Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered

[b] I'm a Mexican, Johnson, not a Mexican't. [/b] Never really had a chance to play this properly back in the day, so playing SotD today was sorta like playing it for the first time ever. Despite everything that happened to the development of the game: multiple script rejections, constant nagging from [strike] John Riccitiello [/strike] Damon Riccitiello/Ricotello towards Shinji Mikami to change the gameplay yet again, and the rest of Grasshopper constantly fighting Unreal Engine 3 because it was their first time making a game on this engine... It still turned out to be fun. Sure SotD wasn't the game SUDA/Mikami envisioned initially, aka Kurayami, it could've been so much different. And yet it still got a very SUDA story with gameplay spice mix from Mikami. [spoiler] Now that I think of it, SotD was sorta kinda proto The Evil Within, with shadows being a part of third-person shooter-horror gameplay. And hey, it even got a "KURAYAMI Mode" DLC, which most likely was the implementation of the gameplay feature initially planned for SUDA51 x Mikami Kurayami. [/spoiler] Anyway, Shadows of the Damned is an ok game and worth at least one playthrough. Oh, and in case you haven't done t…

Amazing PS3 era japanese jank kino. Absolutely worth getting if you like action games with SOVL from that period. My grandfather was a programmer and a game designer in the 80s and 90s who worked on games like Leisure Suit Larry and Night Trap. One day I asked him why do people not make games like that anymore, and I'll never forget his answer. With tears in his eyes, he told me: we don't know how; we lost the technology.

God, I miss this era of gaming so much. Yes its gameplay is pretty simple in its execution but what it does do is done exceptionally well, movement 3rd person shooting and all the extra abilities you do. You have to crank it up to the hardest difficulty as playing this with high framerates and modern controller responsiveness makes the challenge of 7th gen console disappear. I also absolutely love its style here man, garcia is a unique looking character the variation in the environmental design down to the UI when you use red gems to upgrade a skill on the screen the skull on the menu eats it. For me having a distinct style earns points in my book. Yes there is only like 6 enemy types, yes there is a big difficulty spike at the end, yes there is sometimes handholding with blood arrows telling you where to go despite the levels being linear, but in early 2010s gaming you have come to expect this. Another thing is thing here is the type of writing common during this time was a story that was cheesy, silly immature and stupid like it was written by a horny teenager. It cares more about about making sex jokes, Garcia aura farming and having violent action to save his girl then actuall…

Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered delivers an outrageous journey into the underworld, combining supernatural horror, explosive third-person combat, and an unmistakably rebellious sense of humor. Originally released in 2011, this cult-classic action adventure returns with an updated presentation that introduces its unusual creative vision to a new generation. Developed and published by GRASSHOPPER MANUFACTURE INC., the game embraces a style that feels deliberately excessive, mixing grotesque monsters, absurd dialogue, disturbing environments, and energetic gunplay. Rather than following the conventions of traditional survival horror, it creates an experience where terrifying imagery and ridiculous comedy coexist. The result is a distinctive adventure that remains entertaining despite some gameplay mechanics showing their age. The story centers on Garcia Hotspur, a fearless demon hunter who descends into hell after his beloved Paula is abducted by Fleming, the ruthless ruler of the underworld. Accompanying him is Johnson, a talking skull with a sarcastic personality and the remarkable ability to transform into powerful weapons. Their relationship provides much of the game's ch…

SotD is an example of "just because it should be amazing, doesn't mean it will be." In other words, on paper you can assemble what is a dream team in Suda51, Shinji Mikami and Akira Yamaoka, but what comes out on the other end of the difficult and often messy process that is video game development is a product that's somehow less than the sum of its parts. That's not to say this is a bad title; far from it. If you enjoy the framework and tone of Grasshopper Manufacture's games, you will find something here to enjoy. If you enjoy the gameplay of RE4 and have made a passing glance at The Evil Withins, you will be somewhat well served. If the soundscapes of classic Silent Hill feel like a warm blanket, you will get your fill. But at the end of the day, in terms of polish, gameplay satisfaction, storytelling, visual presentation, etc it's a 7/10, and it very much is a Suda51-led title in much the same way the last Grasshopper game I played, Killer is Dead, is very on brand for the developer. The same goes for this 'Hella Remastered' version; it does the bare minimum, but again, you wouldn't expect anything more, especially at its budget asking price. It unshackles the game from…

Mega Geil