History VideoGame / Blood

* BottomlessMagazines: Zig-zagged. While you do have ammo limits, the sawed-off shotgun in both games has an actual reload mechanic. The first game is only particularly notable for this because, while several other games on the Build engine had one gun that had to be reloaded after every couple of shots, ''Blood'' tracks how many shots had been fired rather than simply triggering the animation whenever ammo's brought down to a specific number[[labelnote:e.g.]]''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D'''s pistol reload whenever the ammo count is a multiple of 12; at max ammo, Duke only has an 8-shot magazine loaded in[[/labelnote]]. In both games you can also "reload manually" by switching out and back.

* CliffHanger: The four Chosen are left in an alternate reality at the end of Blood II, and make no real progress towards getting out in the expansion. The end text for Blood II even lampshaded this:

* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: Choking Hands and, in the second game, Bone Leeches will actually obscure the HUD when doing their thing.

* ViolationOfCommonSense: To get [[spoiler:a certain secret]] you have to jump [[spoiler:off a speeding train and onto a secret door along the outer wall]]. Unless you're perfect at it, you'll either take a good chunk of damage from landing or outright die.

* ObviousBeta:
** Sadly ([[GoodBadBugs or not]]), ''Blood II: The Chosen'' didn't quite have the quality of a retail game by the time it was released, and was never fully fixed. The game is rife with glitches and programming errors, such as:
*** Cultists, Fanatics and Prophets may die before flinching even once. It happens most often when you're shooting them in the head with a bullet-based weapon: the game does have [[BoomHeadshot headshot mechanics]], but calling them "inconsistent" is putting it mildly.
*** Shooting a Prophet enough will make him switch to the knife for no reason. When using said knife, they'll first reach out to the target in a full two-second "grab" animation that ''doesn't hold the target in place'', to only then deliver three measly stabs. It's ironic that the most dangerous EliteMooks of the game can be made the easiest to kite by far.
*** Enemies tend to get frozen at the end of an attack/flinch animation if they can't see or get to the player by the end of it, instead of going idle or prowling the level.
*** The second sawn-off is held by a ''second'' right hand of Caleb's (the model isn't [[RightHandedLeftHandedGuns mirrored]] like the other dual-wielded guns). ''Extra Crispy'' fixes that.
*** The flare gun's secondary fire doesn't ignite enemies at all.
*** Behemoths can damage themselves with their own shockwaves by a tiny amount, but enough to make them pound the ground repeatedly for no reason, effectively committing suicide.
*** The other Chosen, despite being friendly in-story, have in-game entities that are hostile to Caleb. This in and of itself wouldn't be a problem, since they only show up in cutscenes where the cutscene logic takes priority and they won't do bad things to you, but it does become a problem if, in a double-instance of bugginess, the cutscene ends early for whatever reason. The end of Chapter One is a particularly infamous case, where Gabriella will promptly shoot you to death with a weapon you don't get until two chapters later.
*** Another issue with cutscenes is that Caleb can still be moved around by moving scenery objects depending on where you stand when you trigger them. Again, this normally isn't a problem - while the first time it can happen is in the second level, the worst that comes of it is Caleb sliding off-screen because the player went up a down escalator - it can spell ''death'' in the second chapter due to a sad combination of a cutscene beginning as the player is walking through a door they just opened, doors automatically closing themselves a few seconds after being opened, and [[TheDoorSlamsYou doors being able to crush anything in their path, including between themselves and their frame while closing]].
*** [[spoiler:The first fight with Gideon]] often ends before you fully deplete his health. After the cutscene, you have around 20 seconds to free roam before the next level loads. [[spoiler:In the second fight]], he flinches with ''absolutely any damage'' you deal, and the minigun [[BlownAcrossTheRoom can lift him up]] into the air; upon death, his body may clip through the floor and drop to the lower boundaries of the level.
*** In the initial release, dropping weapons and standing on top of them nets you ammo for them like if you'd just picked them up for the first time.
*** Some enemies, like the third Soul Drudge in Love Canal, will be permanently stuck attacking the air (often several times faster than normal despite not corresponding to the animation playing) unless you shoot them.
*** Drudge Lords are elevated from a simple GiantMook to a DemonicSpider because of the fact that, if you move out of sight while they're in the midst of their fireball attack, they will slide across the ground while continuing to throw fireballs. If you're just around the corner, it's frequently deadly. Conversely, if you move out of sight while they're preparing to throw fireballs, and then move yourself back ''in'' to their line of sight - such as, say, repeatedly moving back and forth between a Soul Drudge that's between you and the Drudge Lord - they will reset the animation, making them completely harmless until you're ready to deal with them. Also, if they change targets in the midst of their fireball attack, e.g. killing their initial target with the first fireball and still having two more to go, they can fire them off at extreme angles, at least slightly further than 90 degrees, without actually turning their bodies towards their new target.
*** Hostile entities are, for most intents and purposes, treated the same as the human player. Where they differ from a player is that they have [[BottomlessMagazines no limit on how much they can fire their weapons]]. Where they are the same is that they still have an internal ammo stockpile -- and can, as such, take ammo pickups before you have the chance to get them yourself. This is particularly pronounced in the third level of the expansion, where it is guaranteed that a Shikari will grab some of the ammo in a fenced-off area before you can get in.
*** SplashDamage completely disconsiders map geometry. If you're not a certain distance away from the center point of an explosion, you ''will'' be damaged by it; hiding behind a thin wall or corner is not just useless, it's worse than running away.
** The ''Fresh Supply'' remaster was released in a very, very broken state: enemy behavior is broken, some textures are glitching or missing, crashes, broken weapons (such as the Life Leech, which doesn't absorb the enemies' HP, and the Tesla Cannon, which shoots 4 projectiles instead of 5), low volume for some of Caleb's lines, unplayable multiplayer, missing graphical effects and so on. Thankfully, Nightdive managed to fix most of the bugs.

** In ''Blood'', there are barrels filled with TNT and labeled as such. You can explode them with bullets or your own bombs, or set them on fire for a delayed detonation.

* NoPronunciationGuide: Cheogh, the first boss (a stone gargoyle). Is it "CHEE-og"? "Chee-off" "Choaf"? Something else?

* HyperactiveMetabolism: There's a lot of indications that Caleb heals himself using a Life Essence by outright eating it. Additionally, one voice line in [=E1M3=] "Dark Carnival" implies he ''drinks'' the Life Seed pickup.

* GratuitousFrench: In the "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svzMK33PMUk Infuscomus]]", you can hear the French children's song "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loup_y_es-tu%3F Loup y es-tu?]]" in its original language.

In 1998, a sequel was created; ''Blood II: The Chosen''. [[VideoGame3DLeap Running on the new LithTech engine]] developed in-house by Monolith, it took place exactly one century after the first game, featuring the Cabal's attempts to kill Caleb and take back the powers of Tchernobog, while Caleb's disuse of the dark god's powers accidentally summons abominations from another dimension. Unfortunately, due to being rushed out the door, it released in a very poor state, and though it does have a following (including a very active modding community), it's rarely considered on par with the first. Plus, [[OvershadowedByAwesome it had the unfortunate luck of being released in 1998]], a year with many strong contenders to Best Shooter of the Decade, such as ''VideoGame/{{Unreal|I}}'', ''VideoGame/{{SiN}}'' and the eventual winner, ''VideoGame/HalfLife1''.

In 1998, a sequel was created; ''Blood II: The Chosen''. [[VideoGame3DLeap Running on the new LithTech engine]] developed in-house by Monolith, it took place exactly one century after the first game, featuring the Cabal's attempts to kill Caleb and take back the powers of Tchernobog, while Caleb's disuse of the dark god's powers accidentally summons abominations from another dimension. Unfortunately, due to being rushed out the door, it released in a very poor state, and though it does have a following (including a very active modding community), it's rarely considered on par with the first. Plus, [[OvershadowedByAwesome it had the unfortunate luck of being released in 1998]], a year with many strong contenders to Best Shooter of the Decade, such as ''VideoGame/{{Unreal|I}}'', ''VideoGame/{{SiN}}'' and the eventual winner, ''VideoGame/HalfLifeI''.

In 1998, a sequel was created; ''Blood II: The Chosen''. [[VideoGame3DLeap Running on the new LithTech engine]] developed in-house by Monolith, it took place exactly one century after the first game, featuring the Cabal's attempts to kill Caleb and take back the powers of Tchernobog, while Caleb's disuse of the dark god's powers accidentally summons abominations from another dimension. Unfortunately, due to being rushed out the door, it released in a very poor state, and though it does have a following (including a very active modding community), it's rarely considered on par with the first.

* BaldOfEvil: Ishmael is a straight example. Caleb is actually a case of OffModel in the first game.[[labelnote:explanation]][[WordOfGod According to Kevin Kilstrom, lead artist and modeler]], Caleb was envisioned as having short dark hair like Ash from ''Franchise/EvilDead'' (and indeed he does in the art for ''Blood II'', though it's sometimes depicted as a long windswept mane), which he didn't care to model because it would be hidden by his FedoraOfAsskicking [[TheFaceless that also hides his face in shadow]]. When it came time to make the [=FMVs=], he just gave the 3D staff the bald model he used to sprite Caleb from, since he didn't expect Caleb to lose his hat, and once they were done, a mix of technical difficulty and lacking competence on part of the 3D guys made it too much of a hassle to change the already-finished FMV. Kevin says he really doesn't like the scene in the intro where Caleb's hat falls off his head as he's falling into darkness - and also points out that if you look closely, he also doesn't have ''ears.''[[/labelnote]]

* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: Choking Hands and, in the second game, Bone Leeches will actually obscure the HUD when doing their thing.

* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Caleb is about as ruthless and sadistic as one can get, and is only the "hero" because he's trying to avenge his fallen comrades and not trying to take over the world, and while he kills a whole lot of people over the course of both games, it just so happens that almost all of them are part of the Cabal.

* TheFaceless: Zealots in ''Blood II'' are this, by way of a CoolMask that completely covers their heads, even the eyes. The game's manual suggests that either they no longer need their eyes to see, or the process of becoming a Zealot causes them to GoMadFromTheRevelation and become afraid to see ''anything''.
* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: Choking Hands and, in the second game, Bone Leeches will actually obscure the HUD when doing their thing.

* KickTheDog: Gideon allows Caleb and Ophelia to see each other again, just to forcibly separate them to keep Caleb "motivated". (Opehlia is even tied up ''exactly'' the same way Caleb [[YouAreTooLate found her]] in the first game, though it's not commented on.) Any chance that Caleb would've let Gideon off with a severe beating vanishes right then and there.

* KickTheDog: Gideon allows Caleb and Ophelia to see each other again, just forcibly separate them to keep Caleb "motivated". (Opehlia is even tied up ''exactly'' the same way Caleb [[YouAreTooLate found her]] in the first game, though it's not commented on.) Any chance that Caleb would've let Gideon off with a severe beating vanishes right then and there.

* GatlingGood: The Vulcan Cannon in the second game has the highest DPS potential of any bullet-firing weapon in the game. Gabriella has it as her WeaponOfChoice. ''Extra Crispy'' turns the combat shotgun into one, with four barrels that revolve for a very fast (for a shotgun) rate of fire.

* EvilVersusEvil: Caleb is as pitch black as you can get with a protagonist, being a murderous {{Sadist}} who originally worked for the Cult of Tchernobog and was their [[TheDragon strongest member]]. He's cruel, violent, laughs maniacally about the carnage he causes and ''literally drinks blood and eats human hearts to heal himself'', but he has a [[PetTheDog strong relationship with his friends]] and clearly loves [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes Ophelia]], with his rampage in the first game being motivated by their death at the hands of the Cabal. The Cabal, meanwhile, are ''even worse'', being a global organization of insane murderers, kidnapping and butchering entire towns by themselves all in attempt to appease the UltimateEvil, Tchernobog. It's a VillainProtagonist against a ReligionOfEvil, though Caleb manages to still come out on top [[EvilerThanThou if only because of how insanely violent and despicable the cult really is]].

** The first game's, from easiest to hardest, are Still Kicking, Pink on the Inside, Lightly Broiled, Well Done, and Extra Crispy. ''Fresh Supply'' adds "Made to Order" to the mix, which is a difficulty mode designed to allow full customization of a ton of difficulty modifiers.

* LockAndKeyPuzzle: As befitting a ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' clone, the original game is chock full of them. This game in particular takes it UpToEleven, as, rather than ''Doom''[='=]s two mutually-exclusive sets of three keys, ''Blood'' actually has six unique keys, and some of the larger levels actually require collecting ''all'' of them. ''Blood II'' dials it back, but still has some levels (particularly Cabalco's R&D wing and several of the Nightmare Levels) dedicated to hunting down several keys in sequence.

*** Hostile entities are, for most intents and purposes, treated the same as the human player. Where they differ from a player is that they have [[BottomlessMagazines no limit on how much they can fire their weapons]]. Where they are the same is that they still have an internal ammo stockpile - and can, as such, take ammo pickups before you have the chance to get them yourself. This is particularly pronounced in the third level of the expansion, where it is guaranteed that a Shikari will grab some of the ammo in a fenced-off area before you can get in.

* NiceHat: What would a Wild West Gunslinger be without some snazzy headwear? Caleb wears a large black wide-brimmed cowboy hat with a black hat band around it.

* TheFaceless: Zealots in ''Blood II'' are this, by way of a CoolMask that completely covers their heads, even the eyes. The game's manual suggests that either they no longer need their eyes to see, or the process of becoming a Zealot causes them to GoMadFromTheRevelation and become afraid to see ''anything''.

* CopyAndPasteEnvironments: ''Blood II'' goes all out with this, particularly with levels set on subway trains, of which there are three across the first half of the game (two each starting the first two chapters, then another one halfway through the second chapter), and two of which even play out and end the exact same way (Caleb murders everyone, gets to the front, then the train crashes into another one), with the only difference being in enemy types (only Cultists the first time, adding Fanatics and Drudge Lords the second). Most examples, however, are the result of trying to emulate a HubLevel-style system without actually having hub levels, such as the part of the city with a laundromat from level 2 (which you come back to twice, once after visiting a museum and crossing through some tenements, then once after a sewer system, the Center for Disease Management, and through an airship - you can even skip almost the entire chapter, straight from [=C1L2=] to [=C1L11=], by simply noclipping through some vents in the back of the laundromat) and the [=CabalCo=] headquarters way near the end (where you play through the level, find a locked door and sidetrack to a power station to open it, go back and progress further, find ''another'' locked door and sidetrack to the R&D section to look for a keycard, then go back a ''third'' time to finally find the real exit to the roof).

* DarkIsNotEvil: Well, [[BlackAndGrayMorality most of]] [[VillainProtagonist it]] [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential is]], but Tchernobog is technically a neutral force who exists to separate and bind alternate realities. For the most part, Tchernobog's own will overpowers that of his new host, but there have been exceptions, such as his 5th incarnation being a Buddhist high priest who set Tchernobog to turn the Cabal into a religious cult, and the 16th incarnation, a truly evil and bitter man, turned him into the form we see him as in-game. [[spoiler:Caleb as the 17th incarnation was another case, presumably becoming so powerful that there was no trace of Tchernobog left other than his powers and duties to bind and keep separate the realities.]]

* DeadWeight: Bloated Butchers. They're [[{{Kevlard}} more resilient]] and versatile with two ranged attacks, but they're also a lot slower and [[KillItWithFire can be set on fire extremely easily]] with a quick spray of the AerosolFlamethrower.

* AntiHero: Caleb, to borderline VillainProtagonist degrees. Sure, he's fighting against an evil cult, but it's for his own personal gains and he's only barely better than said cult in terms of morality, having no problem with killing innocent bystanders that just happen to [[ArtificialStupidity be in his line of fire]].

** [=E1M4=] Dark Carnival is a depraved gory version of a classic amusement park run by Cabal with every single attarction being horrifically twisted. There's a freak show, a gargoyle carousel, a game where you kick disembodied zombie heads into a goal and a special feature "[=JoJo=], the Idiot Circus Boy".