Bleach Las Noches is one of, if not the oldest running Bleach game on BYOND, and is by far the most original. Starting in it’s early days as a normal Player versus Player game, BLN managed to take a strong hold on all the Anime Fan games, quickly raising into the top 3. Since then, it has grown into a more professional game, looked upon as a project rather than a hubby, giving us the beautiful and entertaining Roleplay Based variation of a once great game. The question is, has BLN lost all of it’s momentum? Or does it continue to sit at the top of the pillar.

Game Play: The game play on Bleach Las Noches consists of training, role-playing, and fighting. We’ll cover training the most, since that’s the most common thing that most new comers will be doing. Although most people see the training as more of a chore, certain aspects of it can be fun. The newly implemented Dual Sparring system is a nice change from Shadow Sparring, the only down side being that those who prefer to stay up all night, or those who happen to live outside of the United States and Canada may find some trouble getting a Partner due to the time difference. During these Dual Spar sessions, getting hit will increase your stamina, and hitting somebody will increase your strength. A rather well thought out method that fits this particular anime quite well, if you ask me. Reiatsu training, which is unlocked at 200 strength or 2,000 stamina, is a clever button mashing sequence that anybody who enjoys Dance Dance Revolution will love just as much.

The role-playing on Las Noches is not like everybody thinks. When most people think of Role playing, they find it tedious and have the common idea that you must roleplay every action. This, however, is not true. Although the majority of your actions will be role-played, not every single one does. In other words, you’ll have to RP the beginning of the fight, any major events such as releasing your sword or running away, and the end of it. Anything else can be done strictly through the usage of your verbs. The game normally has a storyline that is very loosely based on the show, allowing any of the minor characters complete freedom and allowing the major characters, IE Captains, Aizen, Urahara, a large amount as well.

Fighting, is just as you would expect. Click a verb, throw a punch/swing a sword/fire an arrow. This is one of those games were level doesn’t decide a fight. If you’re not a very good fighter, then somebody less than half your level could easily beat you. It’s the perfect blend of fighting and strength that make these moments so incredible and enjoyable. Although Fighting and Roleplaying make the game amazing, the repetitive and often boring training forces me to give BLN’s Game play an 8 out of 10.

Presentation: At first glance, the game play may seem repetitive, tiring, and quite boring. The initial training that is required, however, is merely a minor inconvenience. After a few hours of training, chatting, and role-playing, you’ll gain the ability to see Hollows, and as any Bleach fan knows, they mean nothing but harm. It’s from this point on, that the game becomes interesting. From this point on, you can choose to become one of several different classes, all with unique strengths and weaknesses. They are all well balanced; so you’ll never have to worry about one race rule all scenarios that are quite often seen in any Dragonball game. The game not only looks nice, but once you get use to the ideals that are being sent out, it handles nice as well. For Presentation, I gave BLN a 10 out of 10.

Originality: BLN is probably one of the most original anime games currently on BYOND in all of the above categories. The training system is unique, the icons were found in no other game when BLN began it’s rise to the top. It has come a long ways since it’s introduction to BYOND, and in my opinion, it still has a long way to go before it burns out. Sadly, out of the interest of fairness, BLN is based off an Anime, so I must give it a 9 out of 10.

Overall: 9 out of 10.