Blade Runner

One of the greatest computer detective games of all time. One of the greatest game adaptations of an existing franchise, ever. Still amazingly playable (even without nostalgia goggles). The character graphics are highly pixelated, but won't make your eyeballs bleed. Background art still really holds up. Voice/FMV acting runs the gamut, but most is in the cheesy-decent range, it works. Mechanics are standard for late 90's adventure games, cursor can be fussy, and the detective tools can be infuriating for awhile, until you get the hang of them. Don't let those minor annoyances scare you off. This game is engaging, absorbing, challenging...yada yada. It runs flawlessly on modern systems. This game screams for a skin or reboot, but due to legal issues, prolly never gonna happen. Just, be glad, ecstatic even, that the original is here, and more than stands the test of the decades. Don't let those moments be lost in time, like tears in the rain.

Blade Runner (1997) I've said this before, in reference to The Thing, that movie-based games that successfully evoke the atmosphere of the original are worth playing, and Blade Runner does this in spades. The music is there, the gritty post-WW3 environments, even iconic locations and characters from the 1982 movie are there. As adventure games go, Blade Runner is dead simple. You collect clues by pixel-hunting and talking to characters, but there's no combining them, no abstruse puzzle-solving. Once you collect enough items, and follow the straightforward hints on what to do next, new areas open up and the story progresses. You do get to use the Esper and Voight-Kampf machines, though, which are delightful and put you right in the movie. But the great thing about this game is that the moral ambiguity, the uncertainty in the humanity of those you meet -- and even your own -- that is at the heart of the film, is the centerpiece of the gameplay. I went in blind, and only very slowly became aware of this aspect, but what assumptions you make about characters and how you treat them will change how the game progresses. I blundered my way through, and got the braindead-obvious 'super-Blade-Runner' ending, but there are several major ending variations, and those inclined to role-playing will have a blast exploring them. The length is short, so this is a reasonable thing to do.

This is the version to buy, not the so called Enhanced version which is significantly worse. GOG & Nightdive should look to improve, not just cash in. Blade Runner is a grate game with great potential in the right hands...

A fantastic peak in the genre. Fans of the Blade Runner movie(s) will appreciate the excellent art style, sound design, writing and the story; this feels more canon than many other movie adaptations. Combined with the excellent gameplay, thought-provoking puzzles and careful interactions make this an absolute classic in adventure gaming.

‘Blade Runner’ the game was designed for fans of the ‘Blade Runner’ movie directed by Ridley Scott. While you don’t need to have watched the film and its various cuts to appreciate the game, it would certainly help. For the most part, the game’s narrative structure was lifted from that of the film, even down to the way it introduced blade runners and replicants. The story was set in parallel with that of the movie, featuring many of the now iconic locations, such as Bradbury Building (J.F. Sebastian’s home), Hannibal Chew’s lab, and Tyrell Building. It’s a plus that the game expanded upon these locations, allowing you explore the world of ‘BR’ in greater detail. Because you don’t get to play as Deckard, the protagonist of the film, having some of the film’s cast voice their characters in the game helped to enhance the immersion. In fact, you’ll get to interact with a few of them as Deckard did. You can also administer the Voight-Kampff Test as a blade runner. While these parallels and similarities helped to create an authentic ‘BR’ experience, it also made the game almost too familiar. It felt like a waste that the developers didn’t stray farther from the source material. What makes ‘BR’ the game interesting was that your actions (i.e. being a true blade runner vs. a replicant sympathizer) have an impact on how the overall narrative unfolds. The game also randomizes whether or not some characters are replicants, affecting how certain scenes play out. Given that, you can potentially unlock one of several different endings each time you start a new game. ‘BR’ is a solid adventure game from the heyday of the genre. The original graphics still look great, albeit slightly pixelly on modern monitors. Voice acting was also well done, though I do take issue with the almost-too-cheery line delivery of your character. Despite a couple of shortcomings, I think it’s really worth your time to check ‘BR’ out, especially when it has been resurrected to run on modern PCs.