The House of the Dead 2 Remake Divides Players with Initial PC Launch
Forever Entertainment and MegaPixel Studio have released the remake of The House of the Dead 2, a beloved rail shooter from the late 90s. However, initial player feedback suggests the updated version hasn't quite hit the mark, resulting in a 'Mostly Negative' rating of just 40% on Steam, based on fewer than 200 reviews at the time of writing.
Among the most frequently cited issues by players are optimization problems. While some later reviews indicate that a day-one patch has addressed many of these bugs, significant criticism has been leveled at the rebalancing of enemies and the overall visual presentation.
Player Feedback: A Tale of Two Experiences
One critical review, from user Espio0, expressed severe disappointment, stating, "It seems the developers learned nothing from the first remake and decided The House of the Dead 2 remake deserved even less attention." They highlighted issues with missing and overly dark textures, making certain levels difficult to navigate. The rebalancing of enemies also drew heavy fire, with Espio0 noting that enemies like Ebithan could still hit players even when dismembered, and headshots weren't consistently lethal for characters like Peter, forcing players to aim for the chest. They felt enemies were far too resilient, leading to situations where players took damage when enemies in the original would already be dead.
Boss encounters also suffered, according to Espio0. They mentioned Quarl's fight, where Zeal's increased speed made it nearly impossible to hit before Quarl attacked. Even after Quarl was defeated, the camera struggled to track Zeal's erratic movements. Other bosses like Hierophant and Tower were deemed acceptable but didn't reach the original's quality. Power was noted for censorship, as his head no longer showed progressive damage when shot. The Magician boss fight was described as "tedious and boring," lacking impact feedback, and its iconic entrance explosion was reportedly ruined, appearing underwhelming with poor fire effects. The Emperor boss was criticized for being translucent, making him and his attacks difficult to manage. Finally, the reviewer pointed out the lack of built-in light gun support, though developers are reportedly working on support for the Retroshooter RS3 Reaper, leading to a strong recommendation to save money unless the game is heavily discounted.
In contrast, user fhydjeck offered a positive assessment, enthusiastically recommending the game, especially for Resident Evil fans. They praised MegaPixel for quickly fixing initial bugs with day-one patches, stating, "Great, the game was quickly fixed!! Thanks MegaPixel - the game is really great, juicy, meaty, it's fast, dynamic and exciting, just like the 1998 original." They found it easier to play than the first remake and appreciated the lower price, calling it an enjoyable experience with catchy music. While acknowledging they faced initial issues like a non-functional main menu (due to demo saves), broken sub-menus, and dark textures, they confirmed these were promptly fixed. However, fhydjeck still wished for an option to increase brightness further and a more zoomed-in camera for the monster gallery. Minor criticisms included static zombie eyes (unlike the original) and missing cat appearances on the second level. They also noted that music volume was lower than sound effects, a carryover from the first remake, and suggested mapping 'Enter' to the middle mouse button for easier single-handed play, a feature present in the original series. Fhydjeck concluded by eagerly anticipating a remake of The House of the Dead 3.
Current Availability and Future Prospects
Currently, The House of the Dead 2 Remake is available on PC via Steam and GOG, and on Nintendo Switch, without Russian localization. PlayStation and Xbox console versions are expected to be released at a later date. This mixed reception highlights the challenges of remaking beloved classics, where balancing nostalgia with modern updates can often lead to player division.
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