(Sega AM1's universe)
Nobody leaves here alive!
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The House of the Dead: Remake (ザ・ハウス・オブ・ザ・デッド:リメイク, Za Hausu obu za Deddo: Rimeiku )[note 1] is a horror-themed rail shooting game licensed by Sega, developed by MegaPixel Studio, and published by Forever Entertainment.[1] It is a remake of Sega AM1's 1996 arcade game The House of the Dead.
Set in December 1998, the game follows AMS agents Thomas Rogan and G as they face hostile biologically-engineered creatures in the mansion of Dr. Curien, a mad scientist.
Forever Entertainment successfully pitched a House of the Dead remake to Sega in 2019. MegaPixel was given no source code, as it is lost, and had problems adapting light gun controls to modern platforms. Sega had little involvement with the remake.[1][2][3][4][5]
Announced as a Nintendo Switch exclusive, The House of the Dead: Remake was delayed from the end of 2021[3] to April 7th, 2022.[6] It was later released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Google Stadia on April 28th.[7] Physical editions of the game were developed by Microids and Forever Limited.[8][9]
The remake is Forever Entertainment's highest-selling game.[10] However, its reception was mixed, with criticism for its controls, performance, and new soundtrack. Several critics felt the remake was inferior to the original game.
A remake of The House of the Dead 2 is in development.[1]
Plot
Characters
Synopsis
Genetic engineer Dr. Curien, director of the DBR Corporation, is driven insane by his efforts to control life and death. On December 18th, 1998, he releases hostile creatures upon his own research team. As the creatures kill staff and infest the Curien Mansion, researcher Sophie Richards alerts her fiancée, AMS agent Thomas Rogan.
Two days later, Rogan and his partner G arrive at the mansion. They reunite with Sophie, who is kidnapped by the bat-like Hangedman and seemingly killed by the armored Chariot. Rogan and G defeat both creatures and the insectoid Hermit.
Curien escapes to an underground research center. He activates Magician, an armored humanoid with mastery of fire. Magician kills Curien, declaring that he has no master. Rogan and G defeat Magician, who, before exploding, warns that the ordeal is not over.
The agents leave the Curien Mansion, bidding Sophie and Curien farewell.[note 2]
Endings
There are three endings based on the player's performance:
Image | Criteria | Description |
---|---|---|
Score under 62,000 points with a ones digit of any number except 0. | The mansion is shown in the distance. | |
Score under 62,000 points with a ones digit of 0. | The mansion doors open; Sophie appears as a creature. Other creatures wander in Curien Mansion's foyer. | |
Score over 62,000 points. | The canon ending.[11] The mansion doors open; an alive Sophie runs at the camera, exclaiming "Thank you!" |
Gameplay
Chapters
Bosses
The House of the Dead: Remake is a rail shooter in which up to two players shoot creatures, rescue researchers, collect bonus items, and battle bosses. The game retains the original House of the Dead's multiple endings and branching paths[12] As with the original, the player loses lives from enemy attacks and accidentally shooting researchers. Extra lives, as well as score bonuses, are awarded by shooting background objects and rescuing researchers.
The Nintendo Switch version features analog controls, gyro aiming, and combined controls. Gyro works for both a single Joy-Con controller or a pair of them, with sensitivity options and aim assist offered.[5] The PlayStation 4 version supports the PlayStation Move peripheral.[13]
The remake introduces an armory with unlockable weapons.[12] Assault rifles, shotguns, grenade launchers, pitters and crossbows can be obtained in addition to the default pistol.[14]
Both "classic" and "modern" versions of the scoring system are offered. The player can select between easy, normal, hard, and arcade difficulties, which give the player more or less lives. The harder the difficulty selected, the more points the player can earn.[5]
A remake features a new game mode, Horde Mode, which has up to the 15 times more enemies on-screen.[2] Other features include leaderboards, achievements, cheat codes, a photo mode, and a gallery that shows the names, 3D models, descriptions, and weak points of creatures.[12]
The Switch's "docked" and "handheld" modes have frame rates of 60 and 30, respectively. Both modes have a resolution of 720p.[2]
Development
Background
Despite enjoying success in arcades, Sega's 1996 light gun game The House of the Dead was only ported to the Sega Saturn and Microsoft Windows in 1998. These ports were graphically downgraded.[15] The game was also omitted from The House of the Dead 2 & 3 Return, a 2008 compilation, due to technical issues.[16]
In 2019, Polish game publisher Forever Entertainment pitched a House of the Dead remake to Sega.[2][4][5] They wanted to revive the IP as they had done with Sega's Panzer Dragoon series.[4] Forever Entertainment obtained the license for the first two House of the Dead games on September 25th, 2019.[1]
The House of the Dead: Remake was developed by Forever Entertainment's subsidiaries MegaPixel Studio and TA Publishing.[1] The game shared staff with Panzer Dragoon: Remake, including producers Artur Grzegorczyn and Benjamin Anseaume.[2][4]
Pre-production
A remake was chosen because the original game's source code is lost.[2] MegaPixel couldn't rip assets, citing legal and technical issues.[2] The team considered a "nostalgia mode" with low-poly graphics, but this was abandoned.[2]
Sega did not develop or publish the remake,[5] but gave MegaPixel materials and feedback.[4] They requested varied difficulty levels, no changes to the story, and inspiration from House of the Dead: Scarlet Dawn.[17][18]
MegaPixel researched The House of the Dead on real hardware and emulators,[2] while also consulting the game's official guidebook and fan websites.[17]
Production
The remake was developed in Unity.[2] Production occurred alongside other remake projects by Forever Entertainment.[19] MegaPixel worked remotely on the remake during the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] Inspired by Panzer Dragoon: Remake's production, MegaPixel tested the remake on four platforms to avoid delays.[2]
Unity's rendering was "inefficient", causing PlayStation VR support to be scrapped.[18] MegaPixel also had trouble optimizing the game.[4] The decision to use a new rendering system for PC, with older platforms using an older system, added work and uncertainty over costs.[18]
The remake was a timed exclusive for the Nintendo Switch; Forever Entertainment is a leading publisher on the console.[2][20] The Switch version was graphically downgraded,[18] but MegaPixel targeted a higher frame rate and resolution than Panzer Dragoon: Remake.[2]
A gun controller was developed, but MegaPixel was unable to release it.[21] They also scrapped support for the PlayStation VR Aim Controller, as it is VR-exclusive.[18] Without worry of receiving backlash, the team chose to mimic light guns with the Nintendo Switch's gyro controls.[2] Options were provided for players to tweak the controls to their liking.[4] To accommodate these changes, the game difficulty was lowered.[18]
Despite being initially confirmed,[2][22] blood color options were removed from the game.[23] Enemies instead had either red or green blood, depending what type of enemy they were.[24] Artur Grzegorczyn said this was because of the original game's lore.[17] The options were restored in a later patch.[25] The remake's Japanese version was censored, with less gore and no ability for the player to kill researchers, causing the removal of two achievements.[26]
The voice casting was done by Natalie Roers,[5] who had worked with Benjamin Anseaume on Fear Effect Sedna.[17] Roers wanted better acting to compliment the updated visuals, even if the lines were still "cheesy".[27][28] Due to licensing issues with Tetsuya Kawauchi's music,[17] MegaPixel opted for a new soundtrack composed by Sébastien Poncelet.[29]
Reveal
The agreement signing between Forever Entertainment and SEGA Holding Co., Ltd. was reported by Polish news site Graczposolita,[30] who TA Publishing CEO Benjamin Anseaume alleged had "leaked" the news.[31] Forever Entertainment confirmed the information on October 3rd, 2019.[32]
Zbigniew Dębicki claimed in November 2019 that the remake would premiere in 2020,[33] which was corroborated by Forever Entertainment's 2020 premiere schedule.[34] However, on January 22nd, 2021, Forever Entertainment tweeted that the House of the Dead remakes are still in development.[35]
On February 2nd, 2021, a blank Twitter account for The House of the Dead: Remake was created,[36] and the domain hotdremake.com was registered by Forever Entertainment. A member of the company confirmed on their Discord server that the Twitter account is official.[37]
The remake was officially revealed during the Nintendo Indie World Showcase on April 14th, 2021.[3] A photo of people playing the game was tweeted by the remake account on October 22nd, 2021.[38]
The ESRB rated the remake's Switch version in early November 2021,[14] and the Stadia version in February 2022.[39]
Marketing
On April 14th, 2021, during a montage at the end of the 2021 Nintendo Indie World Showcase, a few seconds of gameplay footage for The House of the Dead: Remake were shown. After the presentation, the remake's Twitter account shared a full trailer and invited viewers to join Forever Entertainment's Discord server.[3]
The Twitter account remained mostly inactive afterwards, sharing a photo of people playing the game on October 22nd, 2021.[40] In 2022, the account began tweeting concept artwork and in-game screenshots, counting down the days to the premiere.
On March 17th, 2022, The House of the Dead: Remake's Twitter account shared screenshots of the creature gallery, where it was discovered that Hermit's biography was plagiarized from The Wiki of the Dead.[41][42] The wiki and other House of the Dead community members were added to the game credits out of apology.[43]
Release
PC fan patches
Following The House of the Dead: Remake's launch on Steam, fans released unofficial patches to improve aspects of the game. Mystery Wizard patched in support for the the Sinden Lightgun and Gun4IR PC light guns. Two player gameplay is possible, though there are limitations, such as an inability to switch weapons.[44]
Tuglaw released a patch that restores Tatsuya Kawauchi's soundtrack,[45] while Trexx45 published one which includes remixed versions of the music.[46]
Gallery
To view the The House of the Dead: Remake gallery, click here. |
Sources
- Notes
- ↑ The game title is stylized on some websites as THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake.
- ↑ In single player, only Rogan (player 1) or G (player 2) will appear, and some dialogue is altered or removed. Because the lore has both agents being involved, multiplayer is assumed to have the canon version of the story.
- References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "raport firmy FOREVER ENTERTAINMENT S.A." (Polish). Biznes.pap.pl (September 25th, 2019).
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 Dayton, Adam (May 28, 2021). "Fragments of Silicon Season 14, Episode 22B: Artur Gregoznyc of Forever Entertainment" (English). YouTube. Retrieved on July 3, 2022.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Wen, Alan (April 14, 2021). "‘The House of the Dead: Remake’ announced for Nintendo Switch" (English). MNE.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 The Elite MYT (March 22, 2022). "[Interview] Resurrecting the House of the Dead" (English). The Elite Institute. Retrieved on March 26, 2022.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Faria, Leo (March 22, 2022). "Interview with Benjamin Anseaume and Artur Grzegorczyn, Producers Behind The House of the Dead: Remake" (English). WayTooManyGames. Retrieved on March 26, 2022.
- ↑ ClassicSteve. "The House of the Dead: Remake For Nintendo Switch Delayed To 2022". The Gamebutler. Retrieved on December 6, 2021.
- ↑ Lyles, Taylor (April 21, 2022). "The House of the Dead: Remake is Coming to PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Stadia". IGN.
- ↑ Whitehead, Thomas (July 8, 2021). "Microids To Reveal Panzer Dragoon And The House Of The Dead Switch Physical Editions". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021.
- ↑ http://segabits.com/blog/2022/03/22/the-house-of-the-dead-remake-announces-forever-limited-physical-editions/
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/0/https://twitter.com/wiki_dead/status/1559994248732319746
- ↑ Kori (September 7, 2012). "Website of the Dead’s Exclusive Interview with Takashi Oda" (English). The Website of the Dead. Archived from the original on April 19, 2020.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 "New Details about The House of the Dead: Remake's Co-op and Competitive Modes" (English). Co-Optimus. Retrieved on April 5, 2022.
- ↑ https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2022/04/the-house-of-the-dead-remake-takes-aim-at-ps-move-patch
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 "The House of the Dead - Remake [Nintendo Switch"] (English). ESRB. Retrieved on November 3, 2021.
- ↑ "The House of the Dead", Retro Gamer Magazine, issue 160, 2006, page 63.
- ↑ Hayward, Andrew (December 20, 2007). "House of the Dead 2 & 3 Return Preview for Wii" (English). 1UP.com. Archived from the original on June 4, 2016. Retrieved on January 9, 2021.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 Multibrawlr (April 19, 2022). "The Wiki of the Dead's Exclusive Interview with Benjamin Anseaume and Artur Grzegorczyn (English). The Wiki of the Dead.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 18.5 https://archive.org/details/hodremake_interview_veegeea
- ↑ "Czat ze Zbigniewem Dębickim - prezesem zarządu Forever Entertainment SA" (Polish). Stockwatch.pl (March 22, 2020). Retrieved on August 14, 2020.
- ↑ "Forever Entertainment S.A." (Polish). GRYOnline.pl. Retrieved on February 2, 2021.
- ↑ https://twitter.com/wiki_dead/status/1561352426069917700
- ↑ THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake [@HOTDRemake] (April 14, 2021). THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake on Twitter: "@fj_josep @ForeverEntert red/green blood will be a toggleable option :)". Twitter.
- ↑ https://twitter.com/HOTDRemake/status/1503269650431414276?s=20&t=Rw9tDXbDSPhbBiGa4xE_lQ
- ↑ https://twitter.com/HOTDRemake/status/1503429847695175680?s=20&t=Rw9tDXbDSPhbBiGa4xE_lQ
- ↑ https://twitter.com/HOTDRemake/status/1547843465978908672
- ↑ https://twitter.com/HOTDRemake/status/1511278252467306499?s=20&t=GbGNlOs3LPwlLi7ysqLIoA
- ↑ Kori Maru Gaming (May 17, 2022). "The Voices Behind The House of the Dead: Remake (Interview)" (English). YouTube. Retrieved on May 17, 2022.
- ↑ Natalie Roers [@NatalieRoers] (April 15, 2021). Natalie Roers on Twitter: "@Anseaume Keep the cheesey dialogue + more modern acting and better audio quality to compliment the gorgeous updated visuals= best of both worlds. " (English). Twitter. Retrieved on April 15, 2021.
- ↑ https://www.malt.ch/profile/sebastienponcelet
- ↑ Michał Król (September 25th, 2019). "Polacy stworzą remake dwóch części The House of the Dead" (Polish). Gramposolita.pl. “The House of the Dead: Remake i The House of the Dead 2: Remake będą mieć nową, dostosowaną do współczesnych standardów grafikę oraz lekko zmodyfikowaną rozgrywkę, ale w pełni zachowają oryginalny scenariusz. Spółka zapowiedziała, że materiały z pierwszej z gier zostaną zaprezentowane w najbliższych miesiącach.”
- ↑ "106 - Benjamin Anseaume from Forever Entertainment" (English). The SEGA Lounge (March 19, 2020). Retrieved on July 21, 2020.
- ↑ Forever Entertainment [@ForeverEntert] (October 3, 2020). Forever Entertainment on Twitter: "Hi Guys! We confirm the signing of the agreement regarding remakes of the games "The House of the Dead" and "The House of the Dead 2". No platforms or release dates have been confirmed, and unfortunately we can’t say anything more for now. Please keep fingers crossed for us and.." / Twitter. Twitter. Archived from the original on February 10, 2020.
- ↑ "Czat Inwestorski [Investor Chat]" (Polish). tu Inwestor (November 11, 2019). Archived from the original on November 5, 2020.
- ↑ Premier Schedule 2020 (English). Forever Entertainment. Retrieved on September 11th, 2020.
- ↑ Forever Entertainment [@ForeverEntert] (January 22, 2021). Forever Entertainment on Twitter: "Forever Entertainment on Twitter: "@Her_Reidiance Yes, we still do! It's still in development! Follow us to be up to date with any news about the games! 😉" / Twitter" / Twitter. Twitter.
- ↑ The House of the Dead: Remake's Social Blade
- ↑ The Wiki of the Dead [@wiki_dead] (February 7, 2020). The Wiki of the Dead on Twitter: "A @HOTDRemake Twitter account was launched earlier this month. On Forever Entertainment's Discord server, it was recently confirmed to be official. The domain http://hotdremake.com has also been registered by Forever Entertainment." / Twitter. Twitter.
- ↑ THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake [@HOTDRemake] (October 22, 2021). THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake on Twitter: "@frasier_looking @SEGA_Europe @SEGA_OFFICIAL Soon… https://t.co/JXG8vX0WNA". Twitter.
- ↑ "The House of the Dead - Remake [Stadia"] (English). ESRB. Retrieved on February 26, 2022.
- ↑ THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake [@HOTDRemake] (October 22, 2021). THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake on Twitter: "@frasier_looking @SEGA_Europe @SEGA_OFFICIAL Soon… https://t.co/JXG8vX0WNA". Twitter.
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20220317095147/https://twitter.com/wiki_dead/status/1504394885641736194
- ↑ https://www.gamingdose.com/news/%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%82%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%A9-%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B2/
- ↑ https://twitter.com/WeboftheDead/status/1512124401088667649?s=20&t=Q0gfx_rYKvJVQn3i4NgPgA
- ↑ https://sindenlightgun.miraheze.org/wiki/The_House_of_the_Dead_Remake
- ↑ https://github.com/tuglaw/hotdr-ost-mod
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txMi7bNbw-c
External links
- Official website
- @HOTDRemake on Twitter
- Nintendo game page
- Steam game page
- Google Stadia game page
- Xbox game page
- PlayStation Store page
- GOG page
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