Video Game Review - Bloodshore

Rob reviews Bloodshore on Xbox Series X...

Wales Interactive are no stranger when it comes to producing interactive movies. With titles such as Nightshift, The Bunker and Five Dates within its back catalogue. Bouncing back from the ridicule of Gamer Girl, Wales Interactive and Goodgate Media have attempted to tackle the Battle Royale genre with Bloodshore.

With plenty of audience participation, action, and low-budget horror, is Bloodshore more Squid Game or Fortnite? 

The premise behind Bloodshore is a fairly simple one. 50 contestants land on a deserted island and whoever survives is the winner. Kill/Stream (the title of this "game") started out pitting death row inmates against each other, has now evolved into allowing fame-hungry streamers, influencers, Z-List celebrities, and crackpots to enter the fray.

All the action is broadcast live 24/7 via a dedicated Kill/Stream channel. This broadcast is periodically interrupted via various pundits and audience members who give their opinions on the cast, and how viewers are perceiving the narrative. It's all big-budget and you certainly get the sense that Kill/Stream is quite a big thing within this reality. 

Bloodshore's primary cast is made up of a mixed match bunch of these wannabe stars. There's a couple of video-game streamers, a vlogger, former child-movie star, conspiracy nut, and dodgy survival presenter. These characters do start off being a little hollow and while they initially fall into their categories, as the experience develops, so do these people. There's plenty of intimate moments where the action subsides and there's room for character development. 

Your character is Nick Romeo (played by James Plamer), a washed-up child actor who's a parody of Cory Haim and Cory Fieldman. It's soon revealed that Nick is taking part in Kill/Stream for a much larger reason, and is attempting to show the broadcast for what it is. Along the way, he'll either make allies or enemies based on your choices, as well as discover the wider conspiracy. Your choices also affect Nick's personality and he can go from heroic badass to a stone-cold killer within a few choices. 

The story is all about choices, and often one choice will open one path whilst closing another. This will also lead you to interact with more of the cast and less of the others. During my first playthrough the game was building up MMA star Rhea Cohen (played by Ramona Ramos), yet a few scenes later she disappeared without any further mention. You'll also learn more - or less - about the overarching narrative too. You'll certainly need three or four playthroughs to go down each narrative route to piece everything together. Thankfully Wales Interactive have also included a skip feature for previously viewed scenes. It's a small addition, but a nice touch nonetheless. 

In terms of presentation, Bloodshore is a fairly budget-type movie. Its low-grade CGI is laughable at moments, and on occasion, the editing can go a little off-key (stealth takedown and you'll see), and on one occasion the subtitles labelled a character as "her" when the spoken dialogue mentioned "her" by name. However, even with these shortcomings, the acting is pretty decent. You certainly get a feeling that the actors got into their roles, with each being played with a degree of realism. The Kill/Stream presenter for example is a real nut job who goes from captain charisma to psychopath whilst having no interaction with any other character. 

If you go into Bloodshore with low expectations you'll certainly get more enjoyment. It's a true popcorn-munching flick that's enjoyed with friends over a few beers. 

While it's certainly not going to win an Oscar, it does surprisingly leave you wanting another playthrough - or more.

The narrative is also one that needs to be explored and while it does go to some questionable places, it parodies our reality for a more believable experience. Wales Interactive have a proven track record with interactive movies, and Bloodshore is a continuation. 

Rating 7.5/10 

Bloodshore is out now and can be purchased via the Microsoft Store by clicking here.

A code was kindly provided for this review.

Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter and Facebook @GeekCultureRev