BloodNet IBM PC MS-DOS 1993 MicroProse

BloodNet IBM PC 1993

MicroProse released BloodNet for IBM PC MS-DOS 5.0 in 1993. BloodNet was designed and written by John Vincent Antinori and Laura Kampo and programmed by Rick Hall, Frank Kern and Christopher Short. ECS and AGA Amiga versions were released in 1994-95.

BloodNet is a party-based cyberpunk-gothic cRPG that plays similarly to graphics adventure games. BloodNet is set in the dystopian necropolis of Manhattan and TransTech's cyberpsace, in the year 2094.

The player assumes the role of an ex-employee of TransTech megacorporation, Ransom Stark, who seeks a cure for the vampire curse inflicted on him by the vampire, Abraham van Helsing. The object of BloodNet is to defeat van Helsing and save humanity and cyberspace. In the meantime, Ransom Starks' neural implant grants resistance to vampirism.

Players create one character and can recruit four others in-game for a party of five. The three main career-types are Mercenary, Scrounger and Cyberpunk.

Skills (which include what would traditionally be attributes) are selected during character creation. Players spend 20 skillpoints on five different skills. Only 10 points may be spend on any skill regardless of its initial value.

• Physical skills: Strength, Endurance, Agility, Stealth
• Cyber skills: Hacking, Decking Integrity, Cybercloaking
• Combat: Melee, Firearms, High-tech, Bio-tech, Blades, Explosives
• Personality: Leadership, Influence, Faith, Courage, Will, Bribery
• Mental: Intelligence, Fast-talk, Observation, Bargaining, Jury-rig, Medicinal, Lockpick
• Key Indicators: Bloodlust and Humanity

Characters learn by doing; that is, their skills increase when do things related to the skill.

The party moves about the city and scenes as one unit represented by Ransom Stark, but party members are individualized on battlegrounds during combat encounters, which are turn-based.

Combat orders include defend position, acquire target, free combat, maneuver, bite, use item, retreat, choose weapon and exert will. Targeting is locational (head, torso, limbs). There are eight buffs conferred via "medicine."

There are 27 weapons and 10 forms of protection. Via jury-riggers items can be assembled with components or disassembled to yield components. There are 15 assemblies consisting of between two and six components.

Ransom Stark neurally interfaces with cyberspace (the matrix, the net) via his decking unit and a computer with a cyberspace port. Decking units have four upgradeable and removeable chips that govern the likes of navigation, inventory space, duration of session and stealth: looker, memory, soul box and cloak.

While in cyberspace Stark moves as a data angel by way of rotating crystalline statuette. In cyberspace Stark can access databases and communicate with NPCs by interfacing with FATS terminals, which accept address inputs. Stark must avoid detection by Security ICE, which will erase his decking unit's memory via data cage.

BloodNet requires an i80386 CPU clocked at 16 MHz, 560K of free conventional RAM, 800K of EMS RAM and Mouse.com v.8.20. BloodNet displays in 256-color VGA 320x200.

BloodNet audio supports Sound Blaster, Sound Blaster Pro, Covox Sound Master II and Pro Audio Spectrum, Roland SCC-1, Roland LAPC-1, Wave Blaster and AdLib. BloodNet features digitized sound.

BloodNet was distributed on 4x 3.5" 1.44MB HD diskettes and installs to hard disk drive via BloodNet Installation Program by MicroProse Software. The install size is 8 megs and consists of 38 files.

• BloodNet manual: 66 pages
• BloodNet DOSBox: cputype=386_prefetch

cf.

• Chronological List of Graphics Adventure Games IBM PC MS-DOS
• Early 1990s IBM PC Games that made Amiga owners jealous
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