Blood: Plasma Pak

The Good
As you probably know already, Blood Plasma Pak is the add-on expansion pack for Blood. It is basically a patch, so if you have the original game, and applied the patch to it, you'll get a new episode titled "Post Mortem". In addition, you also get new multiplayer levels, and new alternative firing modes.

Like the original episodes, "Post Mortem" has nine levels (eight normal, one secret), and features new enemies, ranging from two more cultists: a green-robed one that throws dynamite at you, and a blue-robed one who shoots electricity bolts at you. Both of these cultists chant the same words that the original cultists chant. You'll also have to face killer plants, and my favorite, the little Calebs. These pip-squeaks follow you around and shoot you while they say such things like "I once a friend", "You want some, huh? Who's next?", "No one wants to play with me", and "This is my broomstick". As usual, there is a new boss, the Beast, who resurrects himself several times, and you have to find a way to kill him.

Your original weapons have been upgraded to include new alternative firing modes. If you gone through the Plasma Pak, but haven't used these modes, then I suggest that you try them out and see what you thinks. As mentioned before, there are new multiplayer levels, but I haven't tried them out yet. Remember kids, these levels require two or more people to play against each other. If you enter a multiplayer level by accident, you can only explore the level and accomplish nothing, and see how pretty it is.

The Bad
Nothing much. I forget to mention in my review for Blood that when you finish the level after playing it with cheat mode, the cheat mode is disabled when the next level loads up, and you have to enter the cheats again.

The Bottom Line
Although the Plasma Pak consists of only one new episode, plus some extras here and there, it would give gamers the opportunity to spill some more blood. ***½

The Good
Well, Blood just isn't a particularly good game, no matter how you look at it. Plasma Pak is no different, only it adds some additional goodies:

• The Life Leech finally has a secondary attack: you can leave it behind you and it fires at your enemies, whereas its firing power varies according to however much ammo you have left. Even if it doesn't make for a terribly effective weapon (as it can be picked up by your enemies), at lesat it gives you a good indication of where they are (since you can here it firing).
• A few additional multiplayer levels which are fairly good really.

As you can see, not much has changed. So where are my comments regarding the actual levels the designers added to the game?

The Bad
Well, it shares Blood's problems: crappy 3D engine, terrible textures, disastrous level design, braindead AI... in short, it still sucks terribly.

The added levels in the Plasma Pak add a fifth episode which doesn't really qualify as an episode, since even the original game's single player mode isn't worth mentioning. At least in Doom you had a fast engine, atmosphere and music - in Blood you don't even have that. In short, stay away.

The Bottom Line
Improves the multiplayer game somewhat, but make sure to avoid single player mode or you'll be traumatized for life.