Blood Might Return With Enhancements For Free

Monolith Productions founder Jason "Jace" Hall wants to revive one of the studio's oldest games, the first-person shooter Blood. He's hoping to create a new and improved version that will be available on multiple platforms.

Blood was first released back in 1997. It introduced players to Caleb, a Wild West gunfighter who once led a cult in service of the dark god Tchernobog. Caleb was betrayed and killed by the cult's other leaders. Sometime later, he emerges from his grave to seek revenge. The game was notable for its eclectic mix of weapons, including an electro-shock rifle, Tommy gun and Voodoo doll. It was a bit ahead of its time in that weapons could be dual wielded and many had secondary attacks.

In a forum post on Blood fan site Post Mortem, Hall said that he would pay for all the expenses of bringing back the game. He intends to release the revival for free, too. He says that he's going to take care of any of the necessary legal work as well.

While Hall says he has a "very specific vision" for Blood's return, he also wants community feedback. He wants long-time Blood fans to come up with a "dream list" of features they'd like to see included. I imagine posting on the forum thread linked above is a good method to get in contact. The only idea not on the table is releasing the source code.

"In regard to the source code, I have reservations about releasing it due to it making it that much easier for people to cheat/hack whatever new system I put in place - and part of what I'm hoping to achieve with this potential project is a game that really allows people to build measurable value in their cummulative [sic] game accomplishments," said Hall.

Does that mean the new version will have Achievements? The concerns about cheating might be due to multiplayer. Blood supported deathmatches via modem, LAN or serial cable. An enhanced, more easily accessible version of the multiplayer would be a welcome feature for this remake.