The arcade was definitely NOT limited to Japan only. I live in The Netherlands, and my first contact with this game was back in 1989, when I played it in the local arcade on (at least) a weekly basis (yet never managed to beat it). And when I went to the US on vacation in 2000, I saw it again in an arcade at (I think) Six Flags, Florida. Other than that small detail, I agree that it's an awesome game, and has aged really well, compared to a lot of other games from that time period.
+AO968 I also played the arcade version in the USA although I can't remember exactly where. From what I can tell Splatterhouse wasn't release as a dedicated arcade cabinet but was instead released as a conversion kit. This was pretty normal for the late 80s.
Yup! Chiming in from the Great White North. Also played it several times in the early nineties at a couple of local arcades. The last time I remember was at one of the rare pay-up-front arcades which mostly had older machines. It’s also where I played the original Street Fighter for the first time!
4 years late, but thanks for clearing that up! 😂 I played this in the arcade as a kid and could actually beat it fairly easy once I could tear through my TG16 port. I never could tell what was being said there! And although the other voice samples are kinda rough, you can at least glean what is being said.
To explain how splatterhouse 2 works; The mansion burned down and the Terror Mask left rick. Jen DID die and her soul whisks away after you beat her. Splatterhouse 2 opens with Rick being tormented by his memories and in his desperation, the Terror Mask comes to him and lets him know that jen can be saved, but there is a catch. He needs to go to *The Secret House*. Yes, there is a SECOND mansion, this one, out in the middle of the lake and only reached through an underground tunnel system from the first house. Yes, Splatterhosue 2's opening showcases the burned ruins of the first house, and the first stage is in the burned down house. You go into hell, get Jen, and kill anything stupid enough to get in your way.
Interesting. Though something I don't get is, in splatterhouse 2, the first stage is the remains of the mansion that burned down in the first game. Rick clearly got out before it crumbled down in flames. Did he just use the remains as shelter, since he most likely had nowhere to go? And for the record, Rick has got to be one of the most sympathetic heroes in any video game series. I mean, just when things are going well, some supernatural force just comes out of nowhere and ruins everything for him. Especially in the reboot. He gets seriously ripped open by some demonic looking dogs (I guess), while the Mad Doctor West takes Jennifer from him, and leaves him to die? Jesus Christ. Ah well, at least when he's given another chance, he takes full advantage of it. At the end of the day, he just wants his girlfriend back, and he's willing to kill as many supernatural creatures as possible just to prove it.
Whats cool about RIck is that he kind of becomes a monster to fight the monsters. He looks just like Jason the undead mass murderer...its a bit of anti hero. The connection to the first house is cool. Its like ground zero...were everything started. Must have been horrible to go back there.
That makes Rick twice as badass as he was already- his girlfriend dies? He’s just gonna go after the monsters that took her and bring her soul back, Satan expies be damned.
The Jennifer fight chilled me to the bone when I was a kid. It was horrifying watching her plead with me to help her and transform into what I consider one of the most detailed sprites ever. Gave me nightmares. AND I LOVE IT! "HELP ME!"
I live in Canada and we had the arcade version of Splatterhouse at our local convenience store in the late 80s/early 90s. At the time I’d never played anything like it and it blew my mind! I remember another kid watching me play and I asked him if he wanted to play, he said his mom told him he wasn’t allowed, but he was allowed to watch 🤷🏻♂️🤣
@af10512 no, there was a port to a CD based system called the FM Towns Marty, but the game and system were Japan only. It's supposed to be arcade perfect
Her quotes in the arcade are: "AH! My Darling!" *Painful moan* *Evil Luagh* "Help, kill me!" (That line he said was gibberish) "Thank you, Good bye." In The turbographix, instead of saying "Help, kill me!", she just plainly says "help me!"
Lucky that you could hear it because I read the line and it is genuinely gibberish to me when i hear it. But I have trouble hearing what are vague or unclear things to me.
I think she's saying "Help...I'm dying!". It makes the most sense to me considering she was pretty much being gang raped by those baddies before you show up. I assume they implanted something in her or were performing some ritual to change her.
I first encountered this game at a water park in Texas in maybe 1990 or so. It was integral in transitioning me from someone scared of pretty much any live action spookiness into a die hard horror fan. The game freaked me out, but was also strangely compelling.
The PC-Engine/Turbografx-16 wasn't a dual 8-bit CPU machine. This is an error that dates way back from Steve Pearl's TB16 FAQ which listed it as such. There's only one 6280 CPU. Also, as someone familiar with programming on the Turbo's hardware, the Turbografx _could_ have handled almost all the arcade presentation -- the reason it was pared down was for cartridge space, and not because the PC-Engine hardware couldn't handle it. The home console could have handled a nearly pixel-perfect rendition of the first level, for instance -- the reason the level is pared down like that is to save on the number of tiles for cart space. As far as I can remember, there is no hardware parallax (dual-layer) scrolling within the arcade game at all, which leaves the workload on what amounts to a large number of very large sprites which the Turbografx can do just fine.
When we spent time together, she used to look at my eye and call me her darling so when she saw me in that monstrous form, she only needed to look at my eye to recognize it was me behind that demonic mask and she said, my darling for one last time...
Well I know for sure the arcade cabinet made it to Canada where I live. I played it as a kid. The drug store close to my home town (as my home town didn't have a pharmacy at that point) had a little arcade area where we used to go and play the games, it had a Splatterhouse cabinet. It was right next to Double Dragon cabinet on the left side and on the right of Double Dragon was a Tetris cabinet.
It's your love of Splatterhouse that got me into the series to begin with...and it fucking rocks! I even bought the new splatterhouse and enjoyed that one immensly (except for a few annoying things...like the ending)... Jennifer's scream when she transforms into the monster from the arcade version is freaking haunting as shit...
Great stuff Derek. My friend had wanted to do this very video describing the differences between the T-16 and Arcade versions but we could never find a cheap PCB. After seeing your review of the new game I'll be sure to pick it up on the 360, even if the new game is crappy I can always go back and give the old three a whirl.
I know this video is 4 years old, but I think Jennifer is saying "Oh, I'm Dying!", because 1. How would she be asleep when we just heard her scream at the end of level 4, and 2. I don't think she would recognize Rick thanks to the effects of the terror mask. I don't know. Just a thought.
Super late to the party comment, but wanted to chime in that the Splatterhouse arcade cab was actually fairly popular here in Newfoundland, Canada... I played it in multiple cities here in the 90's and loved the crap out of it (even if it was absurdly difficult)
Final battle the way i imagined it: Mask: "Here lies Henry West... huh. What a letdown." Rick: "This will not do..." Mask: "Why not? He's dead, it's over. Why the sudden bloodthirst from a little goodie like you?" Rick: "For what he did to Jennifer, i want vengeance... bring him back." Mask: "How do you even know that i can do that?" Rick: "You brought me back. DO THE SAME FOR HIM! NOW! I want him to die for what he did, and i want it by MY HAND!" Mask: "Now you're speaking my language."
@1337BleachFan i might. this was a little something i quickly threw together because the review was taking so long. i wasn't trying to think of a new series of videos, but it might be something i come back to.
I used to play this game at my local Roller Rink, probably around '91-'93. It blew my mind when my friend showed me the Genesis games a few years later.
The arcade version is what is on the splatterhouse remake. I'm 37 and I became a big fan of the game when i first played it at the arcade here in La. I was like 10 or 11 at the time. I remember how awesome it was. It Rocked. The wii also had the TG16 version. Sega had part 2 and 3 on it as well. I had them all. I love the remake. Everything felt right to me. I had no problems playing the game at all or getting it learn it. Me, I could care less what the critics say about the game or any game for that matter. No one is gonna tell me not to get a game just because they didn't like it.
well the critics never liked Splatterhouse. Gamespot gave the original a 4.7/10. Like really? It's not the most complex beat 'em up out there, but it's a lot of fun.
+DinosaurSatan Really? I'm here in Alberta and I never saw one, ever! I would have spend all my parents quarters up in that machine. I was at least fortunate enough to have a Turbo back in the day with Splatterhouse.
Yep! The video store had E-SWAT, Wonder Boy in Monster Land, and Splatterhouse. And at one point my home town had an actual arcade with like 30 games, but it got closed down after a few months.
In Saskatchewan where I live there was a small arcade in a Drugstore in Cudworth (nearest town to my hometown that had a doctor). It was right next to the Double Dragon cabinet. I remember it quite clearly, and on the opposite side of the Double Dragon cabinet was a Tetris arcade machine.
While fighting the stage 5 boss on the TurboGrafx-16 version something odd happened: The boss did a high jump to the right (Rick is on the corner on the right), I jump and hit the boss midair, apparently so hard the boss got punched out of existence (or perhaps through the ceiling :P ). Then this "Top-Heavy"-enemy showed up, but extremely glitched, kinda like it appears after the boss is defeated. And then i was stuck, stage didn't end >_>
I can confirm it was on the arcades in Europe in the 80's. played it tons on an arcade machine in the Netherlands at the time. my life has changed forever., my mind was blown when I first saw and played this. cheers
Good review, Derek. Though I'm certain someone else already said it, Splatterhouse did get a stateside arcade release. My introduction to the series was in an Aladdin's Castle in Chicago back in 1990. Keep up the great work, though!
I remember seeing a promo commercial for the console games in the early 90's...it was the most bad ass commercial I ever saw...Rick basically heaves a giant log onto a band saw and makes his own 2x4 to kick some ass at the mansion...I wish I could find it. great review! I'm going to have nightmares now
Great vid man! Awesome to finally find another Splatterhouse fan on TH-cam, most underrated franchise and my favourite franchise! BTW, I beleive Jennifer is saying: "Rick, help me!" during the boss fight.
I've gotta thank you Derek, for introducing this series to me, its amazing, this is the kind of game I pop in to play if i have a spare 20-30 minutes before i have to leave somewhere.
I can confirm it was released in North America. I used to play it in 1988 at an arcade in Huntington Beach California. Some of my best teenage memories!
Derek, I must say im surprised that there wasn't a Splatterhouse arcade near you, I live in Ireland and I almost jumped for joy out of my skin when I seen it here, I was a huge fan of Splatterhouse 2 on the Megadrive (Genesis in the US) and was always gutted to know the first game was not on that console, hell I even had dreams that I found it at that young age (sad I know but I was a kid), I have no idea how much I put into the arcade, would love to see a Splatterhouse sequel to the reboot
I can confirm that Splatterhouse made it to arcades in the US. The Barrel of Fun arcade in Tuscaloosa, Alabama had it when it came out. I played it several times.
Alright I am definitely going to look into playing Splatterhouse. Well done man I am glad I subbed to you. Also that head boss that comes out of the ground looks like Gluttony from Full Metal Alchemist.
I remember that intro from an arcade cabinet back in my home town in 1989, standing next to an Altered Beast machine. I was a little kid, and didn't want to watch the rest. It wasn't until I saw reviews like this when I recognized the intro, and realized what I saw was Splatterhouse. I also think the machine was only there for a few days, since I only ever saw it once. Also, I think Jennifer is saying "No, please don't hurt me." in the Arcade mode, or maybe "please don't kill me". But the first and last things she said are clearly more audible.
I live in the States and I played it here when I was a kid. It was at a local bowling alley and it's the only cabinet I ever saw pop up in the many many arcades I visited.
When I first heard Jeniffer in the arcade game, I thought she was saying "Please, don't kill me!" If you think about it, one way to look is this would allow the creature to make Rick doubt himself that she's still in there and she can be saved, which offer a chance for her to revert and gut Rick like a fish. On the other, she very clearly doesn't want to die, even though she's scared to hell. And yet, the monsters have made a clear matter of kill or be killed... AND WE LOVE IT!!!
Derek! A little info about the last boss! According to certain sources, I've learned about who and what the ghost face is.The Terror Mask releases energy into the grave, reviving a giant monster named Hell Chaos that claws its way up from the earth and attempts to kill Rick. Rick destroys the creature, which unleashes a tormented ghost that dissipates into a series of bright lights. The ghost face, I've found out, is Doctor West.
is it possible at all to kill the lvl 3 boss without the shotgun? I know you can slidekick him but everytime i do that he hits back before i can make some distance. Either it's not possible or you have to sacrifice mutlitple hearts in order to do it.
The arcade was available here in the states. I played it at a hole in the wall grocery store growing up. Oddly enough, the mask was red like the TG 16 version, but it was years before the TG existed. Also, the inverted cross boss was there as well as the cleaver in the first level. Not sure what kind of custom port I was playing, but it was splatterhouse in all of it gory glory.
Very nicely done, as usual. Great info on the Splatterhouse series. And yes, it is great that Night of the Creeps *finally* got a DVD release. Even better that it's packed with special features instead of some cheap movie-only bargain bin release.
We had 2 arcade Splatterhouse machines in my home city (London, Ontario, Canada). The first one was at a japanese variety store and the other was at Wizard's Arcade. I was the first one out of my friends to beat it back when I was in high school.
@Jprime777 thats very fair to say. i of course disagree, i really enjoyed the action but Splatterhouse 2010 isn't for everyone. i'd still recommend you check out the classic games though.
@snowcon3 i did notice that. i had a part in the new review where i was going to talk about the differences i noticed in parts 2 and 3, but i cut it out when the script was getting too long.
I can verify that at least one arcade machine was in the U.S. I played Splatterhouse for the first time during the summer of 1995 in Kirksville, Missouri at Truman State's rec-room where they had a Splatterhouse arcade machine.
I can confirm that the Arcade version was released here in Canada, as I have played it in arcades both in Lower Sackville and Bridgewater, Nova Scotia. Was one of the goriest and creepiest games I've ever palyed, amnd I still love it to this day!
Great video! But I gotta say, on level 6 you mention the heart boss spilling crap at you, but according to wiki it's a womb: "The death of the womb boss of Stage 6 is changed from a graphic spilling of embryonic fluids into a generic fiery explosion in the console versions (both western and Japanese releases)" Dunno how accurate this is, but it could explain why it's been changed from the port (that's just intensely disturbing if it embryonic fluid)
Taken word from tvtropes, the arcade version was released in the US. Graphic violence sparked media frenzy from moral guardians and it was pulled from arcades. It ported to PC Engine and was Bowdlerized.
@PressStartComic oh hell yeah. you need to buy the new one if for no other reason to have the original three. I didn't think the new one was crappy, but it's not for everyone.
On the part of 10:40 Jenny says "No.. Don't do this!" ...Like the entity trying to confuse Rick's mind when he about to kill his lover... or what left of her.
at the part where Jenifer reverts back to normal in the arcade i think shes saying something like "Help please kill me" or something like that but that's just me great video.
I watched the arcade version of this game recently. It sounds like she's saying "My Darling" and that laugh when she transforms into the monster is super creepy.The necromancer is saying "I'm grooving" at least in my opinion.
The last boss in the arcade, and I can confirm that there was a US release or at least an arcade that perhaps ordered a Japanese game. I always heard him screaming "WHERE ARE YOU!" since most of the time his head is underground and he can't see you.
hes right. in my old neighborhood in a video rental place it had an arcade system of Splaterhouse. about 20-25years ago. i remember the place as if it was yesterday.
The arcade was definitely NOT limited to Japan only. I live in The Netherlands, and my first contact with this game was back in 1989, when I played it in the local arcade on (at least) a weekly basis (yet never managed to beat it). And when I went to the US on vacation in 2000, I saw it again in an arcade at (I think) Six Flags, Florida.
Other than that small detail, I agree that it's an awesome game, and has aged really well, compared to a lot of other games from that time period.
+AO968 I also played the arcade version in the USA although I can't remember exactly where. From what I can tell Splatterhouse wasn't release as a dedicated arcade cabinet but was instead released as a conversion kit. This was pretty normal for the late 80s.
I'm from New Zealand and there was a splatterhouse arcade cabinet at a local fish and chip store, I wasted so much money on that thing :)
Yup! Chiming in from the Great White North. Also played it several times in the early nineties at a couple of local arcades. The last time I remember was at one of the rare pay-up-front arcades which mostly had older machines. It’s also where I played the original Street Fighter for the first time!
Played the arcade game in a bowling alley arcade well before the Turbo Grafx was released in Minnesota in the United States.
Yup we had it here in the UK too.
Actually what the necromancer says is "A Intruder", but "I'm Grooving" sounds better
4 years late, but thanks for clearing that up! 😂
I played this in the arcade as a kid and could actually beat it fairly easy once I could tear through my TG16 port. I never could tell what was being said there! And although the other voice samples are kinda rough, you can at least glean what is being said.
To explain how splatterhouse 2 works; The mansion burned down and the Terror Mask left rick. Jen DID die and her soul whisks away after you beat her. Splatterhouse 2 opens with Rick being tormented by his memories and in his desperation, the Terror Mask comes to him and lets him know that jen can be saved, but there is a catch. He needs to go to *The Secret House*. Yes, there is a SECOND mansion, this one, out in the middle of the lake and only reached through an underground tunnel system from the first house. Yes, Splatterhosue 2's opening showcases the burned ruins of the first house, and the first stage is in the burned down house. You go into hell, get Jen, and kill anything stupid enough to get in your way.
Interesting. Though something I don't get is, in splatterhouse 2, the first stage is the remains of the mansion that burned down in the first game. Rick clearly got out before it crumbled down in flames. Did he just use the remains as shelter, since he most likely had nowhere to go? And for the record, Rick has got to be one of the most sympathetic heroes in any video game series. I mean, just when things are going well, some supernatural force just comes out of nowhere and ruins everything for him. Especially in the reboot. He gets seriously ripped open by some demonic looking dogs (I guess), while the Mad Doctor West takes Jennifer from him, and leaves him to die? Jesus Christ. Ah well, at least when he's given another chance, he takes full advantage of it. At the end of the day, he just wants his girlfriend back, and he's willing to kill as many supernatural creatures as possible just to prove it.
Whats cool about RIck is that he kind of becomes a monster to fight the monsters. He looks just like Jason the undead mass murderer...its a bit of anti hero. The connection to the first house is cool. Its like ground zero...were everything started. Must have been horrible to go back there.
That makes Rick twice as badass as he was already- his girlfriend dies? He’s just gonna go after the monsters that took her and bring her soul back, Satan expies be damned.
The Arcade is actually at the Galloping Ghost Arcade in Illinois
Thanks for letting me know
I love that place and love that game, not bad pizza down the street either.
@@devinc9 chicago is best known for that lol
The Jennifer fight chilled me to the bone when I was a kid. It was horrifying watching her plead with me to help her and transform into what I consider one of the most detailed sprites ever. Gave me nightmares. AND I LOVE IT! "HELP ME!"
Would it be possible to say that Jennifer is actually crying in the Arcade version. Its still chilling but I think its a possibility.
I think she said in the arcade version, "I didn't mean it"
Played this in my hometown bowling alley as a kid in Wisconsin. It was definitely out in the wild stateside.
I live in Canada and we had the arcade version of Splatterhouse at our local convenience store in the late 80s/early 90s. At the time I’d never played anything like it and it blew my mind!
I remember another kid watching me play and I asked him if he wanted to play, he said his mom told him he wasn’t allowed, but he was allowed to watch 🤷🏻♂️🤣
I love when the lady cries “Help me!” in the Turbo Graphic 16 version.
Actually really like this video. It’s age makes me feel beyond nostalgic.
7:28 - 7:44 Dude no Matter how many Times I watch this I still get a Chill down my Spine from this
@af10512 no, there was a port to a CD based system called the FM Towns Marty, but the game and system were Japan only. It's supposed to be arcade perfect
Her quotes in the arcade are:
"AH! My Darling!"
*Painful moan*
*Evil Luagh*
"Help, kill me!" (That line he said was gibberish)
"Thank you, Good bye."
In The turbographix, instead of saying "Help, kill me!", she just plainly says "help me!"
Lucky that you could hear it because I read the line and it is genuinely gibberish to me when i hear it. But I have trouble hearing what are vague or unclear things to me.
nah it just sounds like gibberish.
I think she's saying "Help...I'm dying!". It makes the most sense to me considering she was pretty much being gang raped by those baddies before you show up. I assume they implanted something in her or were performing some ritual to change her.
I hear “am...so sorry”
I first encountered this game at a water park in Texas in maybe 1990 or so. It was integral in transitioning me from someone scared of pretty much any live action spookiness into a die hard horror fan. The game freaked me out, but was also strangely compelling.
The PC-Engine/Turbografx-16 wasn't a dual 8-bit CPU machine. This is an error that dates way back from Steve Pearl's TB16 FAQ which listed it as such. There's only one 6280 CPU.
Also, as someone familiar with programming on the Turbo's hardware, the Turbografx _could_ have handled almost all the arcade presentation -- the reason it was pared down was for cartridge space, and not because the PC-Engine hardware couldn't handle it. The home console could have handled a nearly pixel-perfect rendition of the first level, for instance -- the reason the level is pared down like that is to save on the number of tiles for cart space. As far as I can remember, there is no hardware parallax (dual-layer) scrolling within the arcade game at all, which leaves the workload on what amounts to a large number of very large sprites which the Turbografx can do just fine.
how does she recognize a guy in a hockey mask as "my darling"
The clothes and build? Unlike the remake, Rick doesn't hulk up after putting on the mask.
When we spent time together, she used to look at my eye and call me her darling so when she saw me in that monstrous form, she only needed to look at my eye to recognize it was me behind that demonic mask and she said, my darling for one last time...
She can see the real man behind the mask. She sees his true inner self.
Nah, I'm just foolin'
Well I know for sure the arcade cabinet made it to Canada where I live. I played it as a kid. The drug store close to my home town (as my home town didn't have a pharmacy at that point) had a little arcade area where we used to go and play the games, it had a Splatterhouse cabinet. It was right next to Double Dragon cabinet on the left side and on the right of Double Dragon was a Tetris cabinet.
It's your love of Splatterhouse that got me into the series to begin with...and it fucking rocks!
I even bought the new splatterhouse and enjoyed that one immensly (except for a few annoying things...like the ending)...
Jennifer's scream when she transforms into the monster from the arcade version is freaking haunting as shit...
Great stuff Derek. My friend had wanted to do this very video describing the differences between the T-16 and Arcade versions but we could never find a cheap PCB. After seeing your review of the new game I'll be sure to pick it up on the 360, even if the new game is crappy I can always go back and give the old three a whirl.
I know this video is 4 years old, but I think Jennifer is saying "Oh, I'm Dying!", because 1. How would she be asleep when we just heard her scream at the end of level 4, and 2. I don't think she would recognize Rick thanks to the effects of the terror mask. I don't know. Just a thought.
Super late to the party comment, but wanted to chime in that the Splatterhouse arcade cab was actually fairly popular here in Newfoundland, Canada... I played it in multiple cities here in the 90's and loved the crap out of it (even if it was absurdly difficult)
Final battle the way i imagined it:
Mask: "Here lies Henry West... huh. What a letdown."
Rick: "This will not do..."
Mask: "Why not? He's dead, it's over. Why the sudden bloodthirst from a little goodie like you?"
Rick: "For what he did to Jennifer, i want vengeance... bring him back."
Mask: "How do you even know that i can do that?"
Rick: "You brought me back. DO THE SAME FOR HIM! NOW! I want him to die for what he did, and i want it by MY HAND!"
Mask: "Now you're speaking my language."
( Luminethereploid ) after your whole sentence:
Chris Tucker: "Then get the hell on then" LMAO XD
I can actually hear Josh Keaton and Jim Cummings say those things.
@1337BleachFan i might. this was a little something i quickly threw together because the review was taking so long. i wasn't trying to think of a new series of videos, but it might be something i come back to.
we had a splatter house arcade cabinet at a roller rink here in indianapolis
I used to play this game at my local Roller Rink, probably around '91-'93. It blew my mind when my friend showed me the Genesis games a few years later.
I'm pretty sure the final boss was DR. West.
The arcade version is what is on the splatterhouse remake. I'm 37 and I became a big fan of the game when i first played it at the arcade here in La. I was like 10 or 11 at the time. I remember how awesome it was. It Rocked. The wii also had the TG16 version. Sega had part 2 and 3 on it as well. I had them all. I love the remake. Everything felt right to me. I had no problems playing the game at all or getting it learn it. Me, I could care less what the critics say about the game or any game for that matter. No one is gonna tell me not to get a game just because they didn't like it.
well the critics never liked Splatterhouse.
Gamespot gave the original a 4.7/10. Like really? It's not the most complex beat 'em up out there, but it's a lot of fun.
We had a Splatterhouse machine in the movie rental store at the shit town I grew up in in rural Alberta (Canada).
+DinosaurSatan Really? I'm here in Alberta and I never saw one, ever! I would have spend all my parents quarters up in that machine. I was at least fortunate enough to have a Turbo back in the day with Splatterhouse.
Yep! The video store had E-SWAT, Wonder Boy in Monster Land, and Splatterhouse. And at one point my home town had an actual arcade with like 30 games, but it got closed down after a few months.
That's awesomely lucky. I swear if I ever find one to buy, it's coming home to my personal arcade.
In Saskatchewan where I live there was a small arcade in a Drugstore in Cudworth (nearest town to my hometown that had a doctor). It was right next to the Double Dragon cabinet. I remember it quite clearly, and on the opposite side of the Double Dragon cabinet was a Tetris arcade machine.
We had this arcade game at our local grocery store in the late 80’s. Louisiana U.S. I could never make it past the leech worm things
While fighting the stage 5 boss on the TurboGrafx-16 version something odd happened:
The boss did a high jump to the right (Rick is on the corner on the right), I jump and hit the boss midair, apparently so hard the boss got punched out of existence (or perhaps through the ceiling :P ).
Then this "Top-Heavy"-enemy showed up, but extremely glitched, kinda like it appears after the boss is defeated.
And then i was stuck, stage didn't end >_>
I can confirm it was on the arcades in Europe in the 80's. played it tons on an arcade machine in the Netherlands at the time. my life has changed forever., my mind was blown when I first saw and played this. cheers
I played Splatterhouse in a mall in Cleveland, in like 92' i think.
Weird, and hard.
I just saw the best video on Splatterhouse that I've seen on the tube ever.
Real amazing nerdery. Thank you for your efforts.
I personally think that she said Oh, DON'T KILL ME. But who knows what she's saying?
Thank You for explaining this! I had no idea how Jennifer came back in part 2 until you had explained it!
they should have kept the red mask in the series. it makes it look bloody and unique.
Good review, Derek. Though I'm certain someone else already said it, Splatterhouse did get a stateside arcade release. My introduction to the series was in an Aladdin's Castle in Chicago back in 1990.
Keep up the great work, though!
Thank you lophatjello. I love your videos. Salute from Spain!
I remember seeing a promo commercial for the console games in the early 90's...it was the most bad ass commercial I ever saw...Rick basically heaves a giant log onto a band saw and makes his own 2x4 to kick some ass at the mansion...I wish I could find it. great review! I'm going to have nightmares now
Great vid man! Awesome to finally find another Splatterhouse fan on TH-cam, most underrated franchise and my favourite franchise! BTW, I beleive Jennifer is saying: "Rick, help me!" during the boss fight.
If you read through the peanuts style adult voice she says "Rick, please don't kill me."
she's saying during the fight "stop dont do it"
awesome man
I've gotta thank you Derek, for introducing this series to me, its amazing, this is the kind of game I pop in to play if i have a spare 20-30 minutes before i have to leave somewhere.
when the mask laughs at the end it STILL gives me chills AND I LOVE IT =D
Great video , Derek ! You are one of the best reviewers out there , keep up the good work !
You know, considering an axe was changed to a GOLD cleaver...would that technically make it the Golden Axe? ;P
3 years after, im here to say.... well that would make sense ^^ good joke =)
I can confirm it was released in North America. I used to play it in 1988 at an arcade in Huntington Beach California. Some of my best teenage memories!
Derek, I must say im surprised that there wasn't a Splatterhouse arcade near you, I live in Ireland and I almost jumped for joy out of my skin when I seen it here, I was a huge fan of Splatterhouse 2 on the Megadrive (Genesis in the US) and was always gutted to know the first game was not on that console, hell I even had dreams that I found it at that young age (sad I know but I was a kid), I have no idea how much I put into the arcade, would love to see a Splatterhouse sequel to the reboot
I can confirm that Splatterhouse made it to arcades in the US.
The Barrel of Fun arcade in Tuscaloosa, Alabama had it when it came out. I played it several times.
Alright I am definitely going to look into playing Splatterhouse. Well done man I am glad I subbed to you. Also that head boss that comes out of the ground looks like Gluttony from Full Metal Alchemist.
I remember that intro from an arcade cabinet back in my home town in 1989, standing next to an Altered Beast machine. I was a little kid, and didn't want to watch the rest. It wasn't until I saw reviews like this when I recognized the intro, and realized what I saw was Splatterhouse. I also think the machine was only there for a few days, since I only ever saw it once.
Also, I think Jennifer is saying "No, please don't hurt me." in the Arcade mode, or maybe "please don't kill me". But the first and last things she said are clearly more audible.
This has to be my favorite video by you to date. What an amazing job.
I live in the States and I played it here when I was a kid. It was at a local bowling alley and it's the only cabinet I ever saw pop up in the many many arcades I visited.
When I first heard Jeniffer in the arcade game, I thought she was saying "Please, don't kill me!" If you think about it, one way to look is this would allow the creature to make Rick doubt himself that she's still in there and she can be saved, which offer a chance for her to revert and gut Rick like a fish. On the other, she very clearly doesn't want to die, even though she's scared to hell. And yet, the monsters have made a clear matter of kill or be killed... AND WE LOVE IT!!!
"Shi-- I'd be groovin' too!" XD
@TheGamedawg yeah dude, check that description.
Derek!
A little info about the last boss!
According to certain sources, I've learned about who and what the ghost face is.The Terror Mask releases energy into the grave, reviving a giant monster named Hell Chaos that claws its way up from the earth and attempts to kill Rick. Rick destroys the creature, which unleashes a tormented ghost that dissipates into a series of bright lights.
The ghost face, I've found out, is Doctor West.
is it possible at all to kill the lvl 3 boss without the shotgun? I know you can slidekick him but everytime i do that he hits back before i can make some distance. Either it's not possible or you have to sacrifice mutlitple hearts in order to do it.
Thanks for doing what no one else would do :)
Not to mention the Top Heavy monsters were removed from stage 2 in the TG-16 port for whatever reason.
The arcade was available here in the states. I played it at a hole in the wall grocery store growing up. Oddly enough, the mask was red like the TG 16 version, but it was years before the TG existed. Also, the inverted cross boss was there as well as the cleaver in the first level. Not sure what kind of custom port I was playing, but it was splatterhouse in all of it gory glory.
Man I love these videos. Especially this month 😊
Very nicely done, as usual. Great info on the Splatterhouse series. And yes, it is great that Night of the Creeps *finally* got a DVD release. Even better that it's packed with special features instead of some cheap movie-only bargain bin release.
We had 2 arcade Splatterhouse machines in my home city (London, Ontario, Canada). The first one was at a japanese variety store and the other was at Wizard's Arcade. I was the first one out of my friends to beat it back when I was in high school.
I really enjoyed this "Gettin' Super Nerdy" video, you should do more like it.
Really informative and well done, love the series!
@Jprime777 thats very fair to say. i of course disagree, i really enjoyed the action but Splatterhouse 2010 isn't for everyone. i'd still recommend you check out the classic games though.
This was a great introduction to this franchise.
@snowcon3 i did notice that. i had a part in the new review where i was going to talk about the differences i noticed in parts 2 and 3, but i cut it out when the script was getting too long.
Hey, Splatterhouse arcade was also available back in '88. I particularly remember this game at the NY State Fair back then.
I can verify that at least one arcade machine was in the U.S. I played Splatterhouse for the first time during the summer of 1995 in Kirksville, Missouri at Truman State's rec-room where they had a Splatterhouse arcade machine.
Awesome it was still around then. Considering the game was from 1988. I miss those arcade machines
I can confirm that the Arcade version was released here in Canada, as I have played it in arcades both in Lower Sackville and Bridgewater, Nova Scotia. Was one of the goriest and creepiest games I've ever palyed, amnd I still love it to this day!
lol, this was released on my birthday last year, before i knew about you. It would have been a great present! :P
Cool video! Just out of curosity, where were you all this time? Your last video was quite awhile ago. What were you doing during that time?
Great comparison, Derek, I always enjoy listening to what you have to say.
One could argue that you can see the outline of the mask in the skyline of the scene where the house burns down in the arcade version.
Which versions of the games are unlocked in splatter house 2010?? Like the arcade versions or the home console ports like turbo grafix 16?
Arcade.
She says “am...so sorry”
Quick question, are you going to review the new Splatterhouse eventually?
I actually really enjoyed this review. Thank you for sharing your love of this game which I wouldn't have loved so much myself.
Great video! But I gotta say, on level 6 you mention the heart boss spilling crap at you, but according to wiki it's a womb:
"The death of the womb boss of Stage 6 is changed from a graphic spilling of embryonic fluids into a generic fiery explosion in the console versions (both western and Japanese releases)"
Dunno how accurate this is, but it could explain why it's been changed from the port (that's just intensely disturbing if it embryonic fluid)
man SPLATTERHOUSE is an epic series
Taken word from tvtropes, the arcade version was released in the US. Graphic violence sparked media frenzy from moral guardians and it was pulled from arcades. It ported to PC Engine and was Bowdlerized.
We used to have a Splatterhouse arcade machine at the skating rink down the street from where I grew up. It was around, just hard to find.
@PressStartComic oh hell yeah. you need to buy the new one if for no other reason to have the original three. I didn't think the new one was crappy, but it's not for everyone.
i think Jennifer says"Please,help me"
I think she's saying either "Stop, don't do it" or "Rick, don't do it" because I can hear 3 syllables after that first one (don't do it)
Great insights, thanks Derek!
On the part of 10:40 Jenny says "No.. Don't do this!" ...Like the entity trying to confuse Rick's mind when he about to kill his lover... or what left of her.
yeah out of everything i thought and heard this seems the most legit.
The arcade machines were here in the UK. I remember seeing people play it when I was younger so it was released outside of Japan.
@Nemesis986 why wait? it's up now at retrowaretv[dot]com! check the front page!
at the part where Jenifer reverts back to normal in the arcade i think shes saying something like "Help please kill me" or something like that but that's just me great video.
I watched the arcade version of this game recently. It sounds like she's saying "My Darling" and that laugh when she transforms into the monster is super creepy.The necromancer is saying "I'm grooving" at least in my opinion.
I haven't watched the Splatterhouse 2010 review yet, but please tell me you got the pre order mask statue
aewsome vid keep up the awesome work !!
The last boss in the arcade, and I can confirm that there was a US release or at least an arcade that perhaps ordered a Japanese game. I always heard him screaming "WHERE ARE YOU!" since most of the time his head is underground and he can't see you.
hes right. in my old neighborhood in a video rental place it had an arcade system of Splaterhouse. about 20-25years ago. i remember the place as if it was yesterday.
(Jono99) You're absolutely right. Jennifer DID say I can't do this in the arcade in between parts of the fight.
The theme for the floating inverted cross boss is SO much better in the console port!