| Blue Force | |
|---|---|
| |
| Developer(s) | Tsunami Media |
| Publisher(s) | Tsunami Media |
| Designer(s) | Jim Walls |
| Writer(s) | Jim Walls |
| Lead Artist(s) | Cheryl Loyd |
| Composer(s) | Ken Allen |
| Platform(s) | MS-DOS |
| Release | 1993 |
| Genre(s) | Point-and-click adventure, simulation |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Blue Force is a police procedural simulation/adventure game developed and published by Tsunami Media in 1993 on both floppy disks and CD-ROM. Created by designer Jim Walls, it is basically a non-Sierra spiritual 'successor' to the Police Quest series. While this is not a true Police Quest game, nor set in the Sierra Universe, it is included in this wiki for its history connected to the Police Quest series.
Plot[]
Blue Force CD-ROM cover.
The player is a rookie police officer named Jake Ryan. His father John Ryan was a police officer, which prompted Jake to join the force. Jake's father and mother were killed during a home invasion and their case has not yet been solved (cold case). While playing the game, Jake uncovers clues to his parents' murder.
Jake graduates at the top of his class and joins the Jackson Beach Police Department, the same force his dad was on. He makes several arrests in connection with a National Guard armory break-in. Just as he is about to tie these crimes in with his father's murder, Jake is in a car accident while riding his police motorcycle. After spending weeks in rehab, his father's old partner offers him a job as his assistant in his private investigation]] firm, and Jake accepts. Eventually, the two discover a massive gun smuggling ring, tied to three main individuals: a man named Bradford Green, the Jackson Beach district attorney Stuart Cox, and Nico Dillon, the person who murdered Jake's father. The game ends with Nico being sentenced to receive a lethal injection, Bradford Green being sentenced to 20 years in prison, and Stuart Cox being sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Gameplay[]
The game has certain similarities to Police Quest, but has a constant inventory menu and points counter at the bottom, a dynamic displaying menu with five options (look, interact, walk, talk and options menu) and a police motorbike interface system. On the motorbike, the player can use the Ignition to travel to a destination and must use the radio to contact police headquarters when necessary and click the appropriate codes that match the situation. It is essential that the player calls for backup when dealing with criminals.
Reception[]
Computer Gaming Worlds Charles Ardai in 1993 stated that Blue Force "is simply not as strong as Walls' previous games". He criticized the game world ("prop-up facades"), "abysmal" dialogues, "appalling spelling errors and factual inconsistencies", and slow speed. Ardai concluded that "Walls and Tsunami both have better work in them ... they have nowhere to go but up".[1]
In 1996, Computer Gaming World declared Blue Force the 37th-worst computer game ever released.[2]
Credits[]
- Design: Jim Walls
- Additional Design: John Jarrett and Donald C. Soper
- Game Programming: Nancy Churchill, John Crane, Robert Eric Heitman, Chris Hoyt, James E. Spellman II
- Art Director: Cheryl Loyd
- Video Capture and Clean Up: Desie Hartman, Donald C. Soper, and Kim Walls
- Computer Animation: Gary Cox, Jeff Crowe, Tate Deloach, W. Bryan Ellis, Desie Hartman, Deena Krutak, Kim Walls, and Les White
- Background Layouts: Jane Cardinal, Tate Deloach, Cheryl Loyd, and Les White
- Background Renderings: Jane Cardinal, Gary Cox, Tate Deloach, Desie Hartman, Deena Krutak, Peter Ledger, Cheryl Loyd, and Les White
- Music and Sound: Ken Allen
- TsAGE Developed by: John Crane, John Hamilton, Eric Hart, Robert Eric Heitman, Chris Hoyt, and John Rettig
- Quality Assurance: Sol Ackerman, Matt Bair, Ron Flinders, , Eric C. Heitman, Katherin Heitman, Becky Jarrett, and Chris Jarrett
- Box Cover Illustrations: John T. Shaw and Greg Steffen
- Box Cover and User's Manual Layout and Design: Greg Steffen and Steffen Design Group
- Medical Facilities Location Provided by: Sierra Meadows Urgent Care
External links[]
- Moby Games Blue Force
- Wiki ScummVA, Blue Force
- The Cutting Room FLoor, Blue Force
- Hardcore Gaming 101, Blue Force
- Ken Allen Bandcamp, Tsunami – The Definitive Digital Soundtrack Collection
- Player None Blogspot, Blue Force
References[]
- ↑ Ardai, Charles. "Unnecessary Force", Computer Gaming World, November 1993, pp. 52, 54. Retrieved on 28 March 2016.
- ↑ Template:Cite journal