Blade II - Xbox (2002) Review
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Blade II is a 2002 action beat 'em up video game developed by Mucky Foot Productions and published by Activision for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. Originally scheduled for North American release on the same day as the theatrical release of the 2002 film of the same name (March 22), it was ultimately released on September 3, the same day the film was released on DVD.
The game is not a direct adaptation of the film, but is actually a sequel, taking place between the events of Blade II and Blade: Trinity. Set six months after the events of the film, it follows Blade and Whistler as they attempt to prevent the vampires from creating a race of super-vampires even more powerful than the Reapers.
The developers championed the game as introducing a new type of never-before-seen melee combat into video gaming. However, most reviewers disliked the system, and the game as a whole was met with mainly negative reviews on both the PlayStation 2 and the Xbox.
Blade II was a commercial failure, selling less than half a million units across both platforms. Its failure was indirectly responsible for the closure of Mucky Foot Productions. When Mucky Foot acquired the Blade franchise, they had already developed two commercial failures: Urban Chaos and Startopia, both of which had been published by Eidos. Mucky Foot wanted to make Urban Chaos 2, but Eidos were not especially interested. According to company director Gary Carr:
"Mucky Foot had two strikes. We weren't actually making money. We were just taking lots of money to make games, which weren't selling lots. We took [the Blade] contract on the kind of - I suppose - keep Mucky Foot alive. At the time, Eidos were turning their back on us - they were starting to retract. We could see them physically retracting from us. We signed the game for our own survival, to some degree."
However, because the game had to be ready to ship to coincide with the DVD release of the film in North America, development was rushed, and the game was released before the developers were fully happy with it. After finishing with Blade II, Mucky Foot began work on two more film adaptations: Bulletproof Monk for Empire Interactive and The Punisher for THQ.
However, THQ were unimpressed with Blade II, and cancelled The Punisher, which left Mucky Foot in the position of being unable to complete Bulletproof Monk without letting the staff go, which they were unwilling to do. They spent several months re-pitching Sky Ships, the game which had developed into Blade II, to various publishers, but were unable to generate any interest, and the company closed in October 2003.
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