick up and play in a fun and arcady fashion. Our first impression upon being shown to the seats was "Wow, this looks a lot like Gears." And not just because both games are running Unreal Engine 3. The base gameplay of Blood on the Sand is almost an exact copy of Gears in every way, right down to the cover mechanic and melee activation. The movement is faster overall (to keep up the arcade feel the devs are shooting for) and you're definitely not in as much danger as you are in Gears. While there is a cover mechanic that allows for crouching, firing from behind cover, peeking around corners, and everything else you would expect out of a Gears clone, it's mostly unnecessary as the bulletproof vest your character wears is MUCH tougher than it looks (at least on the default difficulty).

  • Joystiq impressions: 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand (360/PS3)

    by 
    Zack Stern
    Zack Stern
    04.28.2008

    var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Impressions_50_Cent_Blood_on_the_Sand_360_PS3'; If you buy only one game featuring 50 Cent and G-Unit shooting people in a quest to get back their diamond-encrusted skull this year, make it 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand. I'm still overwhelmed by the game's plot, and when 50 Cent is your protagonist, you might as well embellish as much as you can. Go over the top, and then go even higher. 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand is a straight-ahead action game. You'll fire all kinds of guns to kill waves of disposable enemies, all trying to stop you from getting back what's rightfully yours. In a recent demo of the title, I felt a little bad for the sheer numbers of enemies you must dispatch; surely, these lowly thugs aren't making diamond-encrusted-skull money. And before I get too far, a clarification: 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand is not necessarily set in the Middle East. Lots of places have sand, including Miami Beach, school playgrounds, ant farms, and other non-Middle-Eastern settings. The game is merely set in a fictitious, unnamed country with sand, palm trees, and vaguely Middle-Eastern architecture. %Gallery-21637%