House of the Dead is an old horror-themed rail shooter game, developed and released by Sega in 1998. The gameplay can be summarized as a shooting gallery with zombies. House of the Dead runs on older version of Windows, so you may need a virtual machine. Screenshots were taken by Abandonware DOS. The original House of the Dead was a massive hit when it hit arcades in the mid to late 90s. The game was eventually ported to the Sega Saturn and the PC and while it may not be as impressive as the games that would follow. I do feel that it is a very important game in video game history as this is a franchise that is still going to this day.
Available Platform: Windows
The House of the Dead is a shooter arcade game with an action-horror thematic created by Sega and released in 1996.
Year | 1998 |
Genre | Shooter |
Rating | 88/100 based on 7 Editorial reviews. Add your vote |
Publisher | SEGA |
Developer | SEGA |
OS supported | Windows XP, 2000 & Windows 7 |
Updated | 19 July 2020 |
Game Review
The House of the Dead is a shooter arcade game with an action-horror thematic created by Sega and released in 1996. The title was ported to Sega Saturn and Windows in 1998. These last two versions came with new game modes, including the Boss Mode, and the possibility to select characters at the beginning of the adventure.
Despite its significant influence on consoles, the Tokyo-based developer also has a remarkable legacy in the world of arcade games. Specializing in racing titles such as the renowned Daytona USA, it has made successful incursions in other releases such as Golden Axe. As for the House of the Dead, its success was so resounding that it inspired more than 10 sequels and several curious spin-offs.
The main character of the adventure is Thomas Rogan, an AMS agent who receives a call from Sophie, his fiancée, asking him from Europe to come and save her. Accompanied by his partner 'G,' Thomas arrives at the mansion where the rescue request came from and quickly finds that it is full of dead scientists and zombies. They quickly discover that the cause of this was a biochemist named Roy Curien. The villain is obsessed with finding the secrets of life and death and with them, creating the ultimate lifeform. So, intending to save the young woman and stop the scientist, the heroes begin their adventure.
On the arcade, players could use a light gun, but in the PC version, we use a mouse. The characters progress through the stages automatically, stopping once they find enemies, and moving to a generally static camera. When doing this, the opponents will try to attack the heroes, so the players must react quickly and shoot them until there are none left, and they can move on. While this is happening, they can also shoot and kill zombies or items for extra points, but they cannot be damaged until the camera stops again. Each level has a boss, unlike regular enemies, they have a life bar, a weak point, and different mechanics to face each one of them. Finally, three different endings will be unlocked based on the players' scores.
The graphics and sound effects of the title are very well achieved. The color palette is usually cold in the labs or dominated by different browns outside them, rotating between technology and decrepitude caused by the plague of the undead. On the other hand, the lively and intense colors take the game out of the sphere of terror and make it much more vivid and friendly to any kind of audience. Music and sound effects contribute significantly to this feeling. The soundtrack is oriented to rock, and even the songs with scary or mysterious rhythms are intensified and generate more adrenaline than fear. The sounds produced by hitting a shot are almost caricatured and create a pleasant sensation for the player. The latter goes hand in hand with the ease of killing enemies and the dismemberment caused by each impact, empowering the protagonists.
The reviews were excellent, highlighting all the components of the adventure and considering it the second-best arcade of the year. Regardless of your age, experience, or affinity for this type of game, The House of the Dead is an experience that everyone should live. More than 20 years after its arrival, the title has aged very well and is still a lot of fun for the casual gamer, and a challenge for those who want to get the best ending.
Review by: Gustavo
Published: 19 July 2020 10:20 am
Published: 19 July 2020 10:20 am
The original House of the Dead was a massive hit when it hit arcades in the mid to late 90s. The game was eventually ported to the Sega Saturn and the PC and while it may not be as impressive as the games that would follow. I do feel that it is a very important game in video game history as this is a franchise that is still going to this day.
The Mad Scientist
Say what you will about the terrible voice acting and the campy plot of this series, but I freaking love it! The story of the game centers around two agents called, Thomas Rogan and G. They are sent to investigate the work of a crazy SOB scientist called, Dr. Curien who has been creating all kinds of monsters! The plot is a lot of fun and I love how in the early House of the Dead games they play it completely straight!
The Blocky Red Stuff
The original arcade game is not a bad looker to be fair, but when the game was ported to the Sega Saturn and then the PC, let’s just say that Sega did not have their A-team working on this. As a matter of fact, I am pretty sure they let someone else develop this and it shows. I am sure the Sega Saturn could have run this game fine with the right team behind it. However, what we got is a game that is very hard to look at. House of the Dead has some very blocky and I mean blocky looking monsters, characters, and even the blood!
The game moves at a quick pace so to be fair it is not hugely noticeable. However, it can be distracting some times. The soundtrack though is pretty awesome with some stuff rearranged from what the arcade offered. The voice acting? Well, it is bad, but so bad I find it good.
Shoot Them In The Head!
I would wager that you the reader (yes, I am breaking the fourth wall here!) knows what the gameplay of House of the Dead is by this point. The game is a light gun shooter and a pretty solid one at that. Each level has you blowing away wave after wave of monsters. You also have moments where you can save people too. It is a very challenging game, but also a fun one too, and one that I think is great in small bursts.
There are different paths you can take through the game and different endings. So, while the core game is very short, it does have a lot of replay value. It is just very rough around the edges. There is also a boss rush mode that has been added, but I do feel that with the later games in the series, Sega got it right with adding in extra modes. If you play on PC, you use the mouse, but if you can track down the rare Sega Saturn version, you can play with a light gun.
I must admit that even if House of the Dead was a pixel-perfect arcade port that I still would probably rank it as the weakest in the series. This is not a “horrible” game, but the fact the home port looks so ugly is what really cements its place as the weakest in the home ports of this series. I do still feel it is worth checking out so that you can see where this series began and it is still a pretty fun time.
Final Score
Pros:
- I liked the campy story
- Lots of monsters to kill
- You can play with a light gun on the Sega Saturn
- The voice acting is so bad it is awesome
- You have a reason to play through the game multiple times
Cons:
- The game was clearly rushed through development
- It is a very ugly game
House Of The Dead Game Pc
Overall rating: 7