Developer: MegaPixel Studio
Publisher: FOREVER ENTERTAINMENT
Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
Tested on: PS5
THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake – Review
Back in the day, when arcades were still more common, titles such as THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD or Time Crisis would pretty much be seen all around. It was always amazing to pair up with a buddy and try to hit that coveted high score, even if you would lose quite a bit of money in the process. Luckily, home releases quickly followed for the different installments in these franchises, making sure you’d only have to pay once for the full experience. THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD is probably a personal favorite, as it had interesting enemies, frantic boss battles, and an extremely enjoyable gameplay loop. THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake was released back in 2022, so it was only a matter of time before the second game would also receive a remake. That time is now, and we quite enjoyed playing through this classic arcade shooter again, even if it does have a few flaws.
Story
The story takes place after the events of the original THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD. The game features AMS Agents James Tayler and Gary Stewart, who were sent to investigate a sudden influx of rampaging monsters in a small city. This is pretty much the entire premise of the game, as you’ll just blast your way through zombies and other monsters while progressing through the story. The narrative remains superficial from start to finish, but we didn’t mind that for an arcade experience such as this.
Graphics
Graphically, we wouldn’t immediately call THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake an actual remake, but more of a remaster. The original foundation is still very much running underneath the hood of this shiny new rendition of the 1999 classic. You’ll get a proper recreation of the original experience, warts and all, albeit with less jagged edges and a smoother frame rate. The game, even though it still looks fairly dated, has loads of charm, and we were taken back to the days when we played the original on SEGA’s Dreamcast. All in all, the game looks like a proper upgrade when comparing it to the aforementioned version, but we wouldn’t mind seeing a true next-gen version of this amusing on-rails zombie shooter.
Sound
In terms of sound design, the music has been remastered, which is certainly a great way to propel this classic arcade title into the modern day. The old audio is still available for purists, so that’s also a plus. The music still does the trick, and it’s once again packed with nostalgia, simply because of how games used to have a more bombastic soundtrack. Another bonus is that the cheesy voice acting of the original has made its return too. In all honesty, the voice acting is quite horrendous, but it has that 90s one-liner feel from start to finish, which simply fits the game to a tee.
Gameplay
THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake is a remake of the 1999 on-rail shooter that was originally released for arcades, with a Dreamcast and PC release in the years that followed. It’s basically your goal to survive while shooting zombies and rescuing survivors in need. The offset is extremely simple, as you’ll just have to aim, shoot, and try to kill everything before it’s able to hit you instead. The game does offer a few different modes, such as the Classic Campaign, the Boss Mode, and the Training Mode. These modes speak for themselves, and you’ll be able to tackle all of them locally with a friend or family member. It’s honestly good old-fashioned co-op fun. There are also different difficulty options available, so if you were never able to beat the original back in the day, you might finally be able to see those end credits roll.
As fun as this blast from the past may be, the remake doesn’t come without its own set of issues. The game has loads of bugs, often having to do with button prompts not being correct or input not properly registering. This mainly happened when we met our untimely demise and had to press the correct button to keep playing. Half of the time, this resulted in a button-mashing session, as the button we needed to press didn’t register. It wasn’t even the same for both players when playing co-op, and this turned into a frustrating issue during a playthrough. We also encountered instances where we perished, and the game would still just let us keep playing, with the continue prompt still popping up. While not necessarily game-breaking, it was still an annoyance that popped up during our testing period.
Conclusion
THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake is a fun ‘remake’ of a classic arcade shooter that still holds up surprisingly well, even with its 1999 core running under the hood. The game offers simple fun, a few different modes, and difficulty options for some additional replay value, and it’s one of those titles that’s ideal to play once in a while with friends. Keep in mind, there are still quite a few smaller bugs present in the game at the time of writing this review.
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