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Video games you could be playing on Halloween
As of 2016, I successfully moved into a quiet (and small) culdesac area out in the countryside of Gloucester, Virgina. Why I mention this is because since I'm out of the city I won't be getting any trick or treaters coming to my door, so I had an epiphany that I could use my time off on Halloween not just to play some haunting video games in my solitude, but recommend the many titles that are perfect for the holiday, which brings me to this year's Halloween article...
Ghosts n' Goblins (Nes, 1986)
One of the earliest titles on the system, Ghosts n' Goblins wasn't just a walk in the park while saving a damsel in distress, it also defined "Nintendo Hard" with its steep difficulty. To bring the challenge further, you had to beat the game twice to see the real ending, translation errors included. Even with its challenge it became popular enough to get a 16-bit port on the Snes and Sega Genesis, as well as a sequel on the Playstation Portable.
Monster Party (Nes, 1989)
I know it sounds like I've brought this up for the billionth time, but with the game's strange and unusual enemies and bosses it's definitely worth diving into if you haven't already. And since a ROM exists from the original prototype I recommend playing that over this final version. The difficulty ramps up quickly, so it's best to harvest health pickups from enemies before taking on the bosses on any level.
Splatterhouse (TurboGrafx-16, 1990)
By now, many gamers are aware of the existence of Splatterhouse thanks to the reboot that released on Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 several years ago. Back when it first released in only a few arcades back in 1988 it had some of the most graphic violence seen in a video game at the time with some demonic imagery to go with it, an inverted cross being an example. When it was released as a port to the TurboGrafx home console though, a few changes were made but the violence was still there.
Altered Beast (Sega Genesis, 1989)
Taking place in ancient Greece, you're summoned from the dead as a Centurion from Zeus to rescue his daughter Athena from the clutches of Neff, the underworld God. By defeating two headed dog beasts the Centurion warrior gains strength and eventually becomes one of four beasts, A werewolf, a dragon, a bear and a tiger to fight off Neff when he transforms into a disgusting creature. There are only five levels but you'll have plenty of enemies to watch out for as an obstacle on the road to defeating Neff.
Zombies Ate My Neighbors (Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, 1993)
The title may be a tad misleading, because it's not just simple zombies that you're defeating. From werewolves to aliens and even creatures from the black lagoon, you play as one of two kids by the name of Zeke and Julia as you ward off these monsters and rescue victims in over 55 levels, with the last level as a face off between you and the one responsible for releasing the monsters, Dr. Tongue. From the positive reviews it got back in the day, it later got the rerelease treatment being a Wii Shop download just like Splatterhouse.
Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors (Playstation, 1996)
Ever since the release of Street Fighter II all fighting games had human type characters with an array of different fighting styles to them. Darkstalkers changed that up a bit with the player having a selection of monsters to choose from to fight as. Examples include Demitri the vampire, Morrigan, a succubus, and Lord Raptor, an undead ghoul rockstar (I wish I was making that up). Much like Street Fighter you also had combos as well as super moves that you could pull off, so even with a ghoulish disguise for a fighting game it's still fun.
Parasite Eve (Playstation, 1998)
Game developer SquareSoft (now called Square Enix) had always been known for their work in designing Roleplaying gamess such as Final Fantasy and the Mana series, but working on a game that's based on a novel made for a neat concept at the time of Parasite Eve's development. You play as Aya Brea, a police officer who must follow in the footsteps of a monster disguised as a stage play actress calling herself Eve. The game features RPG elements, as you fight mutated animals in random encounters as you advance through the game. You can't just rely on repeatedly attacking though, since you carry a gun you'll have to stock ammo, as well as find new pieces of armor for defense along the way. To make combat more interesting you can also modify your weapon through "super tools" and payment.
Silent Hill (Playstation, 1999)
Taking a page from Capcom's survival horror franchise, Resident Evil, Konami teamed up with Team Silent to work on their own take on the genre. The player takes the role of Harry Mason who must look for his missing daughter, Cheryl through the run down streets of Silent Hill. Giving chase to find her, Harry receives information about the town's unusual activity from a cop and a cultist and must fight his way through to make progress with the use of guns, pipes and a knife as winged demons and ferocious dog beasts reside in Silent Hill.
Benjanime Posted on Oct 07, 2019 at 11:12 PM
@Julie
splatterhouse certainly felt like one of those games that was ahead of its time, so much gore with its difficulty accompanying it :)
Julie Posted on Oct 07, 2019 at 06:19 PM
When you mentioned Splatterhouse, you said it all. My first experience was with Splatterhouse 2 for the Sega Genesis, back in the 1990s, when I was startled by the ambient sound, the screams and the rudeness of the scenery. This franchise is special to me until today. But after I met Silent Hill (the first one for PlayStation), I didn't find any other game that scares me the most to date. When I play, I get nervous and apprehensive (because my tendency is to immerse myself in the story, like in a book). Great post!
Benjanime Posted on Sep 27, 2019 at 12:48 AM
ooh, speaking of point and click adventure games i'm sure day of the tentacle would have fit in nicely too!
Vaporman87 Posted on Sep 27, 2019 at 12:04 AM
Man, these are all perfect choices Ben. The only glaring omission (in my opinion) is Maniac Mansion.
Nice pick with Parasite Eve! I had forgotten all about that game, and it was excellent.
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