House Of The Dead: Scarlet Dawn proves arcade gaming is alive and kicking - or at least undead and kicking. The original House Of The Dead was an arcade game produced by Sega in 1996. The game allowed two players to blast their way through a mansion filled with zombies and other unholy creations. The House Of The Dead was an adrenaline-filled blast, and it was also released the same year as Capcom's Resident Evil, which fuelled the pop culture comeback of zombies.

The House Of The Dead 2 followed shortly after in 1998, and a franchise soon blossomed. The games were ported to consoles such as the Saturn and Dreamcast, and it even spawned spinoffs like Zombie Revenge and the remarkably fun The Typing Of The Dead, where players had to quickly type out words instead of using a light gun. More House Of The Dead sequels arrived in the arcades, while 2009 saw the arrival of spinoff House Of The Dead: Overkill for the Wii. This was a non-canon, Grindhouse-inspired prequel to the first game, and significantly increased the swearing and gore.

Related: Capcom Should Release Resident Evil 1.5 As Resident Evil 2 DLC

The franchise even received a movie adaptation in the form of 2003's House Of The Dead. Sadly, this Uwe Boll film - who also directed an adaptation of Far Cry - was met with savage reviews and bombed in cinemas. It received a 2006 straight to DVD sequel. The main franchise took a 13-year rest following the release of House Of The Dead 4, but it staged a glorious comeback with 2018's House Of The Dead: Scarlet Dawn.

house of dead scarlet dawn zombies

House Of The Dead: Scarlet Dawn is an unabashed homage to the series, fully embracing its cheesy, b-movie tone and stilted dialogue. While arcades may not be as popular as they once were, Scarlet Dawn is designed from the ground up to be a pure arcade experience. The game itself is housed in a special cabinet designed for so-called five-dimensional gameplay. The game runs on the Unreal Engine 4, it has an impressive 5.1 surround sound system, the lightguns simulate realistic recoil, and the cabinet even blasts players with air to give the full, immersive experience.

House Of The Dead: Scarlet Dawn's gameplay is relentless too, with hordes of zombies and monsters swarming players. Aside from the standard submachine guns, it features everything from shotguns to rocket launchers and energy cannons. This sequel takes everything that worked from previous entries and dials the carnage way up. Even the game's arcade cabinet is gruesome, depicting zombies tearing through. House Of The Dead: Scarlet Dawn will never win points for subtlety or quality storytelling, but as a fast-paced arcade shooter it's very hard to beat.

Next: There’s No Such Thing As A Video Game Movie "Curse"