Corpse Party 2: Dead Patient (PC) Review

Imagine the terror of waking up in a hospital with no idea of how you got there, and with no people in sight. This is the terror of the main character, Ayame, at the beginning of the story. She has no control over her body, finds dead people, and weird, occult like things in the wards. The cast itself trapped in the nightmare hospital, with the outside word seemingly unaware of the situation. The premise is good, and the setting powerful for a new Corpse Party game.

Beginning Chapter 1, players are introduced to some of the original's surviving cast looking fairly dishevelled, as a new dark world appears to be manifesting. Que Ayame's entrance as she wakes up in a hospital room, and as she describes how everything is wrong. To avoid spoilers, that's the end of the story description. The original Corpse Party entries lived and died by their story and script. It was full of intriguing little stings and twists, as well as drenched in the blood of the characters its twisted narrative loved to torture. This sequel takes that original feeling, and runs with it.

Right from the get go this game has major errors and bugs. It took several attempts to launch in full screen and with the options selected, and since that first launch in full screen it now only launches in windowed mode. It then subsequently crashed multiple times switching to English text, however, if one looks past the initial errors and move onto the game, it opens with a very simple menu that shows the chapters available and options.

Unlike the newer entries in the original story this game uses the top down gameplay of the first entry and Blood Drive. Players assume direct control of Ayame as she explores the hospital. This means that this is trying to immerse players in the deep dank atmosphere with an aim of putting them in the position of the main character. This move paid dividends in the original by making each and every moment fill with dread, as players tread carefully in fear of the next trap or torturous cut-scene. It's no different here, but this time the game has a few more tricks up its sleeves.

Utilising the new visual style, there's now a flashlight function, making the darker areas much darker than in the other games. It has enemies that stalk the corridors, and it has a proper inventory system allowing the character to interact with even more objects and areas. This game also did something unexpected by having actual boss fights featuring Zelda-style puzzle-solving to defeat them. These usually mark a near-end of a chapter. Items also feel like they were hidden pretty well, sometimes even behind riddles.

That cathartic feeling of the original is oozing from the second title. The same uneasiness, disgusting happenings, and emphasis on slow-burning terror. It's all wrapped up in a well presented package. The visuals feel reminiscent of the 3DS Pokémon games, with characters being deformed and cute, while retaining what makes them unique. Everything is stepped up from previous iterations, with more consistent art. Levels are designed to be quite angular, but given the hospital setting it makes sense, and there's just a whole boatload of nice little low-resolution effects.

The atmosphere in the game is heavy with creeping fear, from gore splatters, things that bump and shuffle in unnatural ways, and a genuinely interesting environment. It's all cohesive and interesting. This is all backed by a nice mix of music that both remixes some of the best themes from the rest of the series, and has a lot of its own great tunes. For players who didn't like the thumping beats of the original, you may prefer the music in the title, though it retains an air of that techno up-beatness at times.

Where things start to fall is after the end of Chapter 1. After that, players are left on a cliff-hanger as XSeed and Grindhouse haven't finished any more of these. Chapter 2 is slated for release this year, but has been pushed back, almost ironically, by the ongoing global pandemic. At least, the team behind Corpse Party 2 1has promised to add the chapters, as their development completes.