MegaPixel Studio’s The House of the Dead: Remake may not be a Nintendo Switch exclusive as previously believed, with a new ESRB rating hinting that the zombie shooter may launch on additional platforms. Revealed at Nintendo’s Indie World Showcase last year, The House of the Dead: Remake is the long-awaited return of the House of the Dead franchise, bringing the 90’s-style rail shooter back with upgraded graphics, audio, and gameplay mechanics. Information regarding the game has been scarce, but The House of the Dead: Remake’s gameplay trailer from April 2021 did showcase the franchise’s over-the-top zombie action in HD graphics.
A month after the trailer dropped, Artur Gregoznyc from Forever Entertainment spoke on Twitch about the House of the Dead: Remake while spilling some secrets about its eventual release. Gregoznyc explained that MegaPixel Studios is developing the remake on the Unity Engine – the same engine used for Panzer Dragoon’s reboots – and that The House of the Dead: Remake will have a new Horde Mode consisting of 15 times the number of enemies in certain areas. During the same interview, Gregoznyc also hinted that the publisher was looking to release The House of the Dead: Remake on systems beyond the Nintendo Switch, with some suggesting an eventual Steam release. While he claimed the game would run at 60fps on the Nintendo Switch while docked, the possibility of additional ports would mean more fans could jump into the zombie-slaying action.
First reported by Stadia Source (via VGC), the House of the Dead remake may not be a Nintendo Switch exclusive like previously thought, with a new rating for the first-person horror game appearing on ESRB for Google Stadia. The House of the Dead: Remake is rated M for Stadia (like its Nintendo Switch port) for “Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, and Violence,” though it hasn’t been confirmed whether the zombie shooter will disembark from its previously announced Switch exclusivity.
This isn’t the first time one of Forever Entertainment’s Sega remakes have branched out to other systems. Panzer Dragoon and Panzer Dragoon II Zwei released on Nintendo Switch, Stadia, PlayStation 4, Amazon Luna, and Xbox One despite initial reports claiming it was only coming to Nintendo Switch. It’s entirely possible that The House of the Dead: Remake is a timed exclusive with Nintendo Switch and will release on other platforms at a later date, or that the developers simply only announced the shooter’s Nintendo Switch release due to its close relationship with Nintendo. Its developer, Forever Entertainment, is also remaking Front Mission for the Nintendo Switch, which is set to release this summer.
The zombie shooter was initially set to release in 2021, but a December announcement confirmed that The House of the Dead: Remake was delayed until Spring 2022. Considering no formal launch date has been confirmed, when fans can actually expect the anticipated return of The House of the Dead is unclear.
