Lollipop Chainsaw Review
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Open this link in a new tab to bring music to the review.
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When I saw that first teaser, heard the premise, and saw the name Suda51 tied to it, I knew that Lollipop Chainsaw would be immediately on my radar from that moment forward. With the incessant zombie-busting, glitter, rainbows, and unavoidable Moe, is Lollipop Chainsaw worth revving up?
The short answer is abso-fucking-lutely.
PREMISE
The premise of Lollipop Chainsaw is rather simple. Blonde Bombshell and Star Cheerleader Juliet Starling arrives late to school to discover that all of her classmates have been turned into the undead. Fortunately for her, she is also a skilled Zombie-Hunter. With the power of her chainsaw and cheers and her boyfriend Nick by her side, Juliet must kill the zombies and stop the source of the undead.
Oh, and it’s also her birthday.
GAMEPLAY
Zombie games are in excess of late. Fortunately, Lollipop Chainsaw is NOT your average Zombie game.
As far as gameplay goes, the game consists two modes: Ranked and Story. Both modes feature the same gameplay of clearing rooms of the undead through basic beat em’ up tactics. Story mode is done to progress the story, while Ranked is there to stake a claim in a higher score or fastest time in those same levels.
The actual meat of the game lies in its combat, which is a mix of Juliet’s skills as a cheerleader and her handling of a massive pretty chainsaw pitted against the undead horde. Alternating light melee attacks and hard hitting chainsaw swings are the bulk of this experience. Through button combinations and lots of evading, players will hack and slash through groups of the undead until an area is completed, followed by an arrow prompting their progression. New skills are gained between levels that alter the gameplay to include things like projectiles. At first, Juliet’s skills can manage to get the job done slowly, but once you’ve progressed and upgraded, our hero is suddenly powered up to a point that does not remove challenge but still feels intense. (The best comparison to this combat would be that of God of War.)
In most cases, the rinse and repeat of such combat would be cause for boredom. Fortunately, the game has enough variation and additions that constantly keep the experience fresh as you play it. In between the combat, there are minigames that depending on the situation will traverse the map, kill enemies, or clear obstacles in fun and unique ways.
As you play and slaughter, you collect medals that allow you to purchase new skills, upgrades and additional in-game content. The collectible content ranges from new costumes and skins, new background music, and concept art. These upgrades and add-ons are acquired through shopping kiosks scattered throughout the levels.
Lastly, there are several collectible items in the form of lollipops and zombie heads that, when acquired, are added to your overall completion percentage.
PRESENTATION
The entire visual direction of Lollipop Chainsaw can be defined simply as eye-candy. Everything that you do in this game exudes beautiful rainbows and sparkles. The experience speeds up and slows down at the right moments to maximize the beauty of the moments.
The fonts and windows alternate between being comic book and arcade style. The excessively stylized experience completely does the title (and the player) justice.
The sounds behind the game do not disappoint either. The music is a mix of original and licensed music. The tunes that appear at specific moments, such as turning on Juliet’s Overdrive mode truly fit and shape the experience as a whole, while the standard background tracks maintain the upbeat attitude of the protagonist. The voicework is top notch and delivers the brilliant writing flawlessly. The sound effects are also perfectly appropriate.
Second perhaps only to the visual direction of the game is the brilliant writing. While the premise is extremely simple- stop the zombies- the game delivers a brilliantly raunchy and random experience that never fails to entertain through extremely witty dialogue and overall excessive, over the top characterization. From the ditzy Juliet to the Elvis Presley wannabe that is her father, each character is absolutely colorful (much like everything else in the game). The enemies are also quite outspoken, with zombies making slight remarks such as “I have hemorrhoids” and bosses taking on entire rock and roll themes . Be it through sexual innuendo, cultural references, or general humor, the writing absolutely entertains, thoroughly.
Any game that has a zombie complaining about having died with a Katy Perry song in its head needs to be noted.
VALUE
At launch, Lollipop Chainsaw could be purchased at the price of $45. With that $45 comes the promise of an absolutely thrilling and enticing first play through, and additional hours tossed in collecting all the items, beating high scores, and unlocking concept art and character skins. The game itself is fairly short, making it a solid candidate for those who simply wish to rent it and call it a day, yet also has the extra content stuffed in that can entertain the completionist in your soul.
9/10
If you are a part-time gamer, this title is a rent.
If you are a serious gamer with the disposable income for a game priced at less than average, BUY IT
Final Thoughts
The score of 9/10 is based upon the exceptional experience. The only weakness this game has is that it is a short game. While there are many things to do once you’re done, it’s simply not enough for a game to be declared perfect. Perhaps, though, this is a good thing. By keeping the experience short, players are left wanting to play it more, not to simply desiring be done with it.
All in all, the game is a serious gem. Suda51 and his team truly delivered with this title. Words cannot describe the vivid experience that is Lollipop Chainsaw. If you enjoy games at all and are of the maturity level, you need to play this title.
(9/10)
Note from the Author-
I hope you all enjoyed my first review as a member of Rival Tide. Keep an eye out for more of my work in the future! -Stan Kuschick
Adding that song to listen to while reading the review was a really nice touch. Wasn’t sure about this game but now I might have to check it out.
Im the opposite for suda 51, I find the humour lacks any subtlety and the plots are impenetrable. I tried no more heroes and found it sub par and was put off of shadows of the damned when I heard his gun was called “the boner”, very mature I thought.
Welcome to the team buddy!!
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Oh sweet holy jesus, i need to buy this