| Monster House | |
|---|---|
) PAL region cover art for the PlayStation 2 | |
| Developer(s) | Artificial Mind and Movement |
| Publisher(s) | THQ |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 2 GameCube Game Boy Advance Nintendo DS |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Third-person shooter, survival horror |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Monster House is a third-person shooter survival horror video game developed by Artificial Mind and Movement and published by THQ. The game is based on the 2006 animated film of the same name. The game was met mixed reception.
Gameplay
The game follows the plot of the film, except it introduces many rooms in the house that were unseen in the film. The three main characters D.J., Chowder and Jenny must navigate through the house to reunite with each other and destroy the house. The enemies in the house are living furniture that may also serve as bosses in some areas. Obstacles include pipes that can block doors or pathways to keep the player on track, tentacle-like pipes that can harm the player, trees that can try to grab the player, objects that can fly at the player, spotlights that can summon monsters to attack the player if they're caught, and giant pipes that can suck up the player. The game has about nine chapters that each tell the story from each of the characters' perspective. Bathrooms serve as save points throughout the game and are the safest parts of the house. Players can attack enemies and bosses using their water guns or by counterattacking. Each character also has a special ability that they can use to combat monsters: D.J. can stun enemies with his camera, Jenny can attack enemies and destroy padlocks with her slingshot and Chowder can attack enemies with water balloons. Boxes containing ammo for the secondary attacks can also be used for refill. Additionally, food found around the house can restore health and tokens allow the player to play the game "Thou Art Dead".
Reception
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| GameRankings | (GBA) 66.50%[1] (GC) 65.13%[2] (NDS) 63.65%[3] (PS2) 60.64%[4] |
| Metacritic | (GBA) 69/100[5] (NDS) 62/100[6] (GC) 60/100[7] (PS2) 59/100[8] |
Monster House was met with mixed reviews. Aggregating review websites GameRankings and Metacritic gave the Game Boy Advance version 66.50% and 69/100,[1][5] the GameCube version 65.13% and 60/100,[2][7] the DS version 63.65% and 62/100[3][6] and the PlayStation 2 version 60.64% and 59/100.[4][8] Play magazine gave the game a score of 8.0 out of 10 praising the gameplay comparing the game to Luigi's Mansion and Resident Evil and the level setting compared to evil dead and praising the mini-game "Thou Art Dead" as a throwback to the 8-bit game Ghouls and Goblins.[9]
References
- ^ a b "Monster House for Game Boy Advance". GameRankings. Retrieved 2013-04-02.
- ^ a b "Monster House for GameCube". GameRankings. Retrieved 2013-04-02.
- ^ a b "Monster House for Nintendo DS". GameRankings. Retrieved 2013-04-02.
- ^ a b "Monster House for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. Retrieved 2013-04-02.
- ^ a b "Monster House for Game Boy Advance Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2013-04-02.
- ^ a b "Monster House for Nintendo DS Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2013-04-02.
- ^ a b "Monster House for GameCube Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2013-04-02.
- ^ a b "Monster House for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2013-04-02.
- ^ Halverson, Dave (September 2006). Monster House Review. Imagine Publishing. p. 59.