Blade: Blood & Shadow

PlayStation 5

Xbox Series X/Series S

***Blade: Blood & Shadow*** (also known as ***Blade 2*** or alternatively called ***Blade: Blood of the Warrior***) is a hack and slash action-adventure video game developed by Hammerhead and will be published by Activision. Based on the Marvel Comics character Blade, it is the sequel to the 2013 video game *Blade* and similarly takes inspiration from the comic mythos, the Blade film series, and the anime series produced by Madhouse. The game' s story follows Blade investigating the machinations of the Vampire Nation who have recently come into possession of the Darkhold.

Wesley Snipes reprise his role as Blade and the game's creative director Abubakar Genim has described the gameplay as a "remix" compared to its predecessor. The team was inspired by games like *God of War* and the *Batman: Arkham* series, with the gameplay also utilizing a Metroidvania style while combat will still largely make use of Blade's trademark katana, he will still able to use his fists as well as a variety of firearms including pistols, shotguns, and machine pistols. Each firearm has three different types of ammunition: standard, explosive, and silver, each with its own effect on different enemies. Players will occasionally encounter boss characters, which are powerful enemies with unique attack patterns. As the player progresses in the game, they will level up and gain new skills and abilities.

*Blade: Blood & Shadow* received positive reviews and was praised for its gameplay, visuals, performances, and level design but received criticism for its story. Nevertheless, it received several nominations at The Game Awards 2022 and was considered one of the best games of 2022.

## Gameplay

Played from third-person perspective with an over-the-shoulder camera angle, players take control of Blade while navigating a world is split into separate locations with many areas initially inaccessible until later in the game. The center of the world, The S.H.I.E.L.D. Mobile Command Center, functions as a hub where Blade is given new objectives and paths to unlock new areas, many of which require the use of newly-gained abilities to progress. Although Blade is initially limited to the use of his signature katana, there is a option to duel wield a pair of katana which increases attack power. The katana have different combinations of attack that can be obtained throughout the game. Along with combos, players are encouraged to use countering moves, blocks, and swift dodging. Projectile weapons such as glaives, UV grenades, and firearms such as a pistol, shotgun, and machine pistol can also be used in combat. Each firearm has three different types of ammunition: standard, explosive, and silver, each with its own effect on different enemies. When enemies are near defeat, Blade can perform an elaborate and violent finishing move, such as by impaling foes with stakes or immolating them. During combat, Blade's rage meter builds up, and when full allows him to use more devastating attacks, like the rage mode, which increases Blade's overall strength until his Rage Meter empties. Experience (XP) is collected from defeating enemies, destroying elements and accumulating collectibles. The XP is used to level up, and each new level results in gaining skill points, which are used to purchase upgrades. The leveling system focuses on Blade's damage, health, and ranged damage. The threats of the game's world will grow stronger as the player progresses through the story. The game also has a New Game + feature.

## Plot

Four months after slaying Varnae, Blade awakens in a haze of disorientation and finds himself aboard a S.H.I.E.L.D. airship. He is greeted by S.H.I.E.L.D. director Maria Hill who informs him that she needs his help. Blade is initial distrustful of her and reluctant to help until Hill reveals to him that she believes the Vampire Nation have come into possession of the Darkhold, further explaining that their possession of it is his fault. Blade begrudgingly agrees to her due to his disdain for vampires and Hill reveals that she has an assignment he is "perfect for". The airship arrives over New York and Hill divulges that Manhattan is now quarantined due to a large scale vampiric attack. Returning Blade's gear and weapons, Hill tells him that she will provide him support as he quells the attack, wishing him luck. Blade tells her he "don't need luck, just silver" before leaping from the airship.

Landing in Harlem, Blade makes his way through the neighborhood which he finds occupied by Vampire Nation militia. Battling through them, Blade begins following a trail of carnage through Harlem as he observes that Vampire Nation troops aren't hunting humans or actually attempting to fight him. Investigating further, Blade arrives at the nightclub Harlem's Paradise and is horrified to find it destroyed. Surveying the destruction, he makes his way inside, discovering a squadron of Vampire Nation troops occupying it. The troops are set upon by Luke Cage who effortlessly dispatches as Blade enters and finishes them. Happy to see friend but angered by the circumstances, Blade attempts to understand what is happening but Luke is distraught, exclaiming that he can't Jessica or Danielle. Blade attempts to reassure him but tells him he needs to know how the attack started. Luke simply tells him a flash of red light illuminated the sky before an eclipse blocked the sun, further telling him that the Sorcerer Supreme is missing. Blade surmises that the Sanctum Sanctorum might be his best bet but agrees to help Luke find his wife and daughter first. The two then venture further up Malcom X Boulevard to an apartment building where they hear an infant's cries and the hail of gunfire. Believing it to be his daughter, Luke rushes ahead while Blade struggles to keep up. They find Jessica and Danielle seemingly being shielded by a hulking, muscular vampire with a horned chin while a group of Vampire Nation troops open fire upon them. The vampire then attacks the troops, brutally dismembering them before feeding on the last remaining member. Upon seeing Blade and Luke Cage, he grins menacingly and scales to a building to escape. Having found his family, Luke urges Blade to find the mysterious vampire and end the attack. However, Blade observes the tattered uniforms of the Vampire Nation troops and discovers the Dragonetti glyph, surmising that is who will have answers.

Traveling toward Midtown, Blade makes his way into Hell's Kitchen, remarking that he's surprised he hasn't seen the "Devil" yet. Discovering that the vampire infestation has seemingly died down in this area, he finds a dilapidated art gallery bearing the Dragonetti and enters the building. Carefully investigating the gallery floor, he unearths an entrance to a hidden facility. Inside, Blade finds an office suite where he comes across a laptop containing a message from Dragonetti himself. Addressing the message to Blade, Dragonetti explains that his possession of the Darkhold triggered a war between the houses of the Vampire Nation which inadvertently caused the resurgence of a long-forgotten subspecies of vampire known as Tryks. Surmising that Blade has already come across one, Dragonetti further explains that they are unlike anything he's fought before, noting that they are stronger, deadlier, and revealing that their prey is not human but vampire. With this information, Blade is curious as to why the Tryks want the Darkhold and resolves to find it, believing that finding the missing Stephen Strange sure be his priority. Heading for Greenwich Village, Hill contacts Blade to inform him that she set up a mobile command center in Harlem and that the vampire infestation has been neutralized in that neighborhood. Continuing on to the Sanctum, Blade finds it and enters to investigate where he find the Tryk that he previously encountered. The Tryk introduces himself as Rowkis and explains that his people has no use for the Darkhold, lamenting that his only plan is to kill the man that threatens his people's food source and essentially their existence. Attempting to discern their plan and the location of the Sorcerer Supreme, Blade engages Rowkis in a battle which ends in a stalemate as Rowkis is seemingly called away. Perplexed, Blade continues his investigation and discovers that a black magic cult known as the Deathwalkers may be responsible for the disappearance of Stephen Strange. Finding an spell to travel to their domain, Blade uses it.

Awaking in the Deathwalkers' domain, Blade is contacted by Maria Hill who reveals that the domain is just a ghost town in Goldfield, Arizona. Explaining to Hill that he must find Stephen Strange in order to stop whatever the Vampire Nation has planned for the Darkhold, Blade ventures into the ghost town, finding it populated by Tryks and cultists. Traversing the town, he finds an old saloon where he is ambushed by Tryks and is almost killed until he is rescued by Ghost Rider. Surprised to find Blade in Goldfield, Ghost Rider explains that whatever is happening with the Darkhold is causing dimensional chaos with Mephisto's Hellscape on the verge of swallowing the Earthly plane. The two resolve to split up and find Strange, beginning a wide scale search of the town. Following a mysterious spectral presence, Blade is led to the town's cathedral where he finds the Deathwalker leader Lichidus with a comatose Stephen Strange. Blade approaches Lichidus who has been looking through Strange's third eye into the Dark Dimension in order to manipulate the Vampire Nation into doing the bidding of his master. However, Blade calls him a "dumbass", revealing that his "master" is not Dormammu but Mephisto manipulating him so that he will mislead the Vampire Nation. Angered, Lichidus summons the demon Shuma-Gorath from Strange's third eye and Blade is forced to battle the monster. After a tense battle, Blade defeats the demon, only to find to Lichidus gone. As Blade attempts to wake Stephen Strange, Ghost Rider arrives with the sorcerer Kaluu who reveals to Blade that Stephen Strange's soul is not on this plane before explaining that while the Vampire Nation intend to use the Darkhold to cloak in eternal night, the actual ritual they are commencing will unleash Hell upon Earth. While Kaluu returns Strange to Kamar-Taj and Ghost Rider resolves to ventures into Hell, Blade realizes he must return to New York to confront the Vampire Nation.

With a spell by Kaluu, Blade arrives back at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Mobile Command Center in Harlem where he is greeted by Hill who he briefs on the situation before setting out for the Financial District in search of a municipal building where the Vampire Nation conducts their business. While traversing the city, Blade notices that someone else has been killing vampires and Tryks alike. Arriving at the municipal building, Blade ascends to the penthouse where he finds Dragonetti and several other pureblood elders. Blade confronts Dragonetti, realizing he was deliberately misled so that he would eliminate the Tryks for the Vampire Nation. Dragonetti confesses and Blade attempts to explain that the Vampire Nation has been manipulated by Mephisto but is interrupted when the building is attacked by Rowkis. Dragonetti stays while the other elders flee , prompting him to make a plea to Rowkis that Blade is their common enemy. Rowkis divulges that he supports Dragonetti's plans for the Darkhold as it will produce more vampires and the two form a temporary alliance to kill Blade, who is forced to battle them both. Defending himself against the attack, Blade is able to successfully wound Dragonetti but Rowkis gains the upper hand, mortally wounding Blade but is once by a telepathic force. In frustration, Rowkis turns out on the wounded Dragonetti who he disembowels before devouring him while the latter cries out for Blade to save him. Blade, disoriented from blood loss, loses consciousness.

Blade awakens in the S.H.I.E.L.D. Mobile Command Center, having been rescued by monster hunter Elsa Bloodstone who has been searching for the Darkhold since its purchase by Kenuichio Harada. Bloodstone tells Blade that they need to find the Darkhold before Hell swallows, remarking that they are running out of time. As an earthquake shakes Manhattan Island, Hill reveals to them both that massive pillars of blood and magma have appeared all over the island. Blade surmises that he must destroy the pillars to weaken Hell's hold on Earth. Before setting off, Bloodstone gifts Blade with an amulet to lead him to the Darkhold but it must be feed the blood of cambions. Searching the city for the pillars, Blade finds that each one is guarded by one of Mephisto's generals. Killing them, Blade uses their blood to feed the amulet which leads him to the House of Erebus shipping yard. Infiltrating the shipping yard, Blade finds the Darkhold but is attacked by Lichidus who steals it and erroneously delivers it to the Tryks, whom he mistakes for normal vampires. Rowkis then brutally kills him by tearing him in half. Seeking to put an end to the entire ordeal, Blade allies with Bloodstone to use the amulet to find the lair of the Tryks.

With the amulets guidance, Blade and Bloodstone are led to the tunnels beneath Manhattan. The duo are attacked by Tryks in the tunnels and Bloodstone is captured by Rowkis who orders Blade's surrender. To protect her, Blade surrenders and allows himself to be taken in by the Tryks. Rowkis and the others bring Blade and Bloodstone before their queen Cilla who is now in possession of the Darkhold. Cilla reveals to Blade she doesn't care about the Darkhold or Mephisto because the child they will produce will be more powerful than both combined. Blade callously rebuffs her but Cilla tells him she is sure he will acquiese, revealing she has ressurected Iyanla Tepes, to his horror. She reveals that their child will become Zukajaa, the ruler of the world and in return, he will have Iyanla. However, Blade realizes how much is stake and refuses, prompting Bloodstone to initiate an attack. The attack is successful and she is able to get Blade his katana which he uses to slash through Iyanla who is revealed to be a Tryk in disguise. Rowkis knocks Bloodstone unconscious and angrily engages Blade who engages him. After a lengthy and brutal fight, Blade decapitates Rowkis and throws his head at the feet of Cilla who uses the Darkhold to open a doorway to Hell. With Mephisto unable to fully cross over and vengeful of his last encounter with Blade, he imbues Cilla with his power to kill Blade. Blade takes up one of Bloodstone's shotguns along with his katana and confronts her. When battling Cilla proves fruitless, Blade destroys the Darkhold which causes Cilla to be pulled into Hell and ultimately ends the eclipse over Manhattan, killing any vampire still outside. Blade then silently takes the unconscious Bloodstone out of the tunnels.

Some time later in Louisiana, Blade is visited by Maria Hill and Kaluu. Maria extends her gratitude for his help with the Vampire Nation while Kaluu congratulates him on destroying the Darkhold. Blade asks Kaluu of a prophecy that spoke of the his death and the "rise of eternal night" but Kaluu cryptically tells him it had nothing to do with the Darkhold. The two then depart, leaving Blade in the cemetery overlooking the grave of his mentor Jamal Afari and a fairly new headstone for Iyanla as he receives a call from Whistler. In the game's secret ending, the remaining pureblood elders awaken Dracula.

## Development

A sequel to 2013's *Blade* was teased at the end of that game when Dragonetti and the Vampire Nation pulled the Darkhold from beneath the destruction of the Genesis facility. While a sequel was announced in January 2014 via Snipes' Twitter account, development stalled went Mucky Foot Productions closed their doors, with many of their team joining the Hammerhead team. In June 2017, Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige again expressed interest in using Blade in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Wesley Snipes stated he was open to return. Sony Computer Entertainment's reluctance to move forward with a game focused on the license caused the rights for the series to revert back to Marvel in September 2017. Hammerhead creative director Abubakar Genim did officially announce that the team would still be working with Marvel but he did reveal they "weren't done with Blade". Following the success of *Spider-Man*, fans began to speculate that Marvel and Sony inked a new deal in order to produce a Blade game. However, a Game Informer article revealed that Activision once again took the reigns of the Marvel gaming license. In August 2018 on the 20th anniversary of the 1998 Blade film adaptation, Genim announced via his Instagram that the team had been developing another Blade game. He confirmed that it would be a cross-console entry and described as an amalgamation of its influences which include *Devil May Cry*, *God of War 2018*, *Batman: Arkham City*, *Spider-Man*, *X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Uncaged Edition)*, and *Ghost Rider*, among others.

## Reception

*Blade: Blood & Shadow* received generally favorable reviews. GameRankings gave it a score of 83.25% for the PlayStation 5 version, 79.45% for the Xbox Series X/S version and 90.17% for the Microsoft Windows version. While Metacritic gave it 85 out of 100 for the PlayStation 5 version, 83 out of 100 for the Xbox Series X/S version, and 89 out of 100 for the Microsoft Windows version. Many reviewers praised the game's combat system, voice acting, graphics, and leveling systems while criticizing its story, comparing the gameplay style to the Legend of Zelda series. The game's improved enemy AI, various enemy types, and comic-inspired visuals were also singled out for praise. It received several nominations at The Game Awards 2022, including Game of the Year and Best Game Direction.

## Future

While no future games have been confirmed, the game's secret ending and Activision's desire to further branch out within the Earth 50701 universe could warrant a sequel. In January 2023, game director Abubakar Genim posted a photo of *Blade Vol. 2 #1* on his Twitter account.