Look closely at the image above. No, closer. Get real close and have a proper good stare at it. Anything seem slightly off to you? See that little red speck there? There you go! Any guesses as to what they may be? If you guessed that it was a man, perhaps even Mario, then you’re actually pretty bang on. So well done to you. That isn’t just a little man, though; it’s actually the second player in this re-purposed game of Tetris. The name ‘Blocks Of Explosive Dismemberment‘ is rather bang on the nose upfront as to what this game is all about too – bloody slaughter with giant blocks. This may be the first time that Tetris has ever had gore, especially to this level, but honestly that’s not what makes this game idea so neat. Though a good squelch is always appreciated, presumably.

If you haven’t guessed already, Barbaric Softworks‘ little two player game involves two completely different play styles. One person controls and rotates the slow-moving descending blocks that we’re all so familiar with. The other player sits at the bottom of the board and attempts to dodge said blocks so that they aren’t crushed by them. At the moment it seems that the development of the game is in an early enough stage so that any criticisms levelled at it (and there are a few) can be sorted out before it’s finished.

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“It may involve crushing annoying pop stars to death horribly. In terms of genre, I’d call it arcade-puzzle/snuff.”

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The developer of the game seems rather on the psychopathic side, which is why I find them so rather interesting and almost entertaining. That quotation up there – genius. The trailer, which you can see right at the bottom of this article, is a little obnoxious, though. Sure, it showcases this rather cool concept, but my word, the audio is rather annoying. My advice would be to turn your audio down or just mute the video. Still, you’ll have to put up with expletive heavy, in-your-face title screens that seem determined to make you yell. Meh, let’s just focus on the game idea for now, yeah?

Death By Block

So you’ve pretty much grasped the concept of Blocks Of Explosive Dismemberment. You’re over how funny or “fucked up” the concept may be, as the attendees of the Massachusetts indie game developers group described the game when it was revealed to them. But couldn’t there be more to it? My feelings are that while the game is initially a pretty interesting idea, and could certainly make for some interesting two player gameplay, it’s not going to last too long. It needs more to it than just the concept. Luckily, Barbaric seem to be aware of that and are asking for people to send them ideas and suggestions as to what could be added to the game.

I’m not entirely sure myself. Maybe add an actual goal for the victim in this scenario to aim for. Perhaps there’s an exit nearer the top of the level that they need to try to reach and can obviously only do so by duking the player controlling the blocks into creating a way for them to get up. Of course, that would introduce a risk to both players then, and could add an interesting psychology to the game. Or maybe there could be a way for the victim to fight back against the block menace by means of shooting the blocks into bits so they become less of a threat. Nah, I much prefer the idea of them having an end goal to reach, actually, and one that requires them to use the block placements to their advantage somehow. It’s far too late for me to really come up with anything solid, though.

What you hopefully came here to see is not my late night rambling, but some gameplay from this wacky concept. And that’s exactly what I have for you. But like I said before, turn your audio down or mute the video because, well, you’ll see if you don’t do what I say. Screams and loud music for you! Blocks Of Explosive Dismemberment will be coming to Steam Greenlight eventually, apparently, gorily, snuffily.