Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold

Wolfenstein 3D clone where you play as British special agent. Game is set in the future so the whole setting is sci-fi like. Level design is manageable. A few different type of enemies and 7 weapons to pick up. Plays ok I guess. You can look only horizontally, which is the main con here. Visual side is pixelated but good looking (enemy's sprites and weapons). Music and sounds are ok. Remember that game is from 1993 so don't expect much but for what it is it's a decent Wolfenstein 3D like shooter. Just make sure to grab source engine port which have many QOL improvements, like HI-RES scaling and mouse control that works good enough.
PS: Grab the source port HERE
Unzip to the main game folder. Also I recommend to turn on BRZ x4 scaling in the options for higher resolution while still maintaining original visuals.

It's amazing that this ancient monster works on modern hardware. But that's not important, what's important is that the bundle with it is slightly cheaper than Turbo Overkill itself

Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold does very little to distinguish itself from the game its engine was made for. While this does not mean there is no fun to be had, it does make it hard to recommend for anyone who is not a big fan of Wolfenstein 3D. Ultimately though, the game is well designed and very cheap, so look at giving this a shot if you are a fan of old raycaster shooters.

PROS:
- Decent length, taking around 5 hours to complete, and a great value at just $2
- Game has some small improvements when compared to Wolfenstein 3D, such as the minimap
- Fun visuals and sprites

CONS:
- This is just a DOSBox port, look at installing a source port like BStone alongside
- Has not aged terribly well when compared to the Doom and Quake era FPS games
- Lacking in weapon and enemy variety

I'm adult enough to admit that I bought this game out of nostalgia even though I knew I could of played this game online for free or download DOS BOX and play it, again, for free.

I mean it's just a classic shooter in the style of wolf 3D but I found the movement gave me motion sickness so beware. but i had some fun.

Great classic first person shooter! Very addicting

With this being my first time playing Blake Stone, I enjoyed it overall. The experience back at the time of release probably would have been more astonishing, but Doom was still quite a bit better than this.

The story being rather simple, Blake Stone is an agent that is tasked with stopping Dr. Goldfire from controlling the world with his soldiers and monsters. With levels being designed very much like Wolfenstein 3D, the player must blast through about 60 levels to stop Goldfire's plans. If you have played Wolf 3D, this sounds daunting, but I feel the levels and game play of Blake Stone are better. There are about 30 different enemy types, 5 weapons, more detailed textures, and much more developed levels. While Wolfenstein 3D can be fun, it is very tiresome as it can get stale quickly and the levels feel too maze-like with too few variation in graphics or landmarks. Blake Stone still has maze levels, most rooms aren't simple boxes most times, and have plants or tables or other environmental uniqueness to help one remember where a room is. It isn't as good as Doom's map, but it is still more helpful than not having one.

There are quite a few features that stand apart from Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, Heretic, or Quake. Blake Stone showcases some natural textures for natural levels, but most are space station and military or research facilities. There are vending machines around levels that can give you some health for a ration. The 5th weapon is an explosive type, unfortunately all weapons share the same ammo pool like Wolf 3D. Secret push walls, keys, and fast-paced shooting similar to other games of the time.

The music and sound design are great (Apogee were pretty strong in this area). Very distinct sounds for each enemy and good feedback for everything happening in the game.

No bugs found when playing through, but quite a few issues to note. I would highly recommend using a source port to make the experience more enjoyable (more options and settings to mess with) Turning the heartbeat sound and the annoying game over scenes are reason enough to download it. Aside from that, it will take some time to get use to. Especially in 1x1 hallways where you are as wide as the corridors. If you are a retro shooter fan or are looking for an experience similar to Wolfenstein 3D, this game is for you.