Haunted Schools Are So Cliché

*Spoilers ahead. You have been warned*

Having Fun Since 1996

So, unlike the last post, this game is a lot scarier than the one on pigeons. Corpse Party is a horror survival game that was made in 1996. It has been remade many times with better graphics and for more than one type of console. The game was initially made in Japan and has been translated for certain consoles in English.

The title doesn't actually mean that the story is about partying with dead people, though there is a large gathering of the dead. The newer versions stay true to the story line; there are only a few changes here or there. So, basically, people in 1996 could be as creepy and psychotic as they are today.

They look so happy

The game play is mainly a story with horror and survival thrown in. Your decisions affect what happens. You can get a wrong end in the middle of the game if you miss something or pick the wrong options. The game allows you to play multiple characters and you explore the haunted school, which is in different dimensions for each group. Each character is usually with one or two other people. Expect some creepy and horrifying things to happen to everyone.

Playing with dolls...

The game begins with a group of school kids listening to a ghost story. The story teller, Ayumi Shinozaki, has a love for caring people. As she finishes her story, the kids get frightened by a teacher, Yui Shishido, who was playing along and made the ghost story seem true.  Satoshi Mochida's younger sister, Yuka, comes in with the teacher offering her brother an umbrella he forgot. The group decides, with Ayumi's suggestion, to do a charm with a friend who will be leaving the school, Mayu Suzumoto. The charm, called Sachiko Ever After, is a paper doll that is split between the people in the group. It is said, if done correctly, offer eternal friendship to those who do it. Each person must chant "Sachiko we beg of you" one time for each person doing the charm. Of course someone does it wrong and the children, plus the teacher, find themselves falling into a large chasm that opened up in the classroom. The characters find themselves in an abandoned and rundown school. There have been numerous other students who have come as well before them and all have died in some way or another. Now the split up group must try and find a way out, but it isn't easy when you have vengeful ghosts coming after them.

Darn!

The game itself is pretty good. Some of the details and deaths can be a little gruesome. This game isn't for those who can't stand horror movies. I found it exciting to be able to explore and navigate the characters. The game takes a long time to complete since it has around five chapters. As you keep going, you discover the truth about the school and who sends the people there. I was in suspense the whole time. I have died many times in the game because I picked the wrong choices. Thank goodness for save points, which are candles. I did spend a good part of the game trying to figure out what to do at certain points. There are a lot of scraps of paper that you can read. Most of them are last notes by dying students. I did meet some "friendly" or neutral ghosts and other students. Some of the people seem nice, but they're actually total psychos. You can't trust anyone in the game except the group you came with, well mostly. There were characters who I liked and they ended up being killed; I always seem to like those who will die first.

So, if you like horror and want a good creep out, try Corpse Party. You do have to buy it, but I found it a good investment. It's available  in English for the PSP and they do have a PC version, but you would have to translate it to English since it's in Japanese. Have a good freak out!

You stole my last Klondike Bar!