REVIEW – The concept of resurrection in the case of the IP applies not only to itself but also to the protagonist, as Grave is killed and sets his mind on revenge as he shoots everyone out of the coffin. A sequel was made to the game two decades ago, but here is the latest installment, and the legacy of the past remains in evidence, making this title a divisive piece of work that will not appeal to everyone.

Gungrave G.O.R.E is a stylish third-person action shooter by South-Korean Studio IGGYMOB in which you take on the role of Grave, a gunslinger of resurrection and badass anti-hero of your dreams, mowing down tons of enemies in a gory ballet of bullets.

Blam!

The first part of the series came out on PS2 in 2002 from the hands of Red Entertainment, and the perpetrator of this bunch of characters owns a copy of this game. The sequel came out in 2004 (2005 in Europe), retaining Yasuhiro Nightow’s style, but animation studio Ikusabune hasn’t risen to the task. An anime of the game was also made in 2003-2004. Our protagonist is Beyond the Grave (civilian name Brandon Heart). Although the comparison with Devil May Cry might be justified at first, we are eliminating gangs of criminals instead of demons here. The acronym of the new episode is not bloody violence but Gunslinger Of REsurrection. There is a drug that turns people inside out, and the anime style makes the concept crazier. Our hero has two guns (Cerberus) and carries his coffin (Mauler). The camera gets mentioned: the game doesn’t work with fixed camera positions, although that might have worked, seeing how linear the corridors are. The opponents are mostly dumb, but at least there are many, so you press L1 to lock on and R2 to shoot (the default button assignments on PlayStation).

Our coffin serves as a melee weapon. What’s been described so far may sound superficial, but it’s also typical of the game. Our character development is shallow. We can have more health; more moves can hurt more, that sort of thing. It’s not much, but at least it’s explosive in terms of visuals and special moves set to L2 on PlayStation. It’s all primarily balanced, and the biggest challenge of the gameplay is that you have to keep an eye on your health because many opponents exist on a superficial basis: they try to chip away at your health without you noticing it because you focus on eliminating them instead of playing slightly more defensively. Because of it, the experience is not precisely what many other games on the market offer. Iggymob’s game is not as complex as any other TPS released this year, and you can’t compare Gungrave G.O.R.E. with those products. However, it should be pointed out how the visuals have become, for example, because it could be called old-fashioned in that respect.

Splat!

It’s no exaggeration to say that you could imagine the game on PlayStation 2 with the graphics downscaled to 480p. The third installment of Gungrave doesn’t deviate much from what the original and Overdose offered three console generations ago. For that reason, it could be fundamentally divisive, and perhaps it’s worth giving it two separate scores. The game runs well, but graphically, it hasn’t improved much compared to the PS2. That’s a positive (because it’s kept its style) and a negative (because it could probably look more stylish). However, Iggymob has got the anime style down to a tee, so you can’t complain. Maybe you could call the game nostalgic, so that’s an excellent way to imagine the experience. Content-wise, it’s not that massive, as it takes 6-7 hours to play the game.

Due to its length, it’s For this reason, it is similar to FromSoftware’s now forgotten Murakumo (an Xbox-exclusive (!) mech rail shooter that never came out in Europe): it was fun, but it was SHORT Okay, there are boss fights, and it’s worth mentioning that you go to several continents, but there’s not much to do after one playthrough. At most, we’re fighting on a harder difficulty and getting a better rating. It’s longer than the first Gungrave (which also had similar problems), but unfortunately, it shows more clearly that the AI has tried to disguise its lack of intelligence with its amount, which is rather frustrating. And for those who might not know what’s happened so far, there’s an animated summary in the main menu (a good idea because at least we don’t hold our heads trying to understand who does what and why).

Poof.

For those who liked the first two Gungrave titles on PS2, take the rating as an eight out of ten because Gungrave G.O.R.E. brings the same classic experience. And for those unfamiliar with what happened between 2002-2004, six and a half out of ten because the game can be fun, but its shortcomings make it not a unique creation in the long run. That’s not to say that it’s a bad game (it would have gotten a four out of ten if it was) because there are moments when it does become an adrenaline-filled experience, but more is needed to get mainstream attention. Grave’s coffin is that it’s been niche since the beginning. But it has to be said that it is stylish. That’s always suited him. (Ditto the two guns in hand.)

-V-

Publisher: Prime Matter (Embracer Group)

Developer: Iggymob

Style: TPS

Release: November 22, 2022.