PLATFORM: PC, PS4/5, SWITCH, XBOX ONE/SERIES (REVIEWED) | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
A pulpy grindhouse B-movie in videogame form, Shadows of the Damned stars dashing Latino demon-hunter Garcia “Fucking” Hotspur and his rippling torso, as he attempts to save his girlfriend Paula from the lord of the demons, Fleming. Garcia’s quest takes him deep into the demonic underworld where he slays all manner of unholy creatures with a bit of assistance from his floating flaming skull pal, Johnson, who doubles up as a range of weapon attachments. Yes, Garcia shoots demons using his Johnson. That’s just one of the many euphemisms and double entendres that the game throws at you, so if you’re of a sensitive disposition then it may be best to switch off right now!
For those of you who are still reading, Hella Remastered is an updated version of the 2011 cult favourite from developer Suda51 (the man behind similarly unhinged titles like Killer7, Lollipop Chainsaw, and the No More Heroes series) and Resident Evil creator, Shinji Mikami. Full of the kind of choice language and sexual innuendo that few games would be brave enough to attempt these days, SotD throws weird and gruesome things at you at an almost alarming rate, a truly delightful cocktail of absurd humour and over the top horror which could only really have come from the minds of these particular creators.
Thankfully, SotD‘s gameplay is (mostly) solid enough to ensure that it’s fun to play as well as being entertaining to watch. The game’s five chapters are very linear, giving little room for exploration and pushing you towards the end of each act at a fairly quick pace, which feels a little bit strange to play in the modern era of huge open worlds full of side quests and other distractions, but does allow for lots of tightly scripted action-packed sequences that really help the game to stand out. Combat and movement similarly feel very old-school, with some slightly janky animations and unpredictable hit boxes, but that’s sort of part of the charm in a game like this.
In a way, it would have been nice to have seen a few aspects being tightened up for this remaster (for example, there’s a chase sequence that’s just as infuriating today as it was in 2011…), but at the same time the attempt to preserve the game in its original glory is definitely admirable. Hella Remastered doesn’t do a huge amount differently to the original, other than increasing the resolution and adding a handful of costumes for Garcia to strut around in, although the addition of a New Game Plus mode is very welcome, allowing players to keep all of their upgraded weapons across repeat playthroughs. Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered might not be the most in-depth update, but the game is very much still as rude, ridiculous and fun as it always was, and for that it certainly earns a hearty recommendation!
