In 1999, a famous Japanese designer named Naomi Iwata created the Gregory Horror Show, a curious animated series designed to cover half an hour of weekly television with a very particular approach. Showcasing her characteristic style, Mr. Iwata created a hotel, not a traditional one, not even a cozy ryokan (the classic Japanese inn), but a mysterious hotel frequented by beings from other worlds. A thousand events were planned to take place in this place, introducing new characters in each episode, all of them designed in a surrealist manner, most of them parodies, impossible beings, and authentic paranoia in the making.
The scripts, written by Iwata himself and the Milky Cartoon team, managed to captivate the public, which, combined with the original character designs, turned the series into one of those hits that, unfortunately for many, never leave Japan. But as is often the case, amidst all the success, Capcom appeared, and, visionary as few others, took advantage of the aforementioned Gregory Horror Show Project to enhance it with an official video game for PlayStation 2, in which Iwata collaborated to see his original work respected.
Gregory Horror Show was released for PlayStation 2 on August 7, 2003 with the Japanese title Gregory Horror Show: Soul Collector and in Europe on December 15, 2003.
The Game
The story begins when a young person (boy or girl, whatever the player chooses) enters Gregory House, a place lost in another world where the most bizarre beings in the universe gather. You have arrived without knowing how, and you find yourself in a similar situation if you plan to leave, since, until further notice, you are trapped, which you can take advantage of to “rest,” although this is only recommended for the most intrepid.
In your first sleep in Gregory House, Death will visit you, proposing a deal: if you help her retrieve the stolen souls from the hotel, she will teach you a way to escape. This being the only way out of here, you must accept, immediately becoming the hotel’s number 1 enemy, whom they will fear and, if attacked, will pursue until they seek revenge using a variety of techniques. You’ll only have the help of Neko Zombie (Zombie Cat, to his friends), who will grant you his soul while giving you secrets and small tips to help you catch the rest of the souls scattered around the house.
Gameplay
Capcom has transformed the Gregory Horror Show animated series into a completely free adventure, where our character can move around freely 24 hours a day. Like the protagonist, the rest of the hotel’s residents also lead full lives, performing all kinds of activities depending on the time of day. All the characters have a planned schedule of tasks, so if you have enough patience, you can learn their movements and devise strategies to hunt them down, or simply avoid them. This is a game where realism takes center stage, presented in a way that few other games have managed to capture, which greatly increases its technical value.
The development of this video game is simple and strategic, since our objective will be, one by one, to hunt down all the hotel guests, who each have a default weakness and a way to be defeated. After meeting our next victim, we’ll have to figure out how to hunt him down. This isn’t particularly difficult at first, but will become more complicated later, due in part to the danger of walking through the hotel. Thus, although once they have their soul, they’ll be defenseless (they’ll be afraid of us), once they lose it, the hotel staff won’t hesitate to chase us down and tear us to shreds if they manage to catch us. Therefore, the progressive difficulty is very carefully designed, with the game becoming increasingly difficult, and it’s truly insane when, at the end of the adventure, we only have a couple of souls left to catch (those of the Gregory family).
The hero’s life is shaped by a mental health meter, which will decrease as he encounters tenants, dropping even more alarmingly if one of them hits him with one of their vengeful attacks. While we can restore mental health using items (herbs, drinks, etc.), this isn’t the only danger, as the protagonist will also be able to suffer from altered states, such as fatigue, melancholy, headaches, or nervousness, among others, all of which can be recovered with various special items. In addition to the items, we will have the ability to collect books or magazines that, after being read at our desk, will increase the character’s maximum mental health, something very necessary to withstand unforeseen events. Finally, there are other possibilities for the hero, including sleeping, exchanging items in Gregory’s shop, using maps (essential for keeping track of enemies), and using the clock, which is visible at all times during the game.
On a physical level, the character will be able to move in all directions, climb stairs, enter open rooms, spy through holes in doors, and tap on them. Although this seems like a very limited range of options, it won’t be. Spying will be a perfect opportunity to gather extra information, and knocking on doors can even terrify some less-than-brave tenants. As for the game itself, it’s all about finding the strategies necessary to defeat enemies, some of which are based on puzzles, special mechanics, and even minigames. All enemies in the scenario will have a method by which they can be defeated; some of them won’t offer physical resistance, but instead, we’ll have to compete in quizzes or a fun board game.
Variety is the spice of life, and hunting down characters as diverse as Gregory (the hotel manager), Roulette Boy (owner of the fun board game, later available in the main menu), or Judgement Boy will be a very interesting experience.
Graphics
The video game developers have respected Naomi Iwata’s original design in every aspect, both in terms of characters and settings, embellishing every corner of the hotel with the underground feel of the animated series. While the most discerning viewers won’t find highly pretentious graphics for a PS2 title, those who appreciate this type of game, with its distinct aesthetic, will understand that there’s much more to it than just characters composed of bold lines. The Gregory House is presented in a very distinctive way, with dark tones, corners worthy of any run-down hotel, and rooms mostly designed according to the personality of each guest. We can move through this entire setting, stealing books, interacting with objects, knocking on doors, and watching as, as the hours pass, the fog, darkness, and other effects begin to increase.
The characters feature an original design down to the core, with simple and graceful animations, although those who enjoyed the animated series will miss other tenants who did appear in it. Otherwise, the highlights include some very enjoyable videos, interesting animations, a carefully designed protagonist (whose face changes depending on his emotional state), and small details that will delight fans of underground music.
Sound
The soundtrack of Gregory Horror Show remains consistent with the rest of the features, featuring ambient music that varies depending on the enemy that manages to hunt us down. The composers of the game were Hiroshi Nakajima, Shinichi Hideoka and Hidenori Miyanaga. The soundtrack will also change in specific areas, but the voices will be the highlight of the show, the ones that take center stage, thanks to an English dubbing that will surprise even the most experienced.
All the supporting characters will have their own lines, most of them very funny, where we’ll hear a Mexican gunman speaking, or a judge humming as he walks through the hotel corridors. It’s a shame that the subtitles are only available in English, which will leave those who don’t speak the language a little cold.
Is it a good game?
Its features and original approach make it a game with an original and fun concept, a good story, and underground-looking graphics. It’s an atypical game, and it’s a good idea to discover it if you’ve never played it. If you’re interested in the Gregory Horror House universe, a new game titled Gregory Horror Show: Soul of Roses was released on Steam in 2023, which is also very interesting.
