Badder than Blade and buffer than Buffy, BloodRayne is a vampire romp on an adrenaline shot, a hyperkinetic action/adventure that will whip bloodsucking freaks into a crimson frenzy. First off, the heroine redefines the phrase “bad-ass chick.” Agent BloodRayne herself, a half-vampire on a mission to investigate occult artifacts, wields blades, pistols, and corset-fueled curves with equal and deadly precision. Super-responsive controls unleash her acrobatic moves, slicing and dicing mutant spiders and Nazi henchmen in a stunning bloodbath with almost no drop in frame rate. The speed of the combat matches its intensity—five-on-one showdowns are not uncommon, interrupted only by BloodRayne latching on to someone’s neck for a quick health surge (and even then, you can keep shooting). There’s so much going on in BloodRayne that you won’t notice the lack of mid-level save points. As the game progresses, attack perks like a harpoon and a time-slowing “dilated perception” help you remain more hunter than hunted. Very good voice acting gives BloodRayne a sultry, streetwise personality (“You dropped something,” she quips nonchalantly after a decapitation) and the attention to detail in the game world is admirable as there are plenty of breakable objects and realistic physics. Multiple control configurations give gamers (even lefties!) lots of useful options. BloodRayne’s a guilty pleasure of the highest order with all the makings of a word-of-mouth hit. It’s a fast and furious action/adventure that oozes style (among other things) but still delivers all the gameplay goods.
