Splatterhouse 2

Splatterhouse 2, known in Japan as Splatterhouse Part 2^[a], is a 1992 beat 'em upvideo game developed by Now Production and published by Namco for the Sega Genesis. It is the sequel to the 1988 arcade gameSplatterhouse, and the third installment in the Splatterhouse series, following Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti.

On August 4, 2008, the game was released on the WiiVirtual Console in North America.^[3] It is the first and the only ESRB M-rated game to be released for the Virtual Console. The game was included as an unlockable extra in the 2010 remake.^[4] It was included on the Sega Genesis Mini 2 in October 2022.

Three months have gone by since the events of the first game. Rick is still suffering from his guilt of being unable to save Jennifer and has been plagued by nightmares of her and the Terror Mask, which reformed after breaking at the climax of the first game. Suddenly, the mask reappears to Rick and tempts him to find the house, telling him that Jennifer can be saved. It closes by telling Rick that it will give him power.^[5][6] Rick succeeds in rescuing Jennifer, and the House sinks into the bottom of the river.

Splatterhouse 2 features gameplay very similar to the first game.^[7] The player controls Rick through eight different stages, each two-dimensional. Rick's attacks remain largely unchanged, able to punch, kick, jump kick, and slide kick, as well as use several weapons scattered throughout the levels. Each level features a boss at the end, often a grotesque monster. New additions to the gameplay include a difficulty setting and a password system for the English version (the Japanese version lacks a password feature), taken from Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti.^[7]

En las versiones occidentales del juego, el diseño de la Máscara del Terror es similar a una calavera. En la versión japonesa, la máscara es blanca con rayas negras sobre cada ojo, lo que hace que se parezca vagamente a una máscara kabuki . ^{[ 7 ]} Debido a la traducción cuando el juego fue localizado, algunos elementos son más claros en la versión japonesa. En ella, la Máscara le indica a Rick que "encuentre la casa oculta" y que Jennifer está en "la tierra de los muertos". En la versión occidental, la Máscara le indica a Rick que "vuelva a la casa" y no especifica dónde está Jennifer. Esto ha causado cierta confusión entre los jugadores que no han jugado la versión japonesa original, y varios creen que la mansión intacta en el segundo juego es la Mansión Oeste del Splatterhouse original, cuando en realidad las ruinas carbonizadas que conforman la primera fase son lo que queda de la Mansión Oeste (estas ruinas también se pueden ver claramente al comienzo del juego, antes de que la pantalla se desplace para revelar la otra mansión, también conocida como la "casa oculta").

Game Informer elogió el juego, diciendo que Splatterhouse 2 era "definitivamente uno que no te puedes perder". ^{[ 8 ]} Abby Normal de GamePro afirmó: "Si alguna vez quisiste vengarte de todos esos monstruos del armario de tu infancia, ahora tienes la oportunidad de hacerlo indirectamente a través de Splatterhouse 2". ^{[ 9 ]}

Many were quick to point out that a great premise wasn't enough to carry a game. Sega Force called the controls "sluggish" and suggests the game gameplay "lets the whole game down."^[12]Video Games & Computer Entertainment agreed, arguing that "Splatterhouse 2 does nothing to advance the genre."^[14]Mean Machines Sega also noted the poor graphics and short single-player campaign.^[15]Mega Action gave an overall score of 88% calling the game a "Sick, Slick scrolling beat-‘em-up."^[11] The four reviewers of Mega Play gave positive reviews noting the blood and gore gameplay being one of the best points of the game and felt the game would appeal to horror movie fans. They criticized the game's controls, the lack of new features and repetitive gameplay.^[10]

Upon reviewing the game for its Virtual Console release, Lucas Thomas of IGN noted that he was largely unimpressed with the game's lack of innovation, ultimately giving it a 5.5 out of 10.^[16] While he praised the game's continuation of its gory presentation, he wrote that "While Splatterhouse 2 is even more violent and replete with even more disturbing images, the shock value is largely gone. We've seen it all before".