As a kid, my parents were very strict with what sort of media their two little boys could get their hands on. So when I was a kid, the only way I could play violent games such as Splatterhouse, Doom and Mortal Kombat was to go to a friend’s house. Therefore, I had very limited experience with this series before I sat down to play it for my entry into Cowzilla’s Game of the Month Club.

For my entry I’ve spent a lot of time with the arcade version of Splatterhouse and Splatterhouse 3 on the Genesis. I also played but spent much less time with Splatterhouse 2 on the Genesis and Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti, the Japanese only NES game.



This was my first time playing the original Splatterhouse and I was impressed. The sprites are incredibly detailed and gory and the sound effects are awesome. The way it sounds
when you bury your fist into some zombies face is just perfect. It’s just as good as Conrad said it would be.

The gore effects in this game are awesome.

The gameplay on the other hand, is a bit simplistic. It’s still fun, don’t get me wrong, but I unfortunately played Splatterhouse 3 first, which has much more advanced gameplay, more on that later.

If you wait around too long, this purple mist will come along and ruin your day.


I hate this screen, it takes place right after the first level and it sucks. It's nothing but these leeches that jump at you from either side of the room, you only have 4 hits per life so you can't make too many mistakes. It always takes me a couple tries to pass this.



I love smacking enemies up against the wall with my 2x4. So awesome



My time with Splatterhouse 2 was brief, not because it’s a terrible game, its average, but because it feels like a watered down Splatterhouse 1. The graphics aren’t as detailed or gory and the gameplay is virtually the same. The levels aren’t nearly as interesting as the first game either.

The one thing I liked about this game, which other people didn’t, is the way the bosses death animations can kill you. I had been warned, but the first boss still got me with his bile when his stomach exploded. I thought it was cool, even if I had to kill the bastard again.


When the first boss dies, this is the wrong place to stand


Elevators, it has them.



Splatterhouse 3 is by far my favorite game in the series. The game feels a lot deeper than the previous two. The pseudo 3D movement makes the game feel more modern and the Monster transformation adds a bit of strategy to the beat em up gameplay.



I love the graphics in this game, while not as crisp as the original arcade Splatterhouse; it looks great for a Genesis title. The animations are great too. I love how Rick will grab enemies and head but them or throw them across the room. Even though I am still jabbing the same button to kill enemies, the variety of animations does a lot to keep me interested. I also love the short cut scenes that advance the story between the rooms. This game easily has the most engrossing story of the series which isn’t saying much, but it’s something.


The map is very easy to use

My favorite part of this game is by far the non-linear levels. It gives the game a ton of replayability. The map system is also great and the game would be lost without it. I’m a little undecided on the timer present in each level. It always gives you enough time to do some exploring before each boss but if you want to see everything on your first play through, you’re going to get the “bad” storyline which occurs when the timer has expired when you complete the level. It is interesting to see the different storylines, but at the same time, sometimes I want to go the long way and see the good ending, oh well. The game is still magnificent.


The story in this game is pretty creepy.


Monster Rick and the first boss.


I love the way some enemies change after they have taken damage. Here is the first boss after Rick has beaten him half way to death.



The last game I played in the series was the Japanese only, Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti. The first thing I want to say is this game is hard, much harder than any other game in the series. It’s also fast, Rick can move much faster than in any other game. It’s a fun game and I plan on playing it more and getting better at it but for now I’m going to stick with Splatterhouse and Splatterhouse 3.


The characters are superdeformed and look great for an NES title.


The first boss does indeed do the thriller dance...


...right before kicking my ass.

I can see how these games got so much attention for their violence back in the day. They certainly are not for kids but I don’t see why a 13 year old couldn’t handle it. It’s not like you’re killing humans. On the other hand, the toned down graphics in Splatterhouse 3 (when compared to the arcade original) do absolutely nothing to affect the gameplay so I personally don’t care at all.

If you can only play one game of this series I would highly recommend Splatterhouse 3, it has displaced Streets of Rage as my favorite Beat em up of all time. Its combination of non-linear levels and Rick’s monster transformation make this game a must play in my book. Check it out and then don’t hesitate to throw your two-cents in on your Cblog.