THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake Reviews
As a massive fan of the original game, I had high hopes for The House of the Dead Remake. Unfortunately, this one mostly misses the mark as far as updates go due to its constant performance issues and control schemes that range from merely unsatisfying to downright frustrating. While extras like the Horde mode and in-game achievements are welcome, it’s hard to imagine many players will want to trudge through the experience all over again after wrapping up the main story once or twice. If you’re dying for an arcade-style shooter to plow through with a friend, The House of the Dead Remake might keep you busy for an evening. Anyone else would be better off letting the dead rest.
The House of the Dead: Remake is utterly disappointing. While the addition of Horde Mode is a net positive, it’s brought down by ugly visuals, poor performance, and worse controls. In my entire time with the game, not once did I ever feel the heavy weight of the game’s faults lifted so I could enjoy myself. There is some brilliance to be seen here, but that’s courtesy of what the original game was, not what the remake mostly fails to uphold. The House of the Dead is better enjoyed elsewhere.
If you want to get into House of the Dead Remake, wait for the price to go down, which it will unless older players like me snap up copies without looking up reviews. There is simply not enough under the hood to make it worth the price of admission and let's face it, Activision collected Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1&2 together before releasing it, Dying Light and Witcher released on Switch with all DLC. This is just lazy. It was fun though, I have to add that, just not $60 worth of fun.
A bad idea poorly realised and while the original coin-op retains its campy charm this remake is rendered pointless by the unsatisfying controls and glitchy performance.
A result that is not very convincing, especially on the gameplay.
Review in French | Read full review
At the end of the day, The House of the Dead: Remake is a modern version of the arcade classic that is serviceable enough for fans looking to play at home. It brings added replayability with its difficulty, the scoring systems, and the new Horde mode, but is held back by poor performance, frustrating controls, and a lack of new content. Unless you are a big fan, The House of the Dead: Remake is not the best way to experience this classic for the first time, and it would have probably been better off dead than revived in this form.
The same studio that made The House of the Dead: Remake is also working on a remake of its sequel. It would have been better if the team had held off and included the two games in one package, as this would have alleviated the content issues. The issues with the control scheme are harder to solve, as the lack of a lightgun on the Nintendo Switch dampens the experience as a whole. The House of the Dead is an arcade series and any remake or console port needs a decent lightgun to truly emulate the feeling that made the original so special. The House of the Dead: Remake can be fun, but that lack of a decent controller is a problem that holds the whole experience back.
THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake is an absolute disservice to the light gun classic. From the pop in to the loading times to the broken control scheme, this re-release would make even Dr. Curien cower in fear.
The House of the Dead: Remake could have been such an easy recommendation if it controlled properly. It hits all the right notes EXCEPT for the most important ones, and I seriously cannot wrap my head around how it got released in its current state beyond a deadline that absolutely should have been pushed back. Either way, I think the Switch got the short end of the stick here… with FPS lag and bad controls to boot. At this point, you’re better off waiting for a version on another platform or at the very least waiting for a patch for this one, because this is one game that should’ve stayed dead a while longer.