Who here likes to go to haunted houses for Halloween? I went to a few when I was younger, and I remember them being a spooky good time. Actually, it was only a couple years ago now when I was with my family at Busch Gardens during their Halloween festivities and they had a great haunted maze my brother and I went through as our last stop before leaving the park.<\/p>\n

Anyways, my reason for reminiscing is because I\u2019ve been playing XSEED\u2019s new Wii \u201chaunted house simulator\u201d JU-ON: The Grudge<\/em> lately and have been trying to remember good things about haunted houses because this game really fails to deliver on its premise.<\/p>\n

On paper, its premise is intriguing too. For those wondering, the game is indeed inspired by the Japanese horror flick of the same name, though I haven\u2019t seen the movie so I can\u2019t tell you how it ties in. Considering the game has absolutely no storyline, I don\u2019t think there\u2019s much tying it to the film beyond visual continuity.<\/p>\n

The object of the game, if you can even call it a game, is to mosey your way through four spooky environments (there\u2019s a fifth bonus stage to unlock as well) in a first-person perspective with only a flashlight to guide your way, watch creepy scripted events play out as you would in a haunted house, maybe collect a key or two to progress, and basically survive until the stage ends. <\/p>\n

Controls are ridiculously simple: you hold the B button to move forward, point at the screen with the Wii Remote to point your flashlight and turn the camera, and occasionally waggle the remote in designated QTE (Quick Time Event) sequences to escape the long-haired creepy girl\u2019s grasp whenever she grabs onto you. You also have to keep an eye out for extra batteries, because if your flashlight runs out of juice you lose (failing a QTE also leads to game over). A second player can also pick up a remote of their own and attempt to scare you by triggering events at the press of a button, which is kind of neat.<\/p>\n

Simple as they may be, though, the controls are what completely ruin the experience. Your character\u2019s movement speed is mind-numbingly slow, and aiming the flashlight and turning the camera is sluggish and unnatural, so much so that it\u2019s easy to overlook important items and doors, and even miss scripted scares entirely (Wii MotionPlus support would\u2019ve really helped here). There are no checkpoints either, so failing and having to replay a stage from the very beginning because the game\u2019s poor camera system prevented you from spotting an extra battery or important key is infuriating.<\/p>\n

Because the game is so scripted, the prospect of having to replay a stage while enduring the glacial pacing is no fun at all. What\u2019s worse, the game as a whole is maybe two hours long at max. Each stage averages out to maybe 15-20 minutes long depending on how lucky you are with finding key items on the first pass-by without having to backtrack. Every minute that passes feels like an eternity, though, given how slow the movement is.<\/p>\n

The developers also really skimped on rudimentary presentation features. Once you\u2019ve launched into a stage there\u2019s no way to quit back out to the main menu, and there\u2019s no built-in brightness adjustment option (a brightness meter is provided, but you have to adjust the brightness of your whole TV set).<\/p>\n

All of these flaws really are a shame too, because underneath the tedious exploration and wonky controls there is a really unique horror experience to be had in The Grudge<\/em>. While the game\u2019s scares are predictable and recycled, the atmosphere is eerie and unsettling enough to get the blood pumping and the hair on the back of your neck standing on end — the long-haired girl\u2019s rumbling moan in particular is always creepy, even after you\u2019ve heard it for the billionth time. <\/p>\n

But unfortunately the faulty gameplay will strike fear into your heart far more than the disturbing atmosphere and abundant use of creepy little kids popping out at you, so if you\u2019re in the mood for a good fright this Halloween I say leave this game on the shelf and use your cash for a real<\/em> haunted house.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Pros:<\/strong>
\n+ Creepy atmosphere
\n+ Solid graphics and audio overall<\/p>\n

Cons:<\/strong>
\n– Awful controls and camera movement
\n– Mind-numbingly slow pacing
\n– Recycled scare tactics
\n– Very short with no replay value
\n– Lacks checkpoints and other basic game features<\/p>\n

Game Info:<\/strong>
\nPlatform: Wii
\nPublisher: XSEED Games
\nDeveloper: FeelPlus
\nRelease Date: 10\/13\/09
\nGenre: Adventure
\nESRB Rating: Mature
\nPlayers: 1-2
\nSource: Review copy provided by publisher<\/p>\n

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