Splatterhouse is a beat'em up game played from a
sidescrolling perspective.
The Story: West Mansion. A lonely, deserted mansion
that used to belong to the famous parapsychologist, Dr. West. West disappeared
many years ago - it was rumored that he was conducting strange experiments,
creating monsters... no one knows for sure.
Years after his
mysterious disappearance, two parapsychology majors at the local university -
Rick and Jennifer - are planning a term paper on West. They
decide to go investigate West Mansion to see what they can find. As a terrible
thunderstorm rages overhead, they enter West Mansion. Without warning, the door
slams shut behind them, and total darkness fills the room. Rick hears Jennifer
scream, then he feels something hit him at the base of his skull. He collapses,
and then...
That's when the "Hell Mask" (more commonly known as the "Terror
Mask" or just the Mask), an ancient Aztec sacrificial mask that West had been
studying, appears. It floats in the air, then flies down and lands on Rick's
head, and he awakens. Try as he might, he can't remove the Mask. As he stands
up, he feels a wave of strength course through his body, thanks to the power
that the Mask is giving him. Then he sets off into the depths of the mansion to
find Jennifer...
You control Rick who has to fight his way through a horde of evil creatures.
You defend yourself by punching and kicking, and you can also pick up various
weapons such as a machete, a stick and a shotgun.
There are seven levels to
traverse, taking you through West Mansion, outside, back in, and finally back
outside, including a cave, a flooded basement, a church, a hall of mirrors, a
possessed kitchen and a tunnel of flesh. Each level ends with a special
end-of-level adversarie. The thing that makes this game stand out is the great
amount of horrific features. There are things like zombies, ghosts, possessed
furniture, crawling foetuses and a lot of splatter and gore. In the background
you can sometimes see what's left of some unfortunate prisoners (watch out for
their toxic vomit!), and some dismemberment leftovers also lie scattered on the
floor.
Splatterhouse is one of the most sought after games ever
!