Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Acquisition #124: Corpse Party

I've been meaning to pick up Corpse Party, the "horror adventure" title developed by 5pb and Team GrisGris and published by Xseed Games, since its North American PSN release was announced last fall.

For some reason, though, I dragged my feet until just before my husband and I flew home to take care of my mom and dad. (Actually, I shouldn't say "for some reason," as I'm fairly certain my feet dragged because of Corpse Party's $19.99 price tag, which I still consider a bit high for a download-only title.)

Unfortunately, I can't even share with you a few early thoughts on this supposedly well-worth-the-price-of-admission game (according to numerous reviews, including this one by Anne Lee, aka the Chic Pixel blog's--and this blog's--apricotsushi) because, well, I've been taking care of my mom and dad for the past three weeks.

Things are ever-so-slightly returning to normal in my life, though, so I'm going to do my best to give Corpse Party a go during our flight back to Seattle in a few days. Should I fail to do so, don't fret. I'll make sure I play at least a bit of it at some point in the following week--and afterward I'll publish some early impressions here.

Have any of you played Corpse Party? If so, what did you think of it?

See also: 'Acquisition #123: Patchwork Heroes'

28 comments:

RetroKingSimon said...

Haven't played it yet, although I'd like to judging by that cover! I love the Japanese obsession with schoolgirls, it's funny :)

Viewtiful_Justin said...

Whoa. Can't wait to hear your impressions of what sounds like it could be a great game!

Bryan Ochalla said...

Do you have a PSP, Simon? I have to imagine you don't, but you never know! Anyway, I've read such great things about this one that I just had to get it.

I have played a smidge of it, by the way. I wrote this post on Friday, before we flew back to Seattle, and I played the game for about an hour while on the plane. Really liking it so far! I like how it creates tension even though the main graphics are just 16-bit quality. Anyway, I'll have further impressions soon, I promise!

Bryan Ochalla said...

Oh, you know i'll share them, Justin :P Also, like I just said, I have played the game for a short while now, and I definitely like what I've played so far. Nothing truly terrifying has happened yet, but definitely some gross-ness. Can't wait until the game ratchets up the horror factor :)

RetroKingSimon said...

Indeed I do have a PSP, Bryan! I bought it purely for LocoRoco but I have around 15 games for it now. I don't use it that often - I need to do that thing to it so I use emulators and all that :)

chaosyoshimage said...

It's on my super long list of games to download on my PSP. I've heard really good things about it. I'm not very experienced with the horror genre, but the RPG styling of the game might help reel me into that realm of gaming.

Bryan Ochalla said...

That surprises me, Simon! You don't have a DS, though, do you?

As for modding your PSP so it can use emulators and the like: I've long meant to do the same to my PSP, but I've always been too scared to do so. Which is kind of funny, as I've had no problem modding my Wii!

Bryan Ochalla said...

chaosyoshimage: I understand having a long list of "to buy" PSP games. My list is overflowing! Anyway, hope you're able to give this one a go soon. I'd love to hear what others think of it, too.

Unknown said...

Almost fell out of my chair, I was so excited you got to pick this up! I won't go on any further, but I really hope you enjoy it! :)

Bryan Ochalla said...

Were you surprised that I picked up such a game, Matthew? Or were you just happy that I bought it?

Regardless, I'm liking it well enough so far. Of course, I've only played about an hour of it. Will try to put some more time into it this weekend, if not before.

Unknown said...

haha, happy that you bought it. I've come to learn you have a wonderfully ecclectic taste in video games.

Retr0gamer said...

No surprises here, I've still not played it. I however won't admit to owning too many games!

Bryan Ochalla said...

Ah, that's good to know and hear, Matthew :) I suppose I do have a rather eclectic taste in games. Really, the only genre I don't much care for is the FPS genre -- and that's mainly because I can't stand the perspective. Anyway, I'll definitely let you know what I think of this one after I've played it a bit more.

Bryan Ochalla said...

No worries, Retr0gamer. I'm sure you've got more than enough games to keep you busy at the moment :P

RetroKingSimon said...

No, I don't have a DS - my only handhelds are Game Gear, Neo Geo Pocket Colour, Swan Crystal, and PSP. I keep meaning to get a DS but... you know how it is :P

Bryan Ochalla said...

Ah, I thought so, Simon. You sure have an interesting mix of portables, I have to say. Not a Nintendo-made one among them! Anyway, I'd obviously highly recommend picking up a DS at some point. It's got one of the best game libraries of all time -- counting portables and consoles -- in my opinion.

Unknown said...

Well you already know what I think, haha! Thanks for all the shoutouts, by the way! Now I will forever be remembered as "that girl who liked Corpse Party." ;)

By the way, I did a neat little interview with Tom, the guy who translated the game, for VGW. It's definitely a better read if you've played through a fair bit of the game, but you should check it out once you've played more if you're interested. He talks about the translation process... It's very interesting.

So it sounds like you've played about an hour? I know Brad "I hate everything" Gallaway couldn't stand to play it more than that ;) I hope the overabundance of screeching high school girls hasn't turned you off too much! I think after chapter 1 it really picks up.

Oh, are you using headphones? Have you found it scary at all, so far? Admittedly the game creeped me out, but never did anything to outright frighten me. (which is strange, considering that I'm scared so easily, but I think it has something to do with the anime-style graphics making it more palatable)

Bryan Ochalla said...

Hello again, Anne!

Oh, I think you'll be known for more than just being the girl who liked Corpse Party. Even if that was the case, though, as least you'll be known for something :P

Thanks for mentioning your interview with the guy who translated Corpse Party. I'll check it out after I've spent a bit more time with the game. Don't want to spoil anything!

Ha ha! I love your name for Brad :) Don't be too hard on him--he's probably been driven mad by Seattle's weather.

I'm not using headphones, but maybe I'll start using them now. Also, I haven't been scared yet, but I definitely find the setting creepy and somewhat unsettling--which I like!

I'll be sure to write up a post about my early impressions in a few days, OK?

Unknown said...

Looking forward to hearing more of your thoughts!

Because the game has this special "3D" sound, it's much better with headphones. You really get the effect of character whispering in your ear, flies buzzing in the distance... It's pretty creepy! At least give it a try :)

I tease Brad because I love him! We respect each other's opinions and like a lot of the same stuff, but man, he really trashed Corpse Party on the GameCritics podcast after only playing an hour of it. Won't let him live it down ;)

Bryan Ochalla said...

Oh, that sounds cool--the 3D sound. I'll give it a try next time I boot up the game.

As for Brad: Yeah, he can be grouchy sometimes, but I like that about him :) I can't imagine hating this game after just an hour, though--unless he just found it boring?

Earlier today someone responded to my tweet about the game saying that he hated it, too, so at least Brad's not alone :P

shidoshi said...

I played it and loved it! (My review of the game) Was my second-favorite game of 2011.

Bryan Ochalla said...

Ah, that's good to hear, shidoshi! And thank you for posting a link to your review. I'll go read it now :)

Milki said...

I'm a little stressed out by the sequences where you have to run away from something that will result in "Wrong End" if it touches you, but other than that I love the game! I've gotta say that I find the $19,99 price tag quite reasonable for the game, but then again, I'm used to German game prices and games that cost 60 USD cost 60 Euro ($78) over here - so I'm mainly pleased witht he digital game prices in the US. :> Except for Atlus' games, those could really use a price cut, $39,99 for a 2+ year old game is a bit high imo.

Anyway, I somehow stumbled upon your blog when searching google for Zero Escape related stuff and will follow from now on! :)

Bryan Ochalla said...

Hey there, miruki! Welcome to my little corner of the blogosphere :)

I haven't played far enough to have to run away from anything yet, but I'm hopeful I'll get there this weekend.

I understand what you're saying RE: game prices, by the way. And, honestly, I know $20 isn't too much for a full-fledged game, even if it is download-only, but I guess it's just a mental barrier I still have to get over.

Thank you for following my blog, by the way. I just checked out yours and I am now following it, too. Glad to hear you're liking your Vita so far, by the way!

Milki said...

I love the Vita! Tho the lack of decent Vita games is a bit disappointing. It's the first gaming device at launch, so I guess that's just a bit new to me. ;> But I'm expecting huge things to come, the Vita is a great system and I hope some developers will come up with awesome stuff for it. :)

I'm glad I bought it and even tho the 299€ were certainly a lot for a handheld, I'm now saving a lot on PSP and Vita games since I'm using the US PSN store. I bought Corpse Party from the German store tho, since - you won't believe it - it was actually a few cent cheaper being priced at 14,99€. ;>

Hopefully I can continue playing some more Corpse Party soon too, I'm currently pretty addicted to Touch My Katamari and I still need to finish Fate/Extra, both on my US acc and I'd need to format the system (hence losing all my background and menu layout changes) before I can log on to my German PSN acc.. I want to change my background soon anyway tho, so I'll continue in a few days probably. 8)

Milki said...

The first gaming device I bought at launch*

;>

Bryan Ochalla said...

Thanks for all of the impressions related to your Vita, miruki! I'm not planning to buy one anytime soon, but I'm still interested in the system and like to hear about other peoples' experiences with it. I'll have to keep a close eye on your blog in the coming weeks and months so I don't miss any of your further comments about the Vita :)

Bryan Ochalla said...

BTW, I'm amazed that the Vita is the first system you've bought at launch. If you don't mind me asking: Why is that -- meaning, why haven't you bought any other system at launch?