Blast Corps
Encyclopedia
Blast Corps is a video game for the Nintendo 64
developed by Rare and published by Nintendo
. It was released in North America
on February 28, 1997, and in the PAL region
s on September 1, 1997. The object of the game is to destroy a series of buildings using a variety of unique demolition vehicles, in order to mainly clear a path for a truck carrying a pair of defective nuclear missiles. Some stages require other tasks to be completed in a time attack, most of them being time attacks (e.g. racing, destroying objects, etc.).
The game starts on a world map with only one accessible carrier level. Beating this level opens the "easy" set of carrier levels. When these are beaten, the next set of carrier levels is opened. Bonus levels are earned by finding and activating communication devices hidden in some levels. And so, the game expands from a single carrier level to many different levels of two types (carrier and bonus).
Each level is initially marked with a shadow, but this can be filled with a medal by fulfilling the secondary requirements of a carrier mission (by destroying buildings, freeing survivors, and collecting RDUs), or by getting a good enough time in a Bonus mission. Each level is also circled in a green or red outline. A green outline means that there is at least one comm. device in the level that has not been found, whereas a red outline means that all of the satellites in the level have been found.
The first objective in the game is to clear all of the carrier levels, but many more tasks await afterwards.
called the Ramdozer, but may find other vehicles in the level. The main focus on such levels is action, as the player must destroy buildings in the path of the carrier, before it crashes into them, but some obstacles require the solving of puzzles. Some of these obstacles require the use of TNT blocks that can be pushed into the object to destroy it, while sometimes holes must be filled in with blocks, or a route across water or over train loading ramps must be bridged. There are even some courses where the player is required to push TNT boxes on to a crane
, then use the crane move the explosives towards a target building. Clearing the path of the missile carrier earns the player a gold medal.
Once the route is clear for the carrier, there is are still tasks for the player to complete. On each level there are secrets to find. To fully complete a carrier level, and earn a second gold medal, all buildings must be destroyed, which will also free anyone trapped inside. In addition, a number of radiation dispersal units, (or RDUs), which are activated by proximity to the player, are placed around the level. Some of these are placed to guide the player around the level. Once the carrier's path is clear, a player can return to a level, with no time limit, to complete objectives and find secrets. 100% completion of the tasks results in a gold medal, meaning that the player can get a total of two golds in each carrier level.
Practice levels are time trial levels that introduce some of the more unusual demolition vehicles. These give some instruction in operating the particular vehicle, and sometimes have arrows to guide the player. These levels function in a similar way to a normal demolition-style bonus levels.
Before each race level, the player can choose the vehicle they will use. Here, vehicles are only available if they have been found and driven on one of the Carrier levels. Some race levels restrict the choice of vehicle.
Finishing bonus levels will result in a bronze, silver, or gold medal, depending on the finish time.
Other time trial levels include clearing a path for a space shuttle to land, which unlocks a demolition time trial level, set on the Moon
. This, along with later levels set on Mercury
, Venus
, Mars
and Neptune
, have lower gravity than normal (although the real Neptune has higher gravity, and the real Venus has gravity almost equal to Earth). Here, as with the bonus levels, a single medal can be won on each level.
Eventually, after the carrier levels have been fully completed and other tasks have been completed, they become time trial levels. The task is again to clear a path for the carrier, but the player only has to destroy all buildings in the path of the carrier; bridging gaps is not required (though the player will fail if the carrier hits one before all buildings are destroyed). This must be done within a time limit. Bronze, silver and gold medals are awarded according to the time taken. Once all of the carrier levels are completed in gold medal time, platinum medals become available for all levels.
On foot, the pilot is slow and can only destroy things under rare circumstances by dropping on them. It is necessary to exit the vehicles in order to get into other ones, except when in levels outside planet Earth. The pilot is unable to interact with human survivors or the rest of the environment while on foot.
The Ramdozer is a fairly ordinary bulldozer, destroying the smaller buildings and obstacles by driving straight into them, but with little or no effect on the larger ones. However, its scoop can push TNT blocks easily, which allows it to destroy some of the larger buildings.
The Backlash is a fairly slow-moving dump truck
. It can ram obstacles, with some effect, but it is much more effective to go into a skid, and swing the armored back end of the vehicle into the chosen obstacle. Alternatively, using terrain as a ramp to get the truck airborne allows it to crash through buildings with ease. As with the Ramdozer, this is only effective against relatively small obstacles. The Backlash can be very difficult to use, especially when pressed for time by the impending missile truck.
The Skyfall is a small and fast dune buggy
, with a booster, which has a very limited fuel supply that regenerates when not in use. Its main method of destruction is to use the booster to travel at high speed up a ramp, and land on obstacles. Landing on top of the obstacles is the only way to destroy them effectively.
The Thunderfist is a very large human
-operated robot
that is ideal for destroying large buildings, such as tower blocks, by running at them, then tumbling into the side, sometimes swinging the arm like a boxer's uppercut as it collides into the building. The machine appears to be missing an arm, as circuits and wires poke out of a shoulder and spark occasionally. This does not hinder the Thunderfist in any way, nor is the missing arm ever explained.
Lead designer Martin Wakeley does offer an explanation in an interview for Retro Gamer magazine
"But his one arm wasn't an aesthetic choice at all. In adding everything we could into the game, we soon found out that we had completely run dry of memory. Quite literally, we didn't have enough to give him a second arm. But we didn't mind so much, he still looked really cool without it."
The Cyclone Suit is a robotic powered exoskeleton
, only somewhat larger than the player's character, which can destroy medium sized buildings, this time by somersaulting into them.
The J-Bomb is the third of the robotic demolition vehicles, and slightly smaller than the Thunderfist. It has a jet-pack, which is used to fly above a target building. Its name refers to his destructible move that loops in a J-shape while descending rapidly to crush the building. The jet-pack also allows the J-Bomb to reach areas not accessible to other vehicles.
The Ballista is a motorcycle that destroys obstacles by firing missiles at them. The missiles are in limited supply, and are collected from ammunition boxes found on the relevant levels.
The Sideswipe is an articulated vehicle that destroys its targets by using extending rams on the left and right sides of its rear section. This can be done a limited number of times, and 'ammunition' can be collected on the relevant levels, in a similar way to the missiles for the Ballista.
A number of other vehicles are also available, primarily used for the race levels, consisting of the police car, the American Dream (a patriotic hot rod with a horn inspired by the General Lee
from The Dukes of Hazzard
, though painted as an American flag), the muscle car (modelled after the Gran Torino
from Starsky and Hutch
), and the van (a duplicate of the van from The A-Team
with a voice resembling Mr. T
). Each vehicle differs in handling, speed and acceleration, making some more ideal for certain levels than others. The Muscle Car has the unique ability of being able to drive off-road and underwater without slowing down. Certain levels also contain train
s or barge
s which run on a fixed track, and are used primarily for transportation, as well as a fixed-position crane
that can move things via its hoisted platform. There are finally two commonly found vehicles of much less functionality. The Blast Corps Chopper is controlled only on the stage select screen, and at the beginning of carrier levels, flies the player character over the path of the carrier for a bird's eye preview, and the Blast Corps Semi can be entered the same way as other vehicles, but doing so ends the current stage and saves progress automatically. Exiting a carrier stage without using the Semi causes everything completed in the stage to be lost.
s as they go further in acquiring medals. There are 31 ranks. The 30 promotions follow a predetermined order, as the player's number of points get higher. This number depends on the quantity and quality of the acquired medals:
Every 12 points, the player is awarded a new promotion.
. The missiles begin to leak and the carrier vehicle transporting the missiles is automatically set onto a direct course to the detonation site. As the course takes it through many built-up areas, there are many obstacles on the way, and a single jolt could be enough to detonate the missiles and trigger a nuclear winter
. The Blast Corps demolition
company is given the task of clearing a safe route for the carrier and its missiles.
The initial concept was to create a game that required the player to destroy buildings, this concept developed out into the 'constantly moving object' mechanic in order to give the player a reason to destroy buildings.
The gameplay mechanics were reversed engineered to create a group of characters.
magazine's Top 200 Games list and 84th on Official Nintendo Magazine's top 100 games on a Nintendo System. Metacritic gave Blast Corps a score of 90, placing it in the top 15 N64 games of all time. Similarly, GameRankings assigned the game a score of 89%, placing it in the website's top 20 N64 games.
However he also states that the gameplay has been pushed as far as it can go and that perhaps Blast Corps was a bit of a "one-trick pony".
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
developed by Rare and published by Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
. It was released in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
on February 28, 1997, and in the PAL region
PAL region
The PAL region is a television publication territory which covers most of Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and most of Western Europe...
s on September 1, 1997. The object of the game is to destroy a series of buildings using a variety of unique demolition vehicles, in order to mainly clear a path for a truck carrying a pair of defective nuclear missiles. Some stages require other tasks to be completed in a time attack, most of them being time attacks (e.g. racing, destroying objects, etc.).
Gameplay
Each level is initially marked with a shadow, but this can be filled with a medal by fulfilling the secondary requirements of a carrier mission (by destroying buildings, freeing survivors, and collecting RDUs), or by getting a good enough time in a Bonus mission. Each level is also circled in a green or red outline. A green outline means that there is at least one comm. device in the level that has not been found, whereas a red outline means that all of the satellites in the level have been found.
The first objective in the game is to clear all of the carrier levels, but many more tasks await afterwards.
Carrier levels
The carrier levels form the focus of the game. Here, the missile carrier has a set route, which takes it through a series of obstacles, usually including a number of buildings. The player starts in a demolition vehicle, such as a bulldozerBulldozer
A bulldozer is a crawler equipped with a substantial metal plate used to push large quantities of soil, sand, rubble, etc., during construction work and typically equipped at the rear with a claw-like device to loosen densely-compacted materials.Bulldozers can be found on a wide range of sites,...
called the Ramdozer, but may find other vehicles in the level. The main focus on such levels is action, as the player must destroy buildings in the path of the carrier, before it crashes into them, but some obstacles require the solving of puzzles. Some of these obstacles require the use of TNT blocks that can be pushed into the object to destroy it, while sometimes holes must be filled in with blocks, or a route across water or over train loading ramps must be bridged. There are even some courses where the player is required to push TNT boxes on to a crane
Crane (machine)
A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It uses one or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage and thus move loads beyond the normal capability of...
, then use the crane move the explosives towards a target building. Clearing the path of the missile carrier earns the player a gold medal.
Once the route is clear for the carrier, there is are still tasks for the player to complete. On each level there are secrets to find. To fully complete a carrier level, and earn a second gold medal, all buildings must be destroyed, which will also free anyone trapped inside. In addition, a number of radiation dispersal units, (or RDUs), which are activated by proximity to the player, are placed around the level. Some of these are placed to guide the player around the level. Once the carrier's path is clear, a player can return to a level, with no time limit, to complete objectives and find secrets. 100% completion of the tasks results in a gold medal, meaning that the player can get a total of two golds in each carrier level.
Time trial levels
The bonus levels mostly involve a race of some sort. Some of them are straight races, where the player must complete a course of four laps in the fastest time possible. In others, the player must demolish a certain number of buildings, or activate all RDUs. In some of these bonus levels, there are enemies or obstacles, such as water or lava, which, when touched, will cause the mission to fail.Practice levels are time trial levels that introduce some of the more unusual demolition vehicles. These give some instruction in operating the particular vehicle, and sometimes have arrows to guide the player. These levels function in a similar way to a normal demolition-style bonus levels.
Before each race level, the player can choose the vehicle they will use. Here, vehicles are only available if they have been found and driven on one of the Carrier levels. Some race levels restrict the choice of vehicle.
Finishing bonus levels will result in a bronze, silver, or gold medal, depending on the finish time.
Other time trial levels include clearing a path for a space shuttle to land, which unlocks a demolition time trial level, set on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
. This, along with later levels set on Mercury
Mercury (planet)
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...
, Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
, Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
and Neptune
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System. Named for the Roman god of the sea, it is the fourth-largest planet by diameter and the third largest by mass. Neptune is 17 times the mass of Earth and is slightly more massive than its near-twin Uranus, which is 15 times...
, have lower gravity than normal (although the real Neptune has higher gravity, and the real Venus has gravity almost equal to Earth). Here, as with the bonus levels, a single medal can be won on each level.
Eventually, after the carrier levels have been fully completed and other tasks have been completed, they become time trial levels. The task is again to clear a path for the carrier, but the player only has to destroy all buildings in the path of the carrier; bridging gaps is not required (though the player will fail if the carrier hits one before all buildings are destroyed). This must be done within a time limit. Bronze, silver and gold medals are awarded according to the time taken. Once all of the carrier levels are completed in gold medal time, platinum medals become available for all levels.
Demolition vehicles
There are a number of demolition vehicles in the game. Each has a different method of demolition, from the Ramdozer, which is just a simple bulldozer, to the J-Bomb, a robot that flies up to stomp on buildings.On foot, the pilot is slow and can only destroy things under rare circumstances by dropping on them. It is necessary to exit the vehicles in order to get into other ones, except when in levels outside planet Earth. The pilot is unable to interact with human survivors or the rest of the environment while on foot.
- Ramdozer
The Ramdozer is a fairly ordinary bulldozer, destroying the smaller buildings and obstacles by driving straight into them, but with little or no effect on the larger ones. However, its scoop can push TNT blocks easily, which allows it to destroy some of the larger buildings.
- Backlash
The Backlash is a fairly slow-moving dump truck
Dump truck
A dump truck is a truck used for transporting loose material for construction. A typical dump truck is equipped with a hydraulically operated open-box bed hinged at the rear, the front of which can be lifted up to allow the contents to be deposited on the ground behind the truck at the site of...
. It can ram obstacles, with some effect, but it is much more effective to go into a skid, and swing the armored back end of the vehicle into the chosen obstacle. Alternatively, using terrain as a ramp to get the truck airborne allows it to crash through buildings with ease. As with the Ramdozer, this is only effective against relatively small obstacles. The Backlash can be very difficult to use, especially when pressed for time by the impending missile truck.
- Skyfall
The Skyfall is a small and fast dune buggy
Dune buggy
A dune buggy is a recreational vehicle with large wheels, and wide tires, designed for use on sand dunes or beaches. The design is usually a modified vehicle and engine mounted on an open chassis. The modifications usually attempt to increase the power-to-weight ratio by either lightening the...
, with a booster, which has a very limited fuel supply that regenerates when not in use. Its main method of destruction is to use the booster to travel at high speed up a ramp, and land on obstacles. Landing on top of the obstacles is the only way to destroy them effectively.
- Thunderfist
The Thunderfist is a very large human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
-operated robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
that is ideal for destroying large buildings, such as tower blocks, by running at them, then tumbling into the side, sometimes swinging the arm like a boxer's uppercut as it collides into the building. The machine appears to be missing an arm, as circuits and wires poke out of a shoulder and spark occasionally. This does not hinder the Thunderfist in any way, nor is the missing arm ever explained.
Lead designer Martin Wakeley does offer an explanation in an interview for Retro Gamer magazine
"But his one arm wasn't an aesthetic choice at all. In adding everything we could into the game, we soon found out that we had completely run dry of memory. Quite literally, we didn't have enough to give him a second arm. But we didn't mind so much, he still looked really cool without it."
- Cyclone Suit
The Cyclone Suit is a robotic powered exoskeleton
Powered exoskeleton
A powered exoskeleton, also known as powered armor, or exoframe, is a powered mobile machine consisting primarily of an exoskeleton-like framework worn by a person and a power supply that supplies at least part of the activation-energy for limb movement.Powered exoskeletons are designed to assist...
, only somewhat larger than the player's character, which can destroy medium sized buildings, this time by somersaulting into them.
- J-Bomb
The J-Bomb is the third of the robotic demolition vehicles, and slightly smaller than the Thunderfist. It has a jet-pack, which is used to fly above a target building. Its name refers to his destructible move that loops in a J-shape while descending rapidly to crush the building. The jet-pack also allows the J-Bomb to reach areas not accessible to other vehicles.
- Ballista
The Ballista is a motorcycle that destroys obstacles by firing missiles at them. The missiles are in limited supply, and are collected from ammunition boxes found on the relevant levels.
- Sideswipe
The Sideswipe is an articulated vehicle that destroys its targets by using extending rams on the left and right sides of its rear section. This can be done a limited number of times, and 'ammunition' can be collected on the relevant levels, in a similar way to the missiles for the Ballista.
- Miscellaneous vehicles
A number of other vehicles are also available, primarily used for the race levels, consisting of the police car, the American Dream (a patriotic hot rod with a horn inspired by the General Lee
The General Lee
The General Lee is the modified Dodge Charger driven by the Duke cousins Bo and Luke in the television series The Dukes of Hazzard. It is known for the chases and stunts, especially high jumps, in almost every episode, and for having the doors welded shut, leaving the Dukes to climb in and out...
from The Dukes of Hazzard
The Dukes of Hazzard
The Dukes of Hazzard is an American television series that aired on the CBS television network from 1979 to 1985.The series was inspired by the 1975 film Moonrunners, which was also created by Gy Waldron and had many identical or similar character names and concepts.- Overview :The Dukes of Hazzard...
, though painted as an American flag), the muscle car (modelled after the Gran Torino
Ford Torino
The Ford Torino is an intermediate automobile produced by the Ford Motor Company for the North American market between 1968 and 1976. The car was named after the city of Turin , which is considered the Detroit of Italy...
from Starsky and Hutch
Starsky and Hutch
Starsky and Hutch is a 1970s American cop thriller television series that consisted of a 90-minute pilot movie and 92 episodes of 60 minutes each; created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions, and broadcast between April 30, 1975 and May 15, 1979 on the ABC...
), and the van (a duplicate of the van from The A-Team
The A-Team
The A-Team is an American action adventure television series about a fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces personnel who work as soldiers of fortune, while on the run from the Army after being branded as war criminals for a "crime they didn't commit". The A-Team was created by...
with a voice resembling Mr. T
Mr. T
Mr. T is an American actor known for his roles as B. A. Baracus in the 1980s television series The A-Team, as boxer Clubber Lang in the 1982 film Rocky III, and for his appearances as a professional wrestler. Mr. T is known for his trademark African Mandinka warrior hairstyle, his gold jewelry,...
). Each vehicle differs in handling, speed and acceleration, making some more ideal for certain levels than others. The Muscle Car has the unique ability of being able to drive off-road and underwater without slowing down. Certain levels also contain train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
s or barge
Barge
A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
s which run on a fixed track, and are used primarily for transportation, as well as a fixed-position crane
Crane (machine)
A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It uses one or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage and thus move loads beyond the normal capability of...
that can move things via its hoisted platform. There are finally two commonly found vehicles of much less functionality. The Blast Corps Chopper is controlled only on the stage select screen, and at the beginning of carrier levels, flies the player character over the path of the carrier for a bird's eye preview, and the Blast Corps Semi can be entered the same way as other vehicles, but doing so ends the current stage and saves progress automatically. Exiting a carrier stage without using the Semi causes everything completed in the stage to be lost.
The ranks
Blast Corps rewards the player by giving them rankRanking
A ranking is a relationship between a set of items such that, for any two items, the first is either 'ranked higher than', 'ranked lower than' or 'ranked equal to' the second....
s as they go further in acquiring medals. There are 31 ranks. The 30 promotions follow a predetermined order, as the player's number of points get higher. This number depends on the quantity and quality of the acquired medals:
- 1 point for every bronze medal
- 2 points for every silver medal
- 3 points for every gold medal
- 4 points for every platinum medal
Every 12 points, the player is awarded a new promotion.
Plot
Two defective nuclear missiles are being moved to a safe location for a controlled detonationDetonation
Detonation involves a supersonic exothermic front accelerating through a medium that eventually drives a shock front propagating directly in front of it. Detonations are observed in both conventional solid and liquid explosives, as well as in reactive gases...
. The missiles begin to leak and the carrier vehicle transporting the missiles is automatically set onto a direct course to the detonation site. As the course takes it through many built-up areas, there are many obstacles on the way, and a single jolt could be enough to detonate the missiles and trigger a nuclear winter
Nuclear winter
Nuclear winter is a predicted climatic effect of nuclear war. It has been theorized that severely cold weather and reduced sunlight for a period of months or even years could be caused by detonating large numbers of nuclear weapons, especially over flammable targets such as cities, where large...
. The Blast Corps demolition
Demolition
Demolition is the tearing-down of buildings and other structures, the opposite of construction. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a building apart while carefully preserving valuable elements for re-use....
company is given the task of clearing a safe route for the carrier and its missiles.
Development
Blast Corps was worked on by no more than 7 developers at any one time, developed mainly by 4 recent graduates including Martin Wakeley (later Free Radical) as lead designer.The initial concept was to create a game that required the player to destroy buildings, this concept developed out into the 'constantly moving object' mechanic in order to give the player a reason to destroy buildings.
The gameplay mechanics were reversed engineered to create a group of characters.
Reception
Blast Corps was rated the 71st best game made on a Nintendo System in Nintendo PowerNintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
magazine's Top 200 Games list and 84th on Official Nintendo Magazine's top 100 games on a Nintendo System. Metacritic gave Blast Corps a score of 90, placing it in the top 15 N64 games of all time. Similarly, GameRankings assigned the game a score of 89%, placing it in the website's top 20 N64 games.
Sequel
Lead designer Martin Wakeley has stated that he has toyed with ideas for a sequel to Blast Corps; the game would have been based on a persistent city environment that would deviate into more of an action-based combat game.However he also states that the gameplay has been pushed as far as it can go and that perhaps Blast Corps was a bit of a "one-trick pony".