Friday, August 14, 2020

Blake Stone: Transport Arrival and Processing

E2M1:
New episode. I think this is the first time I've properly played this, beyond a few minutes. The level starts off right where the last episode ended, in a new location. Same music as E1M1. Its the first level of the commercial part of the game and its just the same as the shareware version. Two guards in the opening area. Its quite a sight seeing me miss, them miss, for about half a minute. I sure as heck wasn't getting closer to solve that.
The room doesn't really seem...like a new episode. The doors are different, sure, but otherwise this is very mundane. Four regular doors, the elevator, and the wrong end of a one-way door.
I take the north-western door and enter a storage room. A new form of crate exists here, among the newly made corpses of Goldfire's guards. They're scattered, along with regular crates. Most of which don't seem to open.
There's only one door forward, and as my luck finally improves, is full of scientists who aren't informants. Giving me a nice, relaxing chokepoint. With that kind of luck I even manage to take out a rifle guard. And it finally really looks like a new episode.
I then enter a giant hallway. More guards, and blessedly my luck with scientists continues. Ah...One room, is of some interest...toxic waste. Damaging floors...well, damaging scenery. And exploding barrels. Interesting. And making a relatively complete circle, a room full of scientists, one, an informant lucky enough to not jump out in front of me. Ah...Now, to fill out the rest of the level.
Is this part of the tour? I appear to have walked into a torture chamber...or execution chamber. Medikits, dead scientists, and ammo. Sure seems interesting. The connected room is either a holding cell, judging by the dead guy, or a vault, judging by the gold.
That only leaves me with a one-way door on this side of the map. A series of three interconnected rooms show up. Two big ones, with a few guards, and on the side, a hallway full of turrets. This isn't the problem it sounds like yet, as the PDU still eludes me. But because the hallway's doors open automatically, and there are a lot of turrets in there. Its tricky to get past it at first. I'm getting dangerously close to dying at this point. There's also a pair of secrets with divided by pillars, which is full of ammo even in the non-treasure filled half. At least I have the disruptor now.
Then the trend continues into a big hallway. Full of more turrets. I get gunned down. You know, I think the turrets can't shoot out if they don't have a clear shot, meaning ceiling fixtures block their attacks. I can't really confirm that, but it seems possible.
This level is quite fond of putting in tiny, twisting corridors. Seems to be a conscious choice, to give the illusion of cramped space. Not even that many secrets on this level. Strange. I must be missing something. More guards, slightly tense, but moreso because of the appearance of scientists. One-way door, meaning I've gotten pretty close to the end of the level.
As soon as I open the next door I hear the tell-tale shout of the alien guards, "You're dead". They're very annoying fellows. They're hitscanners and they don't really get stunned. The room has an electric barrier, behind it, a rifle guard. I have to keep my distance or he's guaranteed to kill me. As luck would have it, there was another one hiding. He gets me the first time I walk through. The exit key is hear and I'm deposited right back at the start. But there's one door I haven't touched yet.
This cafeteria is...understocked. Every food machine is one or two orders away from going out of order and I don't find it very amusing. Even the secrets suspiciously don't fill up my points bars. And I have been everywhere, why aren't all the enemies dead? Wanna know why? Because the exploding barrels are enemies. Don't ask me why that happens, but the toxic waste isn't an enemy. Doesn't matter. What matters is that if Blake Stone was a modern game there'd be a meme about him destroy barrels for no reason.

This Session: 1 hours

Total Time: 12.5 hours

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