Summary
Light gun games and on-rails shooters have almost disappeared as genres. They were more of a gimmick for arcades, which are also becoming an extinct concept. It’s a shame, because some of the best franchises ever started in arcades, likeStreet Fighter.
There were various on-rail shooters set in theJurassic Parkfranchise, along withAlienas well. Among them,Alien 3: The Gunhas to be one of the most fun. For fans of evil clowns,CarnEvilis also unsettling. Unfortunately, a lot of these games are inaccessible to a majority of players because there were never any console versions. Theseon-rails horror games,however, did make it to consoles. Most of them are spin-offs from bigger horrorfranchises likeResident Evil, but they still hold up as solid standalone experiences.
5Until Dawn: Rush Of Blood
Metacritic Score: 72
Until Dawnwasa huge hit on the PS4. It was a narrative-driven horror game starring a bunch of college students who were staying in an abandoned lodge on a snowy mountain. Unbeknownst to them, said mountain housed a serial killer along with some other supernatural surprises. So, it made sense that Sony would want to capitalize on the game’s popularity with a spinoff for their upcoming VR peripheral, the PlayStation VR headset.
Until Dawn: Rush of Bloodwas that spinoff, and had virtually nothing to do with the main game. It was like a developer within this universe madeUntil Dawn: Rush of Bloodas an homage to the bloody murders that happened in the main game. It’s a meta-commentary, kind of like how theScreammovie franchise has theStabmovie franchise within it. This on-rails shooter is extra spooky thanks to the VR tech and sound design, and offers players a handful of weapons, seven levels that are re-imaginings of areas from the first game, and lots of solid spooks hidden within.
Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicleswas the first on-rails spinoff for the Wii, but it wasn’t the first of its kind. This game was a retelling ofResident Evil 0, the GameCube remake, andResident Evil 3: Nemesis. It was released initially as a Wii exclusive in 2007, but the PS3 would eventually get it in 2012 once the PlayStation Move controllers were more integrated within homes. The best part about either version was co-op, which always makes on-rails shooters more fun.
Players would go through highlights from those games like boss battles, and there weren’t any puzzles to worry about. It was a breezy way to go back through three games without sinking as many hours into completing them. This is especially true forResident Evil 0,since the inventory and backtracking system are busted, even in the later remaster. This collection was also easier for a lot of players who may have felt intimidated by the mainlineResident Evilgames, or horror games in general.
Resident Evil: The Darkside Chroniclesrecaps the events ofResident Evil 2andResident Evil - Code: Veronica. This combo makes sense giventhat Claire Redfieldis a big part of these games, even though Leon gets forgotten and is eventually replaced with Chris.Resident Evil: The Redfield Chronicleswould have made more sense as a title, but alas, Capcom didn’t go there. This was another Wii exclusive release in 2009, and then PS3 owners got it in 2012.
It has co-op just like the first collection, and puzzles are still a thing of the past. The quality of both games are on par with one another, and it’s a shame there weren’t more of these on-rails spinoffs, as they were an excellent entry point to the series for non-horror fans. It would be interesting to see modern Capcom recap theResident Evilgames that came out following these two collections. For example, what would an Ethan Winters on-rails shooter look like set betweenResident Evil 7: BiohazardandResident Evil Village? Those games are already halfway there, as they are in first-person and they support VR.
Metacritic Score: 78
The House of the Deadfranchise began in 1996 in arcades. It is owned by Sega, and their internal teams made a majority of the series' entries. 90s kids couldn’t step into an arcade without seeing an entry in this franchise, andThe House of the Deadgames are essentially to arcades whatResident Evilgames are to consoles.
Of the many ports that made it to consoles,The House of the Dead: Overkillis the one to recommend. It was released for the Wii in 2009, followed by a 2011 launch on the PS3. The series is a classic in thezombie shooter genre, but it saw diminishing returns, as there isn’t much of a story to speak of. However, if console fans do want more afterThe House of the Dead: Overkill, then there was alsoThe House of the Dead 2 & 3 Returnon the Wii along withThe House of the Dead 4on PS3. Both games were reviewed as well asThe House of the Dead: Overkill,and offer the same on-rails zombie shooting action, although they struggle to compete with the experiences the series offers in arcades.
Metacritic Score: 82
Dead Space: Extractionis the ultimate on-rails horror game according to Metacritic. It’s the one genre whereDead Spacebeats outResident Evilin critical reviews. This Wii exclusive was a prequel to the original game’s events. It showed players what happened to the crew onthe USGIshimura, and there was also an animated movie,Dead Space: Downfall, which retold the events.
Extractionwas released in 2009 for the Wii and, once again, PS3 players would get a port later in 2011. For an on-rails game, it told a surprisingly good story. The movie is better if fans really want to learn what happened before Isaac’s arrival on theIshimura, but there’s nothing like slicing through Necromorphs with a Wii Remote either. Overall, it was one of the Wii’s bloodier first-person games, and that alone made it stand out from the crowd.
