I’m a fan, if not a sucker, for “light gun games,” more commonly known as rail shooters. For whatever reason, I never got around to playing House of the Dead: Overkill on the Wii back in 2009, but in a way, I’m glad I never did. Sega and Headstrong Games have revisited Overkill, giving it a visual HD gloss and 3D support, and also adding a variety of miscellaneous extras for this PS3 exclusive re-release. While not required, clearly the intended way to play this game is with the Move, and for even better results I’d suggest a gun-attachment such as Sony’s Sharpshooter.
The visual changes are instantly noticeable, although it’s not like this game was completely redone with the hottest visuals. Expect good, competent visuals, but nothing outstanding. I’m not able to test the 3D support for this game unfortunately, although while playing (especially on some re-tooled boss fights, like Screamer) you will notice some blatant game design that is intended for 3D. I’m sure with 3D, it would look pretty cool, but these tactics run into the same brick wall as the gameplay: monotony.
Extended Cut has a lot of other additions to it that are welcomed, including two new levels, Naked Terror and Creeping Flesh. Naked Terror is set in a strip club and players control two new characters, Varla Guns and Candy Stryper. They’re uninteresting and play exactly the same as Agent G and Detective Washington, but I suppose they’re welcomed nonetheless. Both Naked Terror and the slaughterhouse level of Creeping Flesh add new zombies, character dialogue, and bosses, and another twenty to thirty minutes of gameplay, too. Each of the nine stages takes roughly a half hour each to beat with a friend, which is typical for a rail shooter.
A new weapon was added for Extended Cut as well, the crossbow. It is eventually unlocked and can be equipped alongside your standard pistol, shotgun, SMGs, or assault rifle. Players start with a standard pistol, the AMS Magnum, that can be upgraded, and more weapons can be purchased as you advance and earn more money. The SMGs are an easy first purchase, but I’d almost caution against buying them too early — they make the game a lot easier, and with a reasonably skilled second player, this is surely the House of the Dead game to date, bordering on being too easy. In playing through the story, it’s not uncommon to go several stages without dying at all, even on a first play-through. Previous House of the Dead titles were significantly harder if memory serves, and they were also more deliberate about their enemy placement. With Overkill, as the name implies I suppose, the pacing is much, much faster. Each room or corridor is loaded with zombies coming at you from just about every angle, multiple times, but they are easily mowed down, as are the bosses.
Playing through Extended Cut is enjoyable, although it was difficult to do in one sitting. Both my friend and I were getting bored with the repetition, but the pacing was good and the number of shootables, besides the zombies, was cool. Extended Cut includes a variety of items to shoot, some of which I am sure were in the original. Most of these shootables are piles of cash or a red DNA strand that slows down the game for about ten seconds. Other shootables, like heads or CDs, are for unlockables, which include 2D/3D art, the soundtrack, and comic book art. Other reasons to keep you playing are the inclusion of an online leaderboard, if you’re into that sort of thing, or Trophies.
In addition to the standard campaign, Hardcore and Classic modes may offer some replay value. In Hardcore mode, zombies only die with headshots, while Classic mode forces you to play through the entire game with the AMS Magnum. A Director’s Cut mode, which was in the original Wii version, is also included here. Playing this mode limits your continues and makes enemies tougher. Also, three mini-games are available, too: Victim Support, Stayin’ Alive, and Money Shot II, offering challenges in keeping civilians alive, surviving increasingly tougher waves of zombies, and using deadeye aiming skills.
So, the new features are welcomed, but probably not enough to motivate an owner of the original game to re-buy. For newcomers to Overkill, Extended Cut is the obvious choice between the two, although I’m sure the original Wii version is selling for less than half the price of the $40 Extended Cut. I would note that the Extended Cut has some potentially concerning accuracy issues that could have you pausing and recalibrating your controller from time to time. In playing through the campaign, my friend and I both had to recalibrate once or twice, which only takes about thirty seconds. Just be aware if your aim suddenly begins to drift.
Other minor issues I had with Extended Cut include not being able to skip the cutscenes or enable a foul language filter. As you may know, this game apparently set some records for its excessive foul language back in 2009. There’s even rumor that Rico from Killzone 2 was f’n shocked at the amount of cursing. Anyway, I think Sega/Headstrong Games could have done themselves a favor if they allowed you to tone down the embarrassing dialogue; sure, some of it’s funny, but most of it is not, especially on a second play-through. Finally, load times in between stages seemed oddly long for what was a Wii game. The load times are noticeable and a little annoying, but not awful.
While not an exceptional game, House of the Dead: Overkill Extended Cut is still a very well-rounded and complete rail shooter. Of the PlayStation Move games out there, it ranks as one of the best, especially when played with a buddy.
To the summary…