Talking about games: The upcoming Fall Horror Game Deluge, Part 1!

Deluge?  There's a flood?  Should I be worried about this?

Only if you have limited funds, Yikes. There's a whole pile of games coming out this Q3 that are forcing me and other gamers like myself into a difficult situation: We're going to have to choose which horror games to buy.

Wait, choose?  You're telling me that some games are going to be designed, produced, sent to stores and then just. . . abandoned?  Just left rotting on the shelves, untouched and left to gather dust until the eventual store's close?  Sitting on the shelf and staring longingly into dark, empty parking lot?

Well, more or less.  Thanks. . . thanks for making me feel bad for an inanimate object.  But that only serves to illustrate my point even further:  Which games to purchase this fall is going to be a difficult choice, and one that should be made with care.

Alright.  Let me try to get a handle on this.  I can't seem to think of any way to eat, stab, bite, burn or murder all of the games into freedom from their store shelves, so let's start from the top.  I suppose you have some kind of list for us.

Absolutely.  I'm on top of it.  I've got sequential list of all the games I was able to think of that are coming out within the next couple months. 

List it up!

For part one of this subject, let's start out with a few games that aren't exactly "new." There are a number of games coming up that are either reimaginings or HD updated ports of older games.


Starting out for the 3ds, we have:
Devil Survivor Overclocked

Does he have cat ears?

No, they're headphones.

How do you make headphones out of cat ears?

No, see, he's got the headphones on, and the wires go up over his head-- they just are, OK?

So Devil Survivor Overclocked is an updated port of Devil Survivor for the Nintendo DS.  Devil Survivor is a part of the SMT series of games which tend to involve kids summoning demons and various fantastical creatures with computers, then doing crazy crossbreeding experiments to create new ones.  

Totally normal.

And lots of fun. The situation is that demons have invaded Tokyo, and the whole city has been locked down. There are a few lucky kids with DS-like computers that are able to summon their own demons and thus present the only defense against the attacking creatures.  

The new 3ds port features upgraded graphics, a new 8th day and the dialogue is now fully voiced.  

We have a trailer here: 

Overall, considering it's really only been about 1 generation since the previous game was released, if you already own this game, I don't know if a second purchase can be justified.  However, if you don't already own this game and you have a 3ds, you may be causing injustice to yourself by skipping it.  It's a great game and this version can only be better (unless you hate voices).

It depends on what they're telling me to do this time.  Sometimes it's "Kill," sometimes it's  "Open your own dog-grooming business."

I don't think I need to tell anyone that you don't own a dog-grooming business.

Second in the HD update list is:

House of the Dead: Overkill: Extended Cut

Coming this fall to the PS3.  Holy shit, this looks great.  A great HD update to a great game that was criminally overlooked when it came out on the Wii.  Classic zombie (er, mutant) shooting lightgun action with a grimy groundhouse feel, owing a lot of its tone to Robert Rodriguez's Planet Terror.  

I've completed this game on the Wii, and I'm still tempted to grab this up on the PS3.  The only downer is that it's clearly most fun as a lightgun game, which means purchasing a Move.  Considering nothing has motivated me to get one previously, you're looking at over a $100 investment for a game that a lot of people have already finished years ago.

On the plus side, there are new levels, new weapons, new gameplay modes and the visuals look fantastic.  

Once again, we were able to scrounge up a trailer:

I want it.  I just wish I didn't have to get a Move.

Moving on, we have:

Dead Rising 2: Off the Record

This is kind of a weird one.  It's Dead Rising 2 all over again, but with Frank West instead of Chuck Greene.  Apparently the locations are somewhat revamped and there are new psychos to fight.  There also appears to be an all new, sort of amusement park like area.  Footage so far makes it look to me like it's going to be even more silly and over the top than DR2.  It's not a whole new game, but it is only $40 instead of $60.  

Personally, I'll probably be waiting until some fans of the original have given their opinions.

Personally, I think it sounds like mindless zombie  slaughter just for the sake of slaughtering zombies.  I'll never understand how heartless people can be.

Lastly in this update, we have a double shot.  

Resident Evil: Code Veronica X and Resident Evil 4

Both titles are coming via download for PS3 and Xbox 360 early this fall with upgraded graphics.  

This is at least the second re-release of Resident Evil 4 for a newer console.  Originally out on the Gamecube and Ps2, it was later ported to the Wii with motion control aiming and added content. This edition will supposedly include all of the added content, but there is no word yet if it will support the Move.

These are both really fun games, but I have to wonder how many times you can kill the same zombies.

It depends on how many times they get back up.

That's true, Yikes.  These games seem to take after the monsters they feature.  They just keep coming back over and over-- and in these cases, they seem to get better each time, as well.

So is it time for us to make that horrible Sophie's choice  like decision now?

Hah, not even.  We haven't even touched on the brand new games and sequels coming out.  Stay tuned for part 2 of the FALL HORROR GAMES DELUGE!