Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

The House of the Dead (series)

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Developers
  
Sega Wow Entertainment

Platform of origin
  
Arcade

Publishers
  
Sega

Genres
  
Light gun shooter Rail shooter

Platforms
  
Arcade, Saturn, Microsoft Windows, Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance, Xbox, Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 3, Mobile phone, Steam, Android, iOS

First release
  
The House of the Dead 1996

The House of the Dead is a video game franchise created by Sega.

Contents

As of 2016, there are five House of the Dead games originating in a first person rail shooter format available. The main series all have common elements of a pair of agents teaming up to take on hordes of biologically engineered undead (referred to as 'mutants' in Overkill). The games are divided into chapters, each of which culminates in a boss battle against usually massive, terrifying creatures. The bosses in games 1-4 are all named after the Major Arcana of occult tarot. The games are all controlled with a light gun in the arcades, but can be played with controllers or a mouse on consoles or the computer. For the PlayStation Network releases of 4 and III, they can also be played using the PlayStation Move controller.

Gameplay elements differ among the different games in the series, with each having different characters, firearms, and types of enemies. In many of the games, there are branching paths (determined by one's actions) and unlockable bonuses, along with different endings based on one's performances.

Several spin-offs to the mainstream storyline have also been produced (including a virtual pinball game, an English tutorial and a typing tutorial), as well as two films. In addition, select enemy characters appearing in the first two games were adapted into fully articulated action figures by Palisade Toys, which canceled the second toy line before street release due to limited returns from the first series.

Gameplay

The main gameplay mechanic is the on-rails shooting mechanic. The player must clear each area of enemies before advancing to the next area. The first two installments featured pistols, the third featured a shotgun, the fourth featured a submachine gun. Overkill features different firearms which can be changed to the players' liking. The instructions on the cabinets note that a head shot is the most effective way to kill zombies.

Successful clearing will result in boss battles. Before most battles, the game will show what the bosses' weak point is. Final bosses have no identifiable weak point. If the boss is shot enough times, it will recoil; otherwise, it will take one of the player's lives. All of the bosses in the first four House of the Dead games are named after Major Arcana cards. They are also classified by 'types', which are shown as either a number or Greek letter.

There are also some different branching paths in the games, that are usually accessed by shooting a door or an object and sometimes when a civilian is killed.

The first two The House of the Dead games featured civilians. If the player successfully rescued civilians from the zombies, the civilian would sometimes reward the player with an extra life. The last two games did not feature civilians. In the third game, occasionally the player's partner would get in trouble and the player would be rewarded if he or she saved the partner's life. Players can also obtain extra lives by shooting boxes, crates, vases and destructible scenery.

The first four arcade games have multiple endings, depending on how well the player did in terms of civilians rescued, shooting percentage, score, and lives left. Every main game has one "bad" ending, usually involving one of the characters transforming into a zombie. In 1 the character turning was Sophie Richards, 2 is Goldman, III is Daniel Curien and 4 is, once again, Goldman.

Main series

Every game in the main series is an on-rails light-gun shooter and chronologically runs as follows: 1 - 2 - 4 - 4 Special - III.

The House of the Dead (1996)

On December 18, 1998, the insane and disillusioned Dr. Roy Curien plans to mobilize his armies of undead against the unsuspecting populace. AMS agents Thomas Rogan and "G" are dispatched to his mansion to stop Curien and rescue Rogan's future wife, Sophie Richards.

The House of the Dead 2 (1998)

On February 26, 2000, Goldman, the man behind the Curien Mansion case, claims responsibility. Fueled by his detest of humankind's complete lack of responsibility toward its assigned task, Goldman initiates an undead outbreak on Venice while his Emperor project develops. Two new agents named James Taylor and Gary Stewart are sent in order to stop Goldman.

The House of the Dead III (2002)

In the post-apocalyptic world of 2019, Thomas Rogan and his team of commandos infiltrate the EFI Research Facility in hopes of finding the source of the planet's collapse. Losing contact with him, his daughter Lisa Rogan and his former partner "G" set out on a search and recover mission, unaware that what awaits them has ties to the distant past and the very genesis of the undead horde. Dr. Curien's son Daniel is also trying to prevent the disaster by destroying the legacy of his seemingly deceased father.

The House of the Dead 4 (2005)

In the year 2003, veteran AMS agent James Taylor (from The House of the Dead 2) and newcomer Kate Green are investigating the Goldman Incident of 2000. Following a sudden earthquake, they are shocked to discover that the undead from three years prior have returned, seemingly unharmed, and locked in a lab, but they soon break out and wreak havoc once again. Intent on preventing a nuclear disaster, they must once again cross paths with the seemingly deceased Goldman.

The House of the Dead 4 Special (2006)

Set shortly after the end of The House of the Dead 4, AMS agent Kate Green join forces with fellow AMS agent "G" in order to destroy the "source" of the outbreak. You fight the Magician again, giving you the chance to destroy him for the 3rd time.

The House of the Dead: Overkill (2009)

In 1991, Agent G, on his first assignment, teams up with local cop Issac Washington to investigate mysterious disappearances in Louisiana. Unfortunately, they encounter hordes of mutants in Bayou City.

The Typing of the Dead (1999)

The Typing of the Dead is a revision of The House of the Dead 2 that replaces the game's light guns with QWERTY keyboards. Enemies are defeated by quickly typing out words that appear on the screen, and introduces a variety of challenges. Although designed to improve typing skills, the game has been lauded by critics for its humor and originality. The game was released for arcades, Dreamcast and PC, while a revised version was released for the PlayStation 2 only in Japan.

Zombie Revenge (1999)

Zombie Revenge is a Beat 'em up that was released in arcades and the Dreamcast. After a zombie outbreak devastates the city, AMS agents Stick Breitling, Linda Rotta and Rikiya Busujima are sent to eliminate the threat using their guns, fists and a variety of other weapons, while uncovering the truth behind the mysterious Zed. The game makes numerous references to the series on which it is based, including the Curien Mansion from The House of the Dead serving as the final stage.

The Pinball of the Dead (2002)

The Pinball of the Dead is a pinball game released for the Game Boy Advance. Tables, bosses and enemy designs are derived from The House of the Dead 2.

The Typing of the Dead 2 (2007)

Similar to its predecessor, The Typing of the Dead 2 is a revision of The House of the Dead III while retaining the typing gameplay elements of the previous title. It was only released in Japan for the PC.

English of the Dead (2008)

Released in Japan exclusively for the Nintendo DS, the game is designed to help Japanese speakers improve their English language skills. Playing similar to the Typing of the Dead games, enemies are defeated when Japanese words shown on-screen are translated into English. The game makes use of the DS touch screen and speakers.

The House of the Dead EX (2009)

The House of the Dead EX is a more casual spin-off to the main games and adds a more humorous twist to the series. Players play either Zobio or Zobiko, a pair of young zombies in love, who seek to escape from captivity. As opposed to the general gameplay of the series, EX's levels are made up of a series of minigames. Sections are split up into various paths, some of which use the lightgun, such as shooting apples, and others which use a foot pedal on the machine, such as stomping on spiders. The goal of each level is to fulfil a quota within the time limit, indicated by long hands reaching towards each other. It runs on the Lindbergh arcade system and is also the first game in the series to use a pedal. The game was slated for release in December 2008, but was released later in 2009.

Sega Golden Gun (2011)

Sega Golden Gun is technically not part of The House of the Dead series, but is related due to using The House of the Dead 4 Engine. The game features a Chinese setting, and not only has zombies, but also phantoms and related fantasy creatures, the latter of which are reincarnated through resurrected historical figures (Zhang Jiao (from Romance of the Three Kingdoms) as the Black Tortoise, Gao Qiu (from Water Margin) as the Azure Dragon, and Daji (from Fengshen Yanyi) as the White Tiger). The game has three stages which are linear depending on which stage was selected first, all of which also include a mid-boss battle against Sun Wukong (the game keeps his real identity a secret while nicknaming him "The Monkey King") from Journey to the West.

At the end of the game the players face off against the final boss, a revived gigantic Emperor with the Vermilion Bird possessing him to gain the ability to levitate.

The Typing of the Dead: Overkill (2013)

Released for PC via Steam, The Typing of the Dead: Overkill is the second sequel of the original spin-off game, The Typing of the Dead. Unlike previous installments, there is no arcade version of this game, though it does come with a mouse-based version of The House of the Dead: Overkill Extended Cut. Like its predecessors, the game replaces the usual rail-shooter gameplay with typing gameplay elements, this time with a modified The House of the Dead: Overkill as its engine.

The House of the Dead 2 & 3 Return (2008)

The House of the Dead 2 & 3 Return is a re-release of The House of the Dead 2 and III for the Wii. It is largely the same as the originals, except for some minor changes. A new melee attack can be used to defend oneself and the game is Wii Zapper compatible.

AMS protagonists

  • Thomas Rogan: The main protagonist of the first The House of the Dead. Rogan is tasked along with G to investigate the zombie outbreak at Curien Mansion after receiving a panicking phone call from his fiancĂ©e, Sophie Richards. He makes a cameo appearance in the "good" ending of The House of the Dead 2, encouraging James Taylor and Gary Stewart to fight on to their next battle. He returns as a brief playable character in the opening stage of The House of the Dead III, where he leads a task force in investigating a zombie-infested facility, but loses contact with the AMS. His daughter, Lisa sets out to find him accompanied with his old partner, G. Later, he is revealed to be alive and well, having been saved by Curien's son, Daniel.
  • Agent "G": Agent "G" is first introduced as the second protagonist of the first The House of the Dead and is the only character to appear in every game in the series. He is sent along with Thomas Rogan to investigate the zombie outbreak at Curien Mansion. He makes an appearance in The House of the Dead 2, having been injured by the zombie outbreak in Venice and informs agent James Taylor about the situation. He returns as one of the main playable characters in The House of the Dead III, investigating Rogan's disappearance with Rogan's daughter, Lisa. He makes a cameo appearance in one of the endings in The House of the Dead 4 and is a playable character in The House of the Dead 4 Special, accompanying Kate Green in navigating the world-scale zombie outbreak after James's death. He is also one of the main characters in The House of the Dead: Overkill, which has him as a well-trained but inexperienced rookie on his first assignment.
  • James Taylor: The main protagonist of The House of the Dead 2 and 4. He is sent along with Gary Stewart to investigate the zombie outbreak at Venice, Italy, caused by Caleb Goldman's experimentation. Later, he is assigned with rookie agent Kate Green in retrieving a file in an AMS Office at Venice, but ends up trapped caused by a world-scale zombie outbreak. The two learn about Goldman's nuclear missile project and, in an attempt to stop it, James sacrifices himself to destroy Goldman's second masterpiece, the World in the game's ending.
  • Gary Stewart: The second protagonist in The House of the Dead 2. He is sent along with James Taylor to investigate the zombie outbreak at Venice, Italy. He also makes a cameo appearance in a flashback in The House of the Dead 4.
  • Dan Taylor: The Cousin of James Taylor and a minor playable character in The House of the Dead III, appearing in the opening stage. He is a member and captain of a task force led by Thomas Rogan who investigate a zombie-infested facility. After most of its members are killed or infected, Dan accompanies Rogan up to the room containing the Wheel of Fate, where he is killed by "security guard" Death and his body was never to be seen throughout the game.
  • Kate Green: The second protagonist of The House of the Dead 4 and its expansion, Special. She is a rookie AMS agent sent with veteran James Taylor to retrieve a file at an AMS Office at Venice, Italy, but both end up trapped there after a world-scale zombie outbreak. The two learn about Caleb Goldman's nuclear missile project, which is actually a red herring of his plan to unleash his second masterpiece, the World. After James sacrifices himself to destroy it, Kate teams up with G to navigate through the zombie infestations and find a way to stop it.

    • Non-AMS protagonists

  • Lisa Rogan: The daughter of Thomas Rogan and Sophie Richards. the main protagonist of The House of the Dead III. After her father disappeared in a mission at a zombie-infested facility, she sets out to find him accompanied with her father's old partner, Agent "G". After finding out that her father is still alive, she goes on to confront the Wheel of Fate with Daniel Curien.
  • Daniel Curien: The son of Dr. Roy Curien and one of the playable characters in The House of the Dead III. He was infected with a disease that ultimately drove his father to madness while attempting to search for a cure. He survived the disease but lamented his father's experimentation. Daniel is revealed to be the one who saved Thomas Rogan in the opening stage and later teams up with Lisa Rogan to destroy his father's resurrected form, the Wheel of Fate.
  • Isaac Washington: The second and Non-AMS protagonist of The House of the Dead: Overkill. He is a detective and a hard-drinking, ladies' man who is known as a habitual rule and heart-breaker. He seeks revenge against crime lord Papa Caesar for apparently murdering his father and forcefully teams up with then-rookie AMS agent G to battle against the zombies. However, his chance to kill Caesar is taken by Caesar's superior, Clement Darling, and in the game's post-credits scene, it is revealed that Isaac's father is still alive. He is known to frequently drop F-bombs throughout the game.
  • Varla Guns: A major character in The House of the Dead: Overkill. She is the older sister of a crippled scientist, Jasper Guns, and known as the hottest stripper in Bayou City club scene. She joins G and Isaac Washington in tracking Papa Caesar after he mutated her brother into a zombie. Varla is later kidnapped by Papa Caesar's superior Clement Darling and her still-living brain is taken out of her body in place of Clement's mother's own as part of his plan to resurrect his mother. Her body mutates into a monster which is subsequently destroyed by G and Isaac. She is made a playable character in two extra chapters in the Extended Cut version, where she teams up with her fellow stripper, Candi Stryper, in finding Papa Caesar until she is left on her own when Candi dies after battling mutant Meat Katie.
  • Candi Stryper: A side character appearing only in the two special chapters of The House of the Dead: Overkill Extended Cut. She is a young stripper and former lover of Varla Gun's younger brother Jasper. After Jasper is mutated and killed, she joins Varla to take revenge against Papa Caesar. However, she dies after a massive blood loss in the battle against Meat Katie, leaving Varla on her own.
  • Zobio & Zobiko: A zombie couple who star as the main protagonists in the Japan-exclusive The House of the Dead EX. Initially trapped at a zombie facility, they plan to escape, but have to navigate through a series of zombie challenges before they can go outside properly. Throughout the game, the couple are helped by Star, a humanoid mutant whom they defeated in an earlier chapter and who falls in love with Zobiko, although Zobiko is unaware of this and Star ends up injuring himself while trying

    • DBR (DNA Bio-Reactor) Corporation

  • Roy Curien: The main antagonist of the first The House of the Dead and The House of the Dead III. He is a mad scientist responsible for creating the zombies and unleashing them on his personnel from the laboratory deep within his mansion. Prior to the final battle, he meets his demise at the hands of his creation, The Magician, but returns as the Wheel of Fate in 2019. Flashback segments of The House of the Dead III reveal that he was originally seeking a cure for an illness threatening his son Daniel's life, descending into madness as his findings led him toward power controlling life and death. He would undergo a 19-year resurrection process since his demise, in which he would be reborn as his final creation, the Wheel of Fate. The Wheel of Fate confronts Daniel and Lisa Rogan, who manage to destroy it.
  • Caleb Goldman: The main antagonist of The House of the Dead 2, and 4. A man who detests mankind's role in the world, he helped finance Curien's experiments in the first The House of the Dead, but after his failure, Goldman began his own experiments, causing a zombie outbreak in Venice. After his "masterpiece", the Emperor is destroyed, he commits suicide, but not before arranging a backup plan involving the Emperor's successor, the World, sets to be released in three years time. He appears in flashback segments in The House of the Dead 4, where he "guides" the agents uncovering his secret plan.
  • The Mystery Man is a unidentified figure in a suit who first appears in one of the endings of The House of the Dead III, picking up one of Curien's mysterious canisters while lamenting that he did not understand its true purpose. He also appears in one of the endings in The House of the Dead 4, stating that Goldman is too soft and that the "Pandora's Box" cannot be stopped, and again in the "good" ending of The House of the Dead 4 Special, in which he states that while Goldman's masterpieces were all failures, the Wheel of Fate cannot be stopped.

    • Overkill antagonists

  • Clement Darling: The Main and True Antagonist of The House of the Dead: Overkill. He first appears as a warden in a high security prison who gives information to G and Isaac Washington about Papa Caesar and Varla Guns' whereabouts, but is later revealed as the mastermind behind everything that had happened in the game. After executing Caesar, he reveals that he wants to resurrect his dead mother (implied to have had an incestuous relationship with her) by replacing Varla's brain with his mother's. His mother's mutated form is later destroyed by G and Isaac, and Clement seeks to atone his problems by "returning to the womb".
  • Papa Caesar: A major antagonist of The House of the Dead: Overkill. A deranged crime lord, he forced crippled scientist Jasper Guns into working on a compound with strange mutagenic effects which eventually spread to Bayou City. He is pursued by Isaac Washington for apparently killing his father, and by Varla Guns and Candi Stryper for mutating Jasper. However, Caesar is later revealed to have merely been working for Clement Darling and is subsequently executed afterwards. In the game's post-credits scene, a tape roll shows Caesar, who reveals that Isaac's father is still alive and that Clement, while small-minded, has more powerful friends (possibly Dr. Roy Curien and Caleb Goldman).

    • NPC

  • Sophie Richards/Sophie Rogan: Rogan's fiancĂ© and Lisa's mother.
  • Harry Harris: A minor character and AMS agent who appears in The House of the Dead 2. He is sent with Amy Crystals to assist James Taylor and Gary Stewart in investigating the incident at Venice, but is mortally wounded by Strength.
  • Amy Crystal: A minor character and Harry Haris's fellow AMS agent who appears in The House of the Dead 2. She supplies James Taylor and Gary Stewart with information and is later seen tending to Harry's injuries, giving James and Gary her car's key.

    • Bosses

    Most of the bosses in the series, with the exception of those from The House of the Dead: Overkill are named after the Major Arcana cards in the Tarot deck. Currently, the only Major Arcana cards not yet used as names for the bosses are The High Priestess (Tarot No.II), The Devil (Tarot No.XV), and The Moon (Tarot No.XVIII).

    Appearances in other games

  • The House of the Dead appears as one of the mini-games in the EyeToy game, Sega Superstars, in which players move their body to attack zombies.
  • The series is also represented in Sega Superstars Tennis, where the mansion is a playable court and there is also a minigame in which players must aim their shots to fend off a horde of oncoming zombies. In this game, the series is referred to as "Curien Mansion" instead of The House of the Dead because the series is banned in Germany.
  • Again represented as Curien Mansion, the series is represented in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing with three race tracks, and the rider's duo Zobio and Zobiko (only Zobio on the Nintendo DS) from The House of the Dead: EX. During their All-Star move, Zobio drinks a magic potion which makes him grow in size and he then slams his opponents with his strength while Zobiko rides him.
  • A brand new racetrack appears in Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, with zombies and various monsters making appearances. Zobio and Zobiko make cameo appearances in the stage as well. Once again, the series is called Curien Mansion.
  • Zombie Revenge's Rikiya Busujima appears in Project X Zone with references made to the House of the Dead franchise, as House of the Dead.

    • Film adaptations

    In 2003, the first film, directed by Uwe Boll and produced by Brightlight Pictures, was released. Given limited theatrical release with the intent of becoming a cult film, it served as a loose prequel to the game, but received very poor reviews and little box office return.

    In 2004, a sequel to the first film was greenlit but direct-to-DVD. The previous director was unable to direct the sequel due to commitments to his other films, and Michael Hurst was chosen to take his place. the sequel is closer to its source, featuring AMS agents going to a school to stop a zombie outbreak from spreading. however the film was also poorly received.

    Another sequel was announced. Mindfire Entertainment co-founder Mark Altman has stated in discussions that "It's a completely different approach to the material than the first two films." It was also stated that it may not be called House of the Dead 3 as Sega wasn't releasing the latest installment on home consoles." Eventually Mindfire Entertainment released Dead and Deader starring Dean Cain and the House Of the Dead name was not attached.

    In Walt Disney Animation Studios' 52nd Animated feature-length film, Wreck-It Ralph, a Zombie with axes based on Cyril (the hatchet-wielding zombie) appears with numerous other video game villains in the Villain's support group Bad-Anon. The Zombie tries to reassure Wreck-It Ralph that labels won't make him happy and that good or bad, he must love himself for who he is.

    In December 2016, Variety reports that Stories International and Circle Of Confusion will produced a new House of the Dead movie.

    References

    The House of the Dead (series) Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA