Wanted: Dead Reviews
Wanted: Dead has some cool ideas on show, but some dull combat mechanics and repetitive gameplay leave it feeling a bit rough to play. I wouldn’t say anything is outright bad in the game and it does have its cool moments, but they’re few and far between when compared to the more monotonous aspects of the experience.
After spending 12 or so hours with review code, I’ve come to the conclusion that frankly, this game just isn’t very good
The creators of the first two Ninja Gaiden and several Dead or Alive installments bring us an attempt to return to those times in the current generation. Released for XBOX One, XBOX Series, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and PC, and with some aspects to be polished but that seems to have been resolved in the version that we have been able to play, it does not impress audiovisually, but it is convincing in terms of playability once the system has been mastered of combat, giving us a lot of satisfaction in this aspect. Undoubtedly a recommended option to spend a few good hours enjoying this love letter to the sixth generation of consoles.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
A game full of personality but that not always knows how to execute some of its most differential ideas, those that separate it from being simply a hack and slash "from the creators of".
Review in Spanish | Read full review
While there's an audience out there for Wanted: Dead's schtick, the myriad of issues with the whole game make it a tough sell.
A spectacular disaster that is impossible not to admire for its ambition.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Even with its quirkiness and challenging katana action, Wanted: Dead is a mess. It offers an odd nostalgic charm of the incomplete and unpolished games of the mid-2000s and never takes itself too seriously. Still, without the enjoyable mini-games, imaginative slice and dice finishing moves, and "so bad it's funny" voice acting, there's not much more to love. This might be one of the most disappointing games of this year.
Wanted: Dead is certainly an interesting game that won’t be for everyone. It’s full of jank, isn’t particularly well designed, and often feels incomplete. However, it is a good time, and I had a blast with it despite its flaws, and it left me wanting more by the time I was done.
Wanted: Dead is only half a successful experiment. The idea of mixing the shooter genre with the hack'n'slash action game one is good, but it is dwarfed by the shallowness of some of the mechanics, a substandard technical realisation and problematic balancing.
Review in Italian | Read full review
I wanted to love Wanted: Dead. It has everything I love about that charming AA middle ground from the PS2/3 era, but sadly even at its highest of highs, it still smacks of average. The game has a lot of heart but zero focus, resulting in it trying to do too many things and barely achieving any of them well. I've no doubt this title will get a cult following and I'd be down for a sequel, but as it stands I can't suggest anyone gets involved unless you're craving something a little different wrapped in average and bland paper.
Wanted: Dead is not a game for everyone. The tone is weirdly all over the place, the premise and writing are weird, voice acting is absolutely weird, but the gameplay is special. This is a love letter to hard as f*** PS2 era games and if you understand what that means, then this is definitely a game for you.
To conclude then, I really like this game once I got into the flow, as the hybrid shooting and melee combat works really well. I enjoyed Hannah's character and the plentiful goofy moments. However, I think some gamers won't get it, and frustrations with the camera, stun-lock and long checkpoints will dampen your experience. That said, Wanted: Dead comes highly recommended for anyone looking for an old-school challenge.
Wanted: Dead trips over itself trying to tell a coherent story, but its intense blood-spattered limb-slicing combat is satisfying, rewarding and demands mastery. It's full of ambition and ideas, drenched in personality, but stumbling to deliver. Despite its quirks and failings, it’s got cult classic written all over it.
Wanted: Dead is a commendable effort from this team and a sign of much better things to come. It is unapologetic in what it wants to be, and so despite all of its quirks and faults, it offers a charming and memorable action game experience that is backed by a captivating presentation. Come for the brutally effective combat but stay for the utterly surreal game world filled with fun distractions and addictive carnage. With this debut title, 110 Industries takes us back to a time when a standout vibe made up for a lack of polish.
Wanted: Dead is a fun, but challenging adventure. It brings together brutal swordsmanship and deadly third person shooting in one uniquely packaged experience. The combat is easy to understand and it does feel great, and its difficulty is definitely the drawcard here. Unfortunately, the combat can feel a little too simple at times and the level design can seem slightly same-y. The story feels tacked on, and most of the voice acting is B movie levels of terrible. Overall, Wanted: Dead is quite entertaining and will give you a good few hours of challenging gameplay.
There are flashes of potential that could have elevated Wanted Dead to be greater than the sum of its parts, but these flashes are drowned out by its mission to be a throwback experience complete with jank.