Blob Wars

About the game

Blob Wars is a run-and-gun platformer starring Bob, a soldier of the Blob race. Aliens have invaded his planet and taken many of his fellow blobs prisoner, and Bob is sent, alone, to bring them back and drive the invaders out. Each stage is a large map to explore: you run and jump across it, shoot the alien soldiers and creatures, find keys and switches, and rescue the MIAs, the blobs who are hiding or held captive, by walking up to them.

Stages have a list of objectives: rescue a number of MIAs, find an item, defeat a number of enemies, and so on. The essential ones open the way forward, while the rest can be left for a second visit. Between stages, a world map shows the regions you have unlocked, from the first grasslands to flooded tunnels, frozen caves, ancient tombs full of traps and finally the aliens' space station, with bosses along the way.

Weapons are picked up from fallen enemies: the pistol you start with, a machine gun, a laser, a spread gun and grenades. Later Bob finds tools that open up the maps, like a jetpack for long gaps and an aqua lung for long dives. The music and sounds come from free-licensed collections and are credited in the licence file.

Playing it here

This is version 2.00 of Blob Wars, the last one, compiled for the browser from the source code. The download is about 48 MB, mostly music. Saved games and settings stay in this browser. The game is in English.

A few things are left out of this version: one sound clip taken from a TV show, one music track whose licence could not be confirmed, the online medal server of the original, and the subtitle and logo of the original title. The game is otherwise unchanged.

Controls

The keys can be changed in Options. On the world map, the arrow keys or the mouse move the pointer; click a stage and then Start.

Getting started

Pick a difficulty. Start New Game asks for a save slot and a difficulty. Easy and Normal are fine for a first run; Practice lets you try the first stage without saving.

Read the objectives. Each stage opens with its list of objectives. Tab shows the map and the same list while you play.

Rescue the MIAs. The captured blobs are scattered around the map; walk up to them and they are teleported out. The map marks the ones you have not found yet.

Save at the world map. Progress is kept between stages; from the world map you can save and also return to stages you have already beaten.

Tips

Keep moving. Bob has little health, and most enemies fire back. Shoot, step out of the line of fire and shoot again.

Watch the oxygen. Under water the oxygen bar drains; find air pockets or get out before it runs out.

Use the right weapon. The spread gun covers groups of small enemies, the laser reaches far, and grenades bounce into corners the guns cannot reach.

Come back later. Some MIAs and items are out of reach until you have the jetpack or the aqua lung, so it is worth revisiting old stages.