The game not only forces you to spam a hard-to-pull-off move so you can get rid of the enemies faster and make it on time but also uses the resource of making the protagonist so weak that even a small lamp can send him flying through the stage, having to wait for him to regain consciousness and making you waste more time.

Half a star because the sound design is very cool.
Half a star because that teddy bear boss is pure nightmare fuel.
And a last third-half star because I have definitely seen worse.

What Splatterhouse initially started out as was a rough and tough, yet still satisfying horror-themed beat-’em-up that had plenty of gory action to satisfy any fan of horror, along with the simple, yet effective combat right beside it that kept the player going. However, when it came to Splatterhouse 2, the series fell into a state of stagnation. While it certainly wasn’t a bad game by any means, it did absolutely nothing to enhance or change up the gameplay of the original title, going for the “more is good” formula, which in this case didn’t necessarily help things out for it. So it was clear that, if this series was going to keep splatting away, there needed to be something done to shake things up, or else people will move onto other titles. Thankfully, Now Production thought the same thing, and thus, just one year later, we would be given the next unique installment in the series, Splatterhouse 3.

Much like the other games in the series, I hadn’t played this one before doing so for this review, and I thought going into it that it was gonna be more or less the same experience as the last two games, except with updated visuals and the like. However, instead, I was given a game that heavily updated the way you play one of these games, while keeping things relatively similar to the other titles to remind you that you are still playing a Splatterhouse game. While it wasn’t much, this ended up working extremely well in its favor, as I would definitely call this game the best of the original Splatterhouse trilogy. It isn’t too different from your typical beat-’em-up of the 90s, aside from the blood and gore, and it definitely has its issues, but for what it’s worth, I did end up having a bloody good, albeit frustrating at points time with the game.

The story this time around is a little more complex than the previous two, detailing what happened to Rick between this and the last game, but it primarily focuses on how his wife and kid, Jennifer and David, are set to die by the hands of monsters, so it is up to him to once again slaughter the beasts and the Terror Mask once and for all, which works well enough for the plot, and there are even cutscenes with digitized actors that detail more of what is going on, so that is nice. The graphics are pretty good, looking pretty similar to the last two games, but still having that some gory look to it, while having the most impressive sprites and cutscene images in the series so far, the music is fairly basic for this kind of game, not really being anything too special, with no real tracks standing out, but it isn’t bad either, the control is fairly similar to the previous titles, although you are now capable of pulling off a lot more moves that I will get into later, so that is cool, and the gameplay is also fairly similar to the previous titles, but given more depth and range to make it more accessible and fun.

The game is a horror-themed beat-’em-up, where you take control of Rick once again, go through a set of six different levels throughout the floors of your mansion, defeat all of the different bloodthirsty, disgusting and terrifying creatures that have swarmed the place using all manner of attacks that you can pull off, gather plenty of different health items, power items, and weapons to help you slaughter the vicious beasts that lay before you, and take on several grotesque bosses that will definitely provide a challenge, testing how good you are with your reflexes and combat skills. In many ways, it is essentially the same as the previous two games, but in many other ways, this game takes that basic formula and evolves it into a much better experience. Not to mention, it also has plenty of the same blood, gore, and guts that fans have come to love from the other games in the series.

First off, there is actually a Z-axis this time around, where you move around the stages in a way much more akin to a typical beat-’em-up, rather than being stuck going from left to right. It isn’t any different then any other game of the genre, but hey, I’m just thankful that it is here at all, as it allows for much more room for you to do anything in. And speaking of much more room, this game is also completely non-linear. Yeah, you are strongly encouraged to go a specific route, which is what you will mainly be doing for most of the game, but you are able to fully explore the mansion you are in, going to many different rooms and defeating all sorts of baddies in the process. It isn’t much, but hey, the option being there at all is nice to see.

In addition to this, Rick is now able to perform a lot more moves then he previously could. You can still punch and kick like your life depends on it, but now you can pull off several special attacks, throws, grabs, and all the stuff you would typically see in a beat-’em-up, but once again, just having these abilities at all in this game is much appreciated. Adding onto this is the addition of a Power Meter you have, where upon filling it up, you can then transform into a much more monstrous version of yourself, able to deal out much more damage and pull off some freakish special moves that help out greatly when the moment calls for it. Not gonna lie, it isn’t the best Super Mode I have ever seen in a game, as it isn’t as reliable as it could be whenever you use it, but it can still be useful at points, especially against bosses. As for the combat itself, it does feel pretty satisfying to pull off, with crunchy sound effects accompanying you whenever you beat up whatever freak in your way, making you feel powerful as you keep defeating more goons.

One of the biggest changes this game introduces, however, would be with how you progress through the levels, and how the plot changes. For every stage in the game, you are given a specific objective, such as saving your wife or your son, and depending on how well you do in completing this task not only changes what happens in the plot, but it also determines what ending you get in the end. For example, in Stage 2, you have to defeat this Giant Boreworm to help save your wife from getting devoured by a boreworm, told to you in excruciating detail. If you succeed, you manage to save her of course, but if you don’t, she ends up dying and transforming into a mindless beast, and she will stay dead for the remainder of the game. This choice of story progression allows for a lot of replay value, seeing what different kinds of story paths you can take and how you can get all four of the endings, which is always great to have.

A lot of changes to the formula are nice to have, yes, but none of them can hide the fact that the game still has several issues worth addressing. While it does update the gameplay formula into something more accessible and familiar for players, it ends up becoming more generic as a result. It plays pretty much like your typical beat-’em-up, except for the fact that it is spooky and gory, and if you aren’t sold on either of those elements, then you won’t be getting much here when compared to other similar games in the genre. That doesn’t mean it is bad, but if you are sick of beat-’em-ups, this game won’t help that feeling go away. Not to mention, it gets pretty fucking hard as you keep going, and while there are difficulty options that can help give you an easier time, it still manages to get pretty ridiculous as you keep going, especially in Stage 5. Also, the second phase of the final boss can eat my dick, it is so frustrating.

Overall, despite a lack of change to the genre and the difficulty really getting in the way at times, all of the changes and improvements made in this game definitely make this the best entry in the Splatterhouse trilogy, and makes it a pretty good game to play through. I would definitely recommend it for those who were fans of the original Splatterhouse games, as well as those who are fans of beat-’em-ups in general, because this game still keeps the gory, spooky nature in tact, while still being a good time for those willing to face the demons head-on. Nice to see that we ended off this trilogy with a bang rather than a whimper. Although, it is rather embarrassing that none of these games came close enough to the same level of quality that Wanpaku Graffiti had. That is just sad.

Game #445

As a beat 'em up, it takes an interesting departure from the likes of SOR2 by being non-linear and having multiple endings. The music is also great, and the iconic gore factor this series is known for is in full effect.

That being said, the gameplay itself is hideously unbalanced in the North American release. It quickly becomes "spin kick to win", and when you become Monster Rick, it becomes "tentacle r*pe to win" (I don't know what the move is called but it's the same motion as the spin kick). You almost have to be using these moves 24/7 if you want any chance of success, as the enemies are incredibly overpowered and even early one some are capable of robbing an entire life from you in one or two hits.

It's fine enough for a once over, but the original Splatterhouse is a far better game in almost every category. Shame that never got ported to the Genesis...