Hello all,
In last week’s Flame Over blog I talked about how rescuing cats is an important part of the game. But who else will Blaze Carruthers be rescuing? The answer is: workers!
As Blaze moves from level to level, he’ll come across various Infernal Industries employees trapped by the flames. Each worker will be static in the room Blaze finds them in, raising a polite hand for attention if not in immediate danger, or frantically waving their arms and shouting to alert you if they’re threatened by a fire. To help you see them they’ll always face the camera so you have the best chance of spotting workers tucked away in corners! ;)
Above: Blaze finds a worker who’s currently safe. He’ll shout softly and wave to attract attention.
Once Blaze has found a worker he simply moves near to them and they’ll begin to follow him around like ducklings, sometimes leading to an awesomely cute conga-line effect! Once workers are in tow, Blaze just has to keep them alive long enough to get them to the level exit and safety.
Above: This worker is in real danger. He’ll shout loudly and wave his arms to get Blaze’s attention.
So, how does Blaze keep workers alive? Well, if NPCs are in a room that’s on fire their health bar begins to drain. And it drains pretty quickly! In the interests of safety Blaze can leave workers in a safe place by pressing the X button, then deal with any hazards between them and the exit before returning and getting them back in tow. If time is running too short for the safe approach, Blaze can just clear a path through burning rooms and rush the workers to the exit, hoping to get there before time runs out! Both techniques have their pros and cons…
Above: Workers will let you know they’re taking damage by coughing and via a health meter.
So, what effects do workers have on gameplay I hear you ask? Well, in Flame Over rescuing people affects TIME, which is a vital aspect of the game. Flame Over is played against the clock, so you only have a limited time to clear each level. Any spare time is carried over to the next level as you progress, so it really is of the essence!
Above: Blaze can attract a real following! They trail him like a conga-line of ducklings. Aw, cute. The final version will feature a variety of worker designs.
When you reach a new level a small amount of time is added for each room used to build the level, with a small modifier applied if it has a greater number of exits. Outside of that you only get time by either finding rare stopwatch powerups, OR by rescuing those all-important workers. Taking a worker safely to the exit grants you 30 seconds of time. Fail to rescue a worker, however, and you’ll lose 1 whole minute… so it really does pay to be a hero!
Next week I’ll be filling you in on another NPC you’ll meet during your adventures through Flame Over. :)
Until then, have a great weekend!
Al
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