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[Nirolak]

THQ has announced that they're publishing The Haunted's: Hell's Reach for PC/PSN/XBLA.

THQ reveals The Haunted: Hell's Reach
PC Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 by Wesley Yin-Poole
30/08/2011 @ 13:42

THQ has revealed The Haunted: Hell's Reach, a third-person survival horror shooter made by the winner of last year's $1 Million Intel Make Something Unreal Contest.

It launches 25th October on PC, and on PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade in 2012.

In The Haunted: Hell's Reach, the forces of evil plan to invade earth and only a small group of humans stand in their way. Happens a lot, that.

Luckily, there's a huge arsenal of deadly weapons and melee combat moves with which you can battle back against the minions of hell.

There are four human playable characters, more than 20 enemies, 30 stages, eight locations, six secret weapons, four game modes and a partridge in a pear tree.

And, of course, it uses Epic's Unreal Engine 3. First screenshots are below.

Source: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-08-30-thq-reveals-the-haunted-hells-reach

 

[BlazingDarkness]

Zombies? I'll pass.

 

[dragonelite]

Is that the new next gen filter green?

 

[Loudninja]

Not really interesting to me.

 

[Dead Prince]

demons will be the new zombies.

 

[DieH@rd]

That fog reminds me of the PS1 days, and short draw distances.

 

[legbone]

cool, a halloween game. anyway, looks kinda rough, good thing it's xbla/psn. at least i can check out the demo that way.

 

[kai3345]

eh

 

[legbone]

damn, what's with those dudes' eyes? it looks like they are demon's too.

 

[Varth]

Would be hilarious if it came out better than Homefront.

 

[Gintamen]

Looks like some Steam shovelware game, a bit to late to hop on the 4 chracters vs zombie wagon. But could be fun to play a classic FPS with so many levels and weapons. Where will it be priced? Seems more like a 1800MS game.

 

[Santiako]

damn, what's with those dudes' eyes? it looks like they are demon's too.

That's the twist. You were the demons all along.

 

[subversus]

I played it, it was fun.

 

[legbone]

my guess would be $15 on xbla and psn. don't know about steam. that's just a guess though. $15 seems like the going rate these days on xbla/psn. this looks a litte rough though so $10 is not out of the question.

 

[TGMIII]

What is even going on here?

 

[schick85]

Looks like a lot of fun. The zombies look goofy as hell.

 

[ram]

wow - looks so....uninteresting....

 

[Xater]

What is even going on here?

The demon did swing with the left hand or is about to bitch slap you. I am not sure how that is unclear.

 

[ScHlAuChi]

Hey GAF
Im the designer of this game, so ask me anything you want

Haunted is a pretty straightforward arcade game.
In terms of gameplay think of it as a mix between Resident Evil 4, Godhand and Vanquish.
It has the shooting mechanics of RE4, some melee moves like Godhand, and speed elements of Vanquish. You can probably tell that im a huge Mikami Fan

Its like the Resident Evil Mercenaries mode but done much better with superior controls and more variety.
Dont be too harsh on us, we are a pretty small team of indie devs - we neither have the personal nor budget to compete with the big boys

 

[LiK]

Hey GAF
Im the designer of this game, so ask me anything you want

In terms of gameplay think of it as a mix between Resident Evil 4, Godhand and Vanquish.
It has the shooting mechanics of RE4, some melee moves like Godhand, and speed elements of Vanquish. You can probably tell that im a huge Mikami Fan

Its like the Resident Evil Mercenaries modes but with much better controls and more variety.
Dont be too harsh on us, we are a pretty small team of indie devs - we neither have the personal nor budget to compete with the big boys

Can we move and shoot?!

 

[Q8D3vil]

Hey GAF
Im the designer of this game, so ask me anything you want

In terms of gameplay think of it as a mix between Resident Evil 4, Godhand and Vanquish.
It has the shooting mechanics of RE4, some melee moves like Godhand, and speed elements of Vanquish. You can probably tell that im a huge Mikami Fan

Its like the Resident Evil Mercenaries modes but with much better controls and more variety.
Dont be too harsh on us, we are a pretty small team of indie devs - we neither have the personal nor budget to compete with the big boys

this post sold me on the game.
must support gaffers

 

[Xater]

Hey GAF
Im the designer of this game, so ask me anything you want

Haunted is a pretty straightforward arcade game.
In terms of gameplay think of it as a mix between Resident Evil 4, Godhand and Vanquish.
It has the shooting mechanics of RE4, some melee moves like Godhand, and speed elements of Vanquish. You can probably tell that im a huge Mikami Fan

Its like the Resident Evil Mercenaries mode but done much better with superior controls and more variety.
Dont be too harsh on us, we are a pretty small team of indie devs - we neither have the personal nor budget to compete with the big boys

Sounds like something I would be interested in. I will keep an eye on it. Just make sure to put a demo on PSN.

 

[ScHlAuChi]

Can we move and shoot?!

Of course, and not only that but so much more

 

[atre324]

is there weapon upgrading? or some other form of character progression?

Looks pretty neat, then again I'll play anything with a horror-ish sounding name

 

[Stumpokapow]

Hey GAF
Im the designer of this game, so ask me anything you want

In terms of gameplay think of it as a mix between Resident Evil 4, Godhand and Vanquish.
It has the shooting mechanics of RE4, some melee moves like Godhand, and speed elements of Vanquish. You can probably tell that im a huge Mikami Fan

Its like the Resident Evil Mercenaries modes but with much better controls and more variety.
Dont be too harsh on us, we are a pretty small team of indie devs - we neither have the personal nor budget to compete with the big boys

How long ago did you sign the deal with THQ?

Through THQ, have you been able to talk to or get feedback from any of their internal studios or other partners on your game, or are they more just handling distribution for you?

Obviously you can't announce a pricepoint, but would you expect it to be in the typical $10-20 indie range given that it's on PSN / XBLA?

Will the PC implementation be Steamworks?

Is there a campaign like Painkiller (even though it's still arcadey) or is it more like a pick a stage - play a stage situation like RE: Mercenaries mode or Foreign Legion: Buckets of Blood?

Cheers

 

[LiK]

Of course, and not only that but so much more

Good enough for me

 

[TGMIII]

The demon did swing with the left hand or is about to bitch slap you. I am not sure how that is unclear.

But why is the demon huge and you're a midget? I get what's going on but I can't help but see that.

 

[LiK]

But why is the demon huge and you're a midget?

Giant demon.

 

[Gintamen]

Of course, and not only that but so much more

6 secret weapons + ? unsecret weapons?
Are there bosses and if how many? Will Satan appear?
Will we be able to "kick/punch"?

 

[Shiggy]

Why didn't you decide to make something more original instead when we've already got dozens of titles that look the same?

 

[BobsRevenge]

Hey GAF
Im the designer of this game, so ask me anything you want

Haunted is a pretty straightforward arcade game.
In terms of gameplay think of it as a mix between Resident Evil 4, Godhand and Vanquish.
It has the shooting mechanics of RE4, some melee moves like Godhand, and speed elements of Vanquish. You can probably tell that im a huge Mikami Fan

Its like the Resident Evil Mercenaries mode but done much better with superior controls and more variety.
Dont be too harsh on us, we are a pretty small team of indie devs - we neither have the personal nor budget to compete with the big boys

How does this game compare to Killing Floor, if you've played that? Seems like you've got a different playstyle, but what kind of similarities are there? It seems like the target audience is similar, to me.

edit: Oh wait, does this not have 4-player coop?

 

[SlasherJPC]

Anything horror related I'm always interested in. Add the fact that its a indie dev, and there here on neogaf! You've got my support already! Looking pretty cool.
Where did you come up with the idea for the game/story?

 

[DaBuddaDa]

Hey GAF
Im the designer of this game, so ask me anything you want

What is the artistic intent behind the very prominent "toxic green haze?" In these screenshots it looks overwhelming and obscures the scenery.

 

[ScHlAuChi]

But why is the demon huge and you're a midget? I get what's going on but I can't help but see that.

The minion was attacking the player, so the player did a combat roll which moved the camera.
This made the minion appear huge

We didnt choose those shots - better look at the ones on our site www.hells-reach.com

 

[Haunted]

what a stupid name

 

[Katana_Strikes]

 

[LiK]

what a stupid name

HahHaha

 

[ScHlAuChi]

How long ago did you sign the deal with THQ?
Through THQ, have you been able to talk to or get feedback from any of their internal studios or other partners on your game, or are they more just handling distribution for you?

They just handle distribution, we didnt get any feedback from their studios.
During betatesting we did get some feedback, but nothing that really changed the game.
So this is 100% our own thing

Obviously you can't announce a pricepoint, but would you expect it to be in the typical $10-20 indie range given that it's on PSN / XBLA?

Yes thats my guess too

Will the PC implementation be Steamworks?

Yep it uses Steam, and not only will we support dedicated servers, but also modding and user-made content.

Is there a campaign like Painkiller (even though it's still arcadey) or is it more like a pick a stage - play a stage situation like RE: Mercenaries mode or Foreign Legion: Buckets of Blood?
Cheers

Unfortunately there is no real campaign, we are roughly 5 people who worked on the game all this time, for a SP campaign we we need like 10x as much.
So yes its alot more like RE Mercenaries mode - just done better

 

[Smiles and Cries]

this is like The A-TEAM of Ghouls ?

if so they need a nice van

 

[Deadbeat]

I remember this ut3 mod. It was okay.

 

[ScHlAuChi]

Why didn't you decide to make something more original instead when we've already got dozens of titles that look the same?

As a designer you make games you love to play yourself, and i love these kind of games, so i just wanted to combine elements of my favorite games to create something great.
Originality didnt matter to me in this case

 

[schick85]

Will there be a Platinum trophy for this game on the PS3?

 

[ScHlAuChi]

is there weapon upgrading? or some other form of character progression?

Looks pretty neat, then again I'll play anything with a horror-ish sounding name

There is weapon upgrading but no character progression as i think that only gives unfair advantages to people who just play more than you, which then demotivates newcomers.

 

[-PXG-]

what a stupid name

Sorry. No royalties or profit sharing for you, bub.

 

[ScHlAuChi]

What is the artistic intent behind the very prominent "toxic green haze?" In these screenshots it looks overwhelming and obscures the scenery.

This is a level event that the demons can activate, in this case its poision rain. Those enviromental hazards only last for like half a minute. They force the player to stay inside buildings etc.
There is a different event for each map, like fog, thunderstorm, earthquake, thornados etc...

 

[CrankyKong]

I hope it does well for you guys

 

[Moofers]

Any co-op?

Also, what's the soundtrack like? It'd be cool if there was some heavy metal.

 

[Phoenician_Viking]

Seems very interesting. Question answered. Thanks.

 

[OrangeYouGlad]

How does this game compare to Killing Floor, if you've played that? Seems like you've got a different playstyle, but what kind of similarities are there? It seems like the target audience is similar, to me.

edit: Oh wait, does this not have 4-player coop?

It does and 4v4.

Coop Mode: Up to 4 human players have to make a stand against the undead. Send as much as possible back to hell and redeem the souls of fallen comrades.

Battle Mode: 4 Human players against 4 demons.

Demonizer: Similar to coop, but each dead human will turn into a demon until no one is left.

 

[ScHlAuChi]

How does this game compare to Killing Floor, if you've played that? Seems like you've got a different playstyle, but what kind of similarities are there? It seems like the target audience is similar, to me.
edit: Oh wait, does this not have 4-player coop?

Yes i played Killing Floor, good game, but Haunted is totally different, its a mix of shooting and beat em up elements, so you dont just run around shooting stuff, you need to use melee moves to beat the minions. Some of them block bullets or wear armor, so you beat them up first and then shoot them. Yes there is 4 player coop!