Game Column: Are Remasters Always a Great Idea? - Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP! Shows Progress

The semi-recent remastering effort for Lollipop Chainsaw has been widely met with complaints about bugs and other misfires - and despite a major amount of finnicky gameplay and frequent bugs or glitches, the game is incredibly fun, looks great, and works as a remaster very well visually.

GAME RATING: 8.8/10

It's a massively wacky game with a visual style that mixes Japanese and Western elements as well as dark, gory atmospheres and bright, candy-laced aesthetics that are infectious. 

The combat and composition of the game are both wildly unique and zany, with a storyline, characters, and atmosphere that are all rich and entirely unique. There has never been another game like Lollipop Chainsaw - and for those who can't afford to dish out the amount of money it costs for an original copy, this version is enough to hold over. 

There are aspects of the game that make it as great as it is - with the combat being the main piece that brings it together. The controls, weapons, and mechanics are all wildly fun; and despite some long levels and a lack of casual play, this is a game that goes by quickly and with great pacing, even when the levels do seem long.

Lollipop Chainsaw has incredibly witty and fun one-liners, cooky dialogue, and interesting interactive elements that make it great for both regular gamers and completionists due to the exploration aspects. The great thing about the game is that there isn't "too much" to collect and explore, it balances out incredibly well, and the fighting to progress the story is the main aspect that does not get drawn out.

For a remaster, RePOP is very visually pleasing. The colours and graphics are great, and it stays true to the original game's components while finally porting it to PC - a great thing in theory, but the porting of this particular game didn't work out so well. The PC version of RePOP is particularly full of bugs, so much so that I was not able to complete the very last fight of the game due to an error that kept occurring. 

The game is highly challenging, even on easy difficulty - the bosses are all unique with various different unpredictable attacks and styles, and each character is interesting enough to make even the boss fights feel exciting; minus when they become too frustrating or painstaking to get past; because yes, this is a game that has made me drop it before returning to finish it. 

Juliette is a particularly interesting character to have as a protagonist - from her unique demeanor to how she is a complete opposite of what most zombie games strive to have (tough, male characters); instead, you fight as a strangely rough and tough teenage cheerleader who is endlessly bubbly and part of one of the strangest families imaginable. The great thing about the story aspect of the game is that the characters are all hugely different and have massive amounts of depth - from her polar-opposite stern sister to her Elvis-inspired father, it's a game with many different corners to hit. 

It's a striking game that merges satire and stereotypes while going directly against the grain to create one of my favorite video games of all time; it's combat heaven, and it manages to be everything a hack-and-slash title should ever be and then some. It's a perfect game for a brighter, yet violent palate, and it mixes "cutesy" games with the violent games that tend to be most popular with male teens and adults. 

There are some aspects of the game that are less pleasant - bugs and unfortunate mechanics at times drain from the experience slightly, and I cannot wait to be able to experience the game as intended with an original copy sometime in the near future. RePOP does it justice, but it doesn't quite bring out the exact charm of the original, partly due to the missing pieces of the soundtrack being hugely apparent. 

Everything in the game comes together exceptionally well, with the final levels bringing everyone together and creating atmospheres that mix together every other fight and level you encounter in the game from the start to the very finish. The story is highly enjoyable, and it follows a much different, one-day pacing, which varies from other games massively. 

SCORE: 9/10

PROS:

• Great visuals - colour schemes, renewed graphics
• Quip-filled dialogue, great banter and one-liners, comedic timing
• Incredible renewed soundtrack
• Fair difficulty selection that still appeals to experienced gamers
• Ease of navigation and play, but still challenging
• Fun and unique combat system, varied weapons and abilties
• Rewarding combat, shop options
• Unique levels, steady pacing that is not too long of a game, immersive storyline
• Outside the box thinking, parody of stereotypes and satire
• Mixes bloody horror with girly, bright imagery 
• Mix of Japanese and Western influences carried over from original game
• Does not change too much from the original game
• Checkpoint saving system
• Emotional final levels that provide depth and reiterate aspects from previous levels
• Unique gameplay experience 
• Depth in characters, exceptional world building 

CONS:

• Difficult gameplay before you get used to it
• Not accessible for keyboard and mouse gameplay - controls are near unusable
• Terrible PC porting in terms of controls and bugs
• Non-casual gameplay, long levels
• Frustrating boss fights that are oftentimes "too" long
• Finicky controls 
• Buggy aiming mechanics
• Confusing settings selection
• Camera bugs
• Removal of licensed music
• Boring and choppy loading screens