Developer: Tantalus Publisher: Sega Release: 03/31/98 Genre: Action
Sega built up a stellar track record of great Saturn ports of their arcade games. Considering the Saturn’s messy hardware that they were able to near perfectly replicate games like Virtua Fighter 2 is somewhat of a miracle. That being said not all of their conversions received the same amount of attention. This is pretty evident with House of the Dead. Whether it was rushed to market or not is debatable. What is not is that this is an incredibly disappointing version of a great arcade game. Considering this was one of the last games for the Saturn in the US expectations were high. Sadly Sega let us down.
Let’s get it out of the way now: the House of the Dead is an ugly game. In the arcade House of the Dead was a beautiful game with fantastic art direction, a creepy atmosphere, and a flawless 60 fps. The Saturn version only manages one of those. While it captures the atmosphere the textures are ugly. Character models are chunky and in many cases unrecognizable. The resolution is lower which also affects the texture quality as well. And while it aims for a solid 30 fps it drops from that target frequently. Because of the short development time there was not even time to go back over the game to polish it and sadly it shows.
If you can get past the hideous presentation (which is a tall ask I admit) then the gameplay more than holds up. Whether it is with the Stunner or the controller House of the Dead remains playable. The regular controller has a slight advantage in that reloading is instantaneous but nothing beats the accuracy of a gun. The Resident Evil meets Virtua Cop vibe means you face an assortment of undead. While zombies make up the majority the numerous experiments at the Currien mansion are also running amok. These range from infected monkeys, bats, winged dogs, and even slime monsters. The variety is much appreciated after facing down generic henchman in Sega’s prior game. Even the bosses are a significant step up.
House of the Dead was the natural evolution of the formula started by Virtua Cop. Where that game was dynamic with its camera usage in a way that 2d rail shooters could not it did not stray too far from the genre blueprint. This game is more daring and unpredictable. Sega have done an excellent job packing the game full of variety despite taking place in a single location. As you explore the Currien mansion enemies appear in more random locations. From chandeliers to behind bookshelves and the stereotypical broken windows it feels like one continuous journey rather than moving on a track. There are plenty of random events, some off in the background that you might not know you can impact. This also leads to one of the game’s greatest features.
A large part of what makes House of the Dead great aside from its atmosphere is its branching routes. As each level progresses there are many parts of the environment that are destructible or interactive. Some of these are switches that lead to alternate routes. Hit the right bookshelf and you’ll find a secret passage. Sometimes saving a researcher will open up a branch as well. For instance rescuing the researcher from being thrown off the bridge in the first chapter will take you through the mansion’s front door rather than the sewers. Every level offers a few of these and after the game is over it even traces the path you took, giving you hints as to where the alternate routes are. This is incredibly cool and something more light gun games should have done back then.
The exclusive Saturn mode gives the game additional replay value on top of its branching paths. In this mode you have access to a number of playable secret agents. Each character has ratings in five categories: damage, reload speed, hit points, clip size, and the size of the targeting reticule. The stats have an immediate and tangible impact on your experience with the game. Rogan 2 is the most powerful and hits targets the easiest. Unfortunately his health is middling and he only has two shots before reloading marking him for experts only. Sophie on the other hand has the most bullets and while weak can make a lot of mistakes. It may not sound like much but for a genre that relies on quick thrills anything that extends its life is welcome.
In Closing
In the arcade House of the Dead is fondly remembered as a classic within the light gun genre. This home port is not. While the gameplay is intact the shoddy presentation and performance issues hurt the game overall. The Saturn is capable of a much better conversion than this and deserved better.
