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Considering this game is a rare joint venture between Namco and Sega, it's shocking how little imagination has gone into Vampire Night. The only new idea here is health bars for all the baddies, and, really, that's not much of an innovation. There's a cryptful of extra game modes and secrets, but that's unlikely to offer much comfort when you complete the main game within just a few hours of opening the box.
Vampire Night isn't awful by any means, but it is terribly derivative. Time Crisis 2 is a much better bet if you fancy a bit of gun game action. However, if you already own that game, this is a good second choice. --David Jenkins
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
40 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Oh What a Partnership! Oh What a Game!,
By RandyAU93 (Lithia Springs, GA United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Vampire Night (Video Game)
Sega no longer making consoles? Sega developing games for other companies? If you'd have told me this last year, I'd have said you were crazy. Well, it would seem I'm not crazy, as Sega is busy cranking out titles for just about everybody. Now, Sega has teamed with longtime arcade rival Namco to bring us one of the first PlayStation 2 light-gun shooting games, based on a little-seen arcade title. After playing the game, it really distresses me that quality this high didn't make it to more arcades.The story and gameplay are relatively straightforward to fans of Sega's "House of the Dead" series (which has no connection to this game). Shoot anything undead that moves and rescue bystanders in distress. While that is the basic premise of "Vampire Night," the exact method to this madness is totally revamped (no pun intended). You still have to take out the evil minions bent on your destruction, but now you are blessed with a life meter that appears if your first shot does not instantly dispatch your attacker. You still have to rescue other citizens, but the rescue is now much harder ... victims have been attacked by a "parasite" of sorts that controls them and compels them to attack you. Shoot the parasite and you rescue the victim. Hit the victim, and the parasite consumes the victim and transforms it into a monster, which of course will head straight for you. At this point, it's up to you to put the poor blokes out of their misery (and keep them from putting you out of yours). Like its predecessors, success or failure here will send you on different paths through the stage. The game's creatures feature quite evasive attack patterns, making them harder to hit; they sometimes only stand still long enough to launch a projectile at you that you must shoot away to keep from losing a life point. The bosses, which are introduced to you one by one in the game's cutscenes, are well-designed and feature unbelievably detailed animations and deadly (albeit still pattern-based) attacks. But the big difference from earlier titles is how mobile the bosses are now. They duck behind obstacles so you can't hit them, they transform ... anything and everything to squash you flat. Graphically, the game is beautiful. Stages are dank and dark, with subtle details throughout. Character animations are fluid, and don't spew blood everywhere (which would explain the game's T rating instead of "House of the Dead"'s M). Musically, "Vampire Night" sounds like a cross between Castlevania and obscure (but excellent) PSOne light-gun game Elemental Gearbolt. Some of the bosses and victims require spot-on accuracy. Lucky for you, the game supports the industry standard for light-guns, Namco's Guncon 2, as well as its PSOne sibling, the original Guncon. Guncon 2 users can take advantage of the many accessory buttons on the gun to reload as needed (the old reliable shoot-off-the-screen reload works too). Fortunately, there's not just the arcade game. "Vampire Night" combines the best of both manufacturers (Namco and Sega) to put together a very replayable game. It has Namco's totally-new Original mode, combined with Sega's training modes, which help you learn all the new tricks of the game. Right now, Namco is 2-for-2 in releasing exceptional light-gun games for the PlayStation 2. First, their own "Time Crisis 2." Now, they present one of the best joint venture games to come along in ages.
22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great graphics/gameplay, but is a bit on the short side,
By "neomurtle" (Acworth, GA United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Vampire Night (Video Game)
Vampire Night for Playstation 2 is a perfect translation of it's arcade counterpart. For those who have not played it, it's a first person, guided path shooting game very similar to The House Of The Dead. Unfortunately, Vampire Night also shares The House Of The Dead series' bad dialogue and story. However, one must remember that Vampire Night was an arcade game. That means it is meant to emphasize on quick, flashy gameplay and amazing graphics...and it is in that area that Vampire Night excels. The simple gameplay allows anyone to jump into the game, so it's great if you don't want to spend alot of time mastering complex controls. Although it will only take you about 20 to 30 minutes to plow through the game, it's still fun to play the 2 player mode over and over. In addition, the Special and Training modes that were added to this home version help provide more replay value also. The D-pad and the analog stick work surprisingly well with Vampire Night, so there's no need to blow money on a light gun unless you insist on fully recreating the arcade experience. Those who crave fast arcade shooting action will love Vampire Night. If you are looking for something deeper with an involving story, I suggest you get Red Faction or Metal Gear Solid 2 instead.
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
More Gothic Gun horror,
By
This review is from: Vampire Night (Video Game)
Vampire Night seems like the PS2 owner's consolation prize for not being able to play "House Of The Dead 2", but don't worry it's just as good as that masterpiece...well almost.First of all, the graphics are fantastic, better than arcade contemporaries "Ninja Assault" and "Confidential Mission", which also have console conversions. The style is best showcased in the first chapter with some superb depictions of winter sunlight on a frozen lake. Luckily, even players who [stink] at the game can get to see this! But the impressive visual style carries on all the way to the end, which is refreshing, as in some gun games, the levels seem to get less interesting. Maybe the designers feel that most players will never get any further than the first stage when playing in the arcade, so they don't feel it's worth the extra effort!! The enemies and townsfolk are also realistic and well animated, and the design of the Vampire's castle is fantastic, full of grandiose chambers, giant towers and lofty walkways, all depicted in elaborate detail. So, what about gameplay? Well, its all pretty standard, and if anything, its an easier game than HOTD2, so you could be facing the final showdown after not too many attempts. But the boss battles are better, because they display an "attack bar" as well as a life bar for the boss, so you can see how close you are to being lamped, and can blast accordingly. Some of the bosses, especially the first, come in more than one stage, often morphing into a different shape during the fight. The first boss is a particulary impressive encounter, with three entirely seperate phases to play through - a great idea. On the downside, there are fewer alternate routes through the game, which is a pity. Of course, the extra modes are usually what makes a lightgun game live or die in the console market, and I quite enjoyed those on offer here. The training sesion is, as seems to be the standard now, horrendously difficult, much harder than the game itself, so plenty of challenge there. And the Mission mode gives you a special objective to look out for each time you play through the story, such as finding lost treaure, or opening secret doors that do not appear in Arcade mode, so that can be fun too, as there are around 20 different missions to complete. Plus,you trade the special items forund in this mode at a shop, and can buy power ups and attachments with money earned. There's even a gallery of artwork and character biographies to browse through. To sum up, "Vampire Night" is a slick and polished lightgun game that lives up to it's expectations, and a good alterantive to "House of the Dead 2", so fans of the genre will be very happy with it. It's just a shame that only Dreamcast owners can enjoy the very best of the lot
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