Wanted: Dead Reviews
Wanted: Dead is an intentionally messy throwback, one that some people are going to adore while others lament. All the AA jank of a PlayStation 3 action game wrapped up in a janky 2023 modern gaming bow.
All the confusing yet irresistible energy of early-noughties double-A gaming, marred by awful writing and a core gimmick that doesn't ignite.
Wanted: Dead's shallow combat, dated presentation, and poorly balanced difficulty are the tip of the iceberg of issues that ultimately sinks this disappointing action game from the makers of Ninja Gaiden.
It's not often that the promotion campaign might be more enjoyable than the final product, but Wanted: Dead may have to grin and bear this ignominy. Despite some effort to subvert genre norms with its characters and amusing mini-games, the core action is bogged down by low production values, imbalance, and repetition. For every moment it hits its stride, there's another where it stubs its toe, and some slick execution animations are as imaginative as it gets.
I can’t recommend you play this video game, but I won’t encourage you to look away. And so, here I am at the end, and all I really know for certain is this: Thank goodness I don’t have to assign a score.
Solid and definitely has an audience. There could be some hard-to-ignore faults, but the experience is fun.
Wanted: Dead promised to be a very violent action game, with a macabre style and unexpected mechanics, but instead we have found a frustrating experience that is rarely fun. We cannot recommend it.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Despite its clear and comprehensive flaws, Wanted: Dead is still weirdly likeable, and will undoubtedly find a similarly strange and unique fanbase to worship at its feet.
There’s an action game underneath all of Wanted: Dead’s problems that is not half bad, especially if you liked games like No More Heroes, Devil’s Third, and Wet. It’s ridiculous in its context and action. Unfortunately, for everything good I could say about this game, there was at least one or two things keeping me from enjoying it. Between cringe-worthy dialogue, game crashes, clashing moods, random and ridiculously difficult moments, and broken mechanics, Wanted: Dead takes a lot of effort just to play, let alone enjoy. Here’s hoping they can smooth out some of the technical issues after launch, but even then, this might be a title only the truly dedicated will tolerate for long.
Wanted: Dead will make several admirers of old-time action-shooters happy, but it seems like a wasted opportunity and many gamers will find it frustrating and unrefined.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Wanted: Dead starts off strong with plenty to learn and enjoy, but towards the end bogs itself down by trying to be difficult, forgoing what made it good to begin with.
Wanted: Dead may not hit the mark in every area, but it still serrates the cut between hybrid slasher/shooter gameplay perfectly and I knew that it would be revisited by me for a long time to come even after the credits had rolled.
Wanted: Dead has the briefest, briefest glimpses of good, but this third-person action game is a frustrating mess in almost every regard.
Wanted: Dead has glimpses of greatness but is held back by mediocre systems and design choices that keep it from flourishing. Brief flashes of brilliance can’t help but be overshadowed by combat that feels repetitive, and voice actors that sound bored despite the surrounding chaos. Its difficulty, combat style, and visceral style will bring it some attention, but it more than likely won't be enough to keep most players enthralled for long.
But, also, what does eating ramen have to do with music? The world may never know.
If you can buy into what Wanted: Dead is trying to sell, you'll have a good time. Just be ready for fragmented chunks of story, random voice work quality, and quirky concepts. Gameplay can win the day with its gorey, visceral delivery. Just be ready for an over-the-top game that takes itself seriously.
It's without a doubt that Wanted: Dead is oozing with style and glamor thanks to its immaculate art direction and addictive hybrid combat system. The cherries on top are the included shmup, claw machine, and karaoke minigames that simply add more drip to the overall experience.We don't get enough games like these nowadays and I'm all for it. Unfortunately, there's just a ton of technical performance issues at launch that need to be addressed immediately.
Wanted: Dead is, at its worst, a frustratingly bad action game, but in its inexplicable presentation, nonsensical storytelling, and baffling character dialogue, it's difficult to completely dismiss. There's undeniable fun to be had here in a so-bad-it's-good kind of way, and that might even be enough for the game to secure cult status somewhere down the line. But for now, you'll need to slog through some of the most jank combat in full-price gaming to squeeze enjoyment out of the experience. Wanted: Dead is a truly fascinating mess.
Wanted: Dead is a mess of a game with hints of excellence strewn about. I wanted to love it a lot more than I did. Instead the game kept making me frustrated at every turn. There have been a million examples of how to make a challenging game without making it frustrating. Wanted: Dead is the epitome of the latter. It simply uses lazy tropes instead of clever game play to create its difficulty. The end result is a game that has some great ideas, but will not interest most players. I expect most to quit before finishing the first boss.
If you're out for some janky, old-school action that doesn't take itself seriously in the least, there's a good chance you're in the minority that will very much enjoy Wanted: Dead. But at the same time, I imagine a lot of people would bounce off this somewhat scuffed throwback pretty hard.