Blast Works: Build, Trade, Destroy - IGN: 8.1, 1UP: A - Share your designs!

Lan_Zer0

Lan_Zer0

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I realize we have another Blast Works thread, but I think this game deserves some more recognition. Thus I present to you the Official Blast Works Thread of Pretty Pictures and Links to Reviews.

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What is Blast Works?
Blast Works is a SHMUP (shoot'em up) based off of Kenta Cho's Tumiki Fighters. Blast Works follows the same gameplay mechanics as Tumiki Fighters in that you can catch enemies ships after shooting them. Those enemy ships will then be stuck onto your ship and you will be able to use their weapons for yourself.

blastworksbuildfusedesthl0.th.jpg

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What else is Blast Works?
Blast Works is also a collection of level/3dmodel editors that allow you to create your own ships, enemies, obstacles, bullets, and full levels from scratch. Pretty much, you can create your own SHMUP, the possibilities are endless.


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That sound great, but creation is no fun if I can't easily share it.
That's right. That's why Majesco/Budcat have provided blastworksdepot.com. From your Wii, you can upload any designs you have created onto this website for everyone to see. Once you create an account, you can also browse, rate, comment, and download other designs that you see. When you select an item to download, it goes into your download queue. Then from your Wii, just select the option to download from balstworksdepot, and your selections will be downloaded onto your Wii.


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Amazing! There can't possibly be any more!
But wait! There's more! Blast Works also includes FOUR Kenta Cho games. This includes the original Tumiki Fighters, rRootage, Torus Trooper, and Gunroar. Each of these are excellent excellent shmups, and should not go unnoticed from fans of the genre.


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Tumiki Fighters / rRootage / Torus Trooper / Gunroar
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What have official media outlets thought of this game?
IGN: 8.1
1UP: A
GI: 8/8.25
NP: 8.5
Destructoid: 9.0


Sample user content:
 
in case it was missed in the deals thread, purchase from circuit city (online or instore) and get a $10 giftcard

I was planning to order anyway to support defeating the friend code system
 
I just unlocked Torus Trooper, and I have to say, the extra games are almost worth the $40 alone. Of course, they are freeware, but being able to play on a large TV with analog controls is great. Throw in leader boards for these games, and we would have a full fledged retail release.
 
So, I don't like shmups (at all) and I'm not curious about the editor options at this point, but many reviews compare this to Katamari. Is there enough of a similarity that if I like Katamari I will like this, or is it a weak comparison?
 
OK, I still wasn't interested after looking at Tumiki Fighters, but then I went to the repository and saw that someone had made Beaver Boys with white wine and shrimp and I was sold. I added it to my goozex queue - I'm 4th in line and it's overvalued, so hopefully I'll get it soon.
 
I picked this up last night at CC. Got to play around with it a little, but spent most of my time in the editor mode. It's pretty cool, but it'll take awhile before I get a hold on manipulating the blocks in 3D. I'm so used to just thinking in 2D and I miss the "Bring to Front" option, which would be of little use here.
 
I'm not saying they should - they shouldn't - but I wonder if Nintendo and others will balk at all the models of licensed characters that are being distributed this way? No, the game designer didn't create the designs, but they are distributing them. I'm not a legal expert, not by a long shot. Perhaps this is all fine and Nintendo et. al. wouldn't care anyway. Just wondering.
 
[quote name='crunchewy']I'm not saying they should - they shouldn't - but I wonder if Nintendo and others will balk at all the models of licensed characters that are being distributed this way? No, the game designer didn't create the designs, but they are distributing them. I'm not a legal expert, not by a long shot. Perhaps this is all fine and Nintendo et. al. wouldn't care anyway. Just wondering.[/QUOTE]

I thought about this too and quickly downloaded any that I liked in anticipation of such an issue.

Boss Donkey Kong is pretty cool. Grabbed some Enterprises too.
 
Unlocked Gunroar, it feels like a vertical scrolling geometry wars. Online leader boards would be amazing for these unlockables, though it probably wouldn't help sales...:cry:

Anyways, slight update to Green Hill Zone with some enemies and such. Though, by now I have a much better version on my Wii. I'll probably finish the Zone before uploading next GHZ update.

http://blastworksdepot.com/games/blastworks/1979
 
[quote name='kevlar51']Blockbuster stores are selling this game for $30 new.[/QUOTE]

Is that the cheapest price so far?
 
This game seem interesting. I have a few question for people who own this game.


What the learning curve for customization feature in this game? Is there a novice , normal or advance tutorials? Normally, customization games have a steep learning curse. Is there a mode for beginners? I would like to start small then gradually get better with every use. I don't want to be overwhelm with multitude options or triggers when I first set foot in this game. Such games like Rpg Maker which had a long complicated tutorials, which seem like more work then fun.


Also, can you import foreign objects(things like images/music from internet or pc) into this game? This seem like the biggest downside with home console customization games- it have limitation unlike pc. It would be sweet if I can add some music rather then recreating it note by note.
 
No outside importation.

Tutorials are available online. I haven't taken too big a swing with the editor yet, but any editor with the power this one has will have a bit of a learning curve to it.

Really, my biggest complaint is that the main campaign is ass-rapingly hard. I really want to unlock those extra games, but I just don't see how you're supposed to do this.
 
Is it possible to create games that scroll from top to bottom like space invaders or is it a strictly a side scrolling, right to left, affair ?
 
You can set a vertical scrolling trigger at the beginning of a level.

My main gripe with the game is the techno music and somewhat clunky/ugly interface. The extra games are amazing though, easily worth $7-10 each on Wiiware for shmup fans.
 
I just got this at Blockbuster - it was pretty nice to be able to trade a Sonic Riders I got for free almost straight across for it. In no time at all I will be making childish and crude creations. Without doing too much research, I do have a couple of questions:

- Are there online or PC editing tools that are compatible with the game? If not, why not?

- What is the preferred control method?
 
How is this game looking after a couple months on the market? Replayability, community? A $20 price tag at EB/GS has me interested again.
 
[quote name='botticus']How is this game looking after a couple months on the market? Replayability, community? A $20 price tag at EB/GS has me interested again.[/QUOTE]
me too.
 
I guess I'll say me 3. I'm really not in the market for a new game here (making my way through GTAIV and SSBB), but I'm afraid this might be one of those that gets rare. I was checking out the community, and some of the user created levels look fun (though, I'm wondering if they are going to be of the very short variety).

The only thing that has me on the fence about this game is the fact that, given time contraints, I really can't see working all day then coming home to make my own levels. So, I feel like most of my play might be from stuff others create (though, I've been interested in this game since the game informer review, calling it a mix of Katamari and a traditional shooter).

Bad part is I have some returns to make to Gamestop (bought $10 worth of games, then looked when I got home and what the heck was I thinking), so being there, half the money paid for, might be hard to turn it down.
 
I haven't played it much lately due to traveling, but to answer some questions...

I got the game on release day (with giftcard and trade-ins of course), and have not regretted it one bit. Of course, I was really interested in both the shmup portions and ready to dive into the creation tools. Fully committed to enjoying the game you could say.


Now for $19.99...
- If you like shmups, worth it. 4 Kenta Cho games are worth that price alone. For comparison, think along the lines of a Wiiware game like Gyrostarr, but much more refined in the gameplay department.
- Actual campaign is alright. It gets difficult, and is a little bland. The mechanics work better with the style and speed of Tumiki Fighters.
- The community...is small. Poor sales = small community. Now theres plenty of interesting content online, but you probably won't find much of that outstanding material that would pop up in a community of millions.
- Worth it if you are into creating your own shmups. Most of my enjoyment from the game has been recreating Green Hill Zone in shmup form. These tools, while not complicated, are not for casual use either. If you really want to create something substantial, be ready to sink in hours or days.

In short, even with a passing interest, I would say its worth $19.99.
- You get a lot of shmup for your money
- You get to mess around with user content
- You support the abolishment of friend codes
- You support developers that actually put effort and thought behind their games.
 
4 Kenta Cho games is not giving you the straight sale. To unlock them, you have to play through the game's almost absurdly difficult campaigns. I've not unlocked a SINGLE ONE of those Cho games in months of play and I was about to take this damn thing back to GameStop and wait for a full unlock save to buy it again.

I can beat Castle Shikigami 3 in 5 credits but this is just nuts.
 
I didn't have much trouble with the first two game unlocks. The second two were pretty challenging though. On higher difficulties, you really have to play with a different strategy. Brute forcing a level with a barrage of enemy parts no longer works.

Only $10 now at bestbuy.com. No excuse now.
 
Also, RollingSkull, if you're stuck on the Arcade/Campaign modes, there's a cheap trick you can use to clear it; at least on the Rookie difficulty. Get to a boss fight, and instead of killing it, dodge its shots and idle there. It will take a bit of experimentation to find out which one is easiest for you to idle on; some of them need to be taken out ASAP, other ones are extremely easy to fly around their patterns. You'll gain points, and for every so many points (10k iirc) you gain a life. After awhile, you'll easily max out your points. That will make it much easier to clear the game. I've unlocked rRootage this way (which was the thing I was most anticipating anyway), and it should work on Arcade mode for TUMIKI fighters just the same.
 
[quote name='RollingSkull']4 Kenta Cho games is not giving you the straight sale. To unlock them, you have to play through the game's almost absurdly difficult campaigns. I've not unlocked a SINGLE ONE of those Cho games in months of play and I was about to take this damn thing back to GameStop and wait for a full unlock save to buy it again.

I can beat Castle Shikigami 3 in 5 credits but this is just nuts.[/quote]

Just bought it yesterday - this game is hard as fuck on campaign mode.
 
Well, I jumped, and I'm really enjoying the game.

First question, how do you unlock the 4 games? I haven't seen them listed anywhere (I googled), yet everyone seems to know what you have to do to unlock them. I'm sure I'm just missing it, but can someone tell me?

Secondly, for questions about the editor, it really isn't that difficult....depending what you want. Let's be honest here, if you want to be the first to make your own Harry Potter level in the game, where nothing is pre-made, you have your work cut out for you (trust me, I gave it a run, after 4 hours of playing around with it, and not being artistically inclined, I decided I bit off way more than I could chew for a first time run.

At the same point, with premade enemies, ships, etc, you can cut a lot of work out. I started fiddling around with a level of just a blue triangle fighting a hoard of red squares (I know, boring). Yet, I have a somewhat playable level in under an hour, and it really was fun to put together.

So, if you are a newbie in the editor, my suggestion is to go really simple at first, and then slowly start building up. If you start shooting for the skies at first, it might be possible to do, but you'll probably fail.
 
[quote name='lordxixor101']Well, I jumped, and I'm really enjoying the game.

First question, how do you unlock the 4 games? I haven't seen them listed anywhere (I googled), yet everyone seems to know what you have to do to unlock them. I'm sure I'm just missing it, but can someone tell me?

Secondly, for questions about the editor, it really isn't that difficult....depending what you want. Let's be honest here, if you want to be the first to make your own Harry Potter level in the game, where nothing is pre-made, you have your work cut out for you (trust me, I gave it a run, after 4 hours of playing around with it, and not being artistically inclined, I decided I bit off way more than I could chew for a first time run.

At the same point, with premade enemies, ships, etc, you can cut a lot of work out. I started fiddling around with a level of just a blue triangle fighting a hoard of red squares (I know, boring). Yet, I have a somewhat playable level in under an hour, and it really was fun to put together.

So, if you are a newbie in the editor, my suggestion is to go really simple at first, and then slowly start building up. If you start shooting for the skies at first, it might be possible to do, but you'll probably fail.[/quote]


Or have a group of people working on one game. Each person doing a different aspect. Its not super hard, but its way too time consuming for one person to make a whole game or even a whole level depending on how much of a life you have.

Either way the game is great, and at 10 bucks this is better than any Wii ware title out there.
 
Got it yesterday for $10 at Best Buy. Have yet to play it, but probably will get into it sometime later this week. I do like your idea Lan, about the creations in the OP. If enough people do get into the community.
 
[quote name='gaxur']Also, RollingSkull, if you're stuck on the Arcade/Campaign modes, there's a cheap trick you can use to clear it; at least on the Rookie difficulty. Get to a boss fight, and instead of killing it, dodge its shots and idle there. It will take a bit of experimentation to find out which one is easiest for you to idle on; some of them need to be taken out ASAP, other ones are extremely easy to fly around their patterns. You'll gain points, and for every so many points (10k iirc) you gain a life. After awhile, you'll easily max out your points. That will make it much easier to clear the game. I've unlocked rRootage this way (which was the thing I was most anticipating anyway), and it should work on Arcade mode for TUMIKI fighters just the same.[/quote]

I tried that. Too much shit can go wrong. You can miss ONE dodge and lose a life and 90% of your stack. You can go into the boss only taking 100 pts per second with a retracted stack. It just isn't worth it. I'm not 12 any more, I will not waste time doing that crap in my video games.
 
How many missions are there in each campaign? I think I got to the boss of the 4th mission, but my high scores only show the first three missions (and three missions for each other campaign). Hard to tell how far I'm getting here.

209k high score!
 
[quote name='Kyattsuai']There are 3 missions per campaign.[/quote]
... then how did I start more than three missions? Did they kick me through to the second campaign, or am I crazy? I'm terribly confused.
 
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[quote name='botticus']... then how did I start more than three missions? Did they kick me through to the second campaign, or am I crazy? I'm terribly confused.[/QUOTE]


Once you complete one campaign, you'll automatically start the next one (the only thing different is at the top of the score screen, it will say campaign complete), also, the new levels usually have a new feel to them (looks wise anyway).
 
Yeah, I wish they had a little splash screen or something that made it clear you just finished one campaign and are starting the next one. I was confused about that as well.

I missed the campaign complete note on the score screen.
 
[quote name='lordxixor101']Once you complete one campaign, you'll automatically start the next one (the only thing different is at the top of the score screen, it will say campaign complete), also, the new levels usually have a new feel to them (looks wise anyway).[/quote]
Awesome, good to know.
 
how do you unlock the kenta cho games?(im assuming its the 4 locked things in extras)

Edit, nevermind. found my answer on the second page. how many campaigns do you have to play. This game's extremely hard.
 
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You have to beat 5 campaigns, but to unlock rRootage and Tumuki Fighters you can play in rookie difficulty, which isn't entirely impossible.

On a similar topic, I forgot that rRootage had an IKA mode, which is awesome to play and the least subtle re-appropriation of a game mechanic.
 
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