Review by: the Dark Falcon

Put your mind at ease over the title- this is in no way a sequel to Corpse Killer: Graveyard Edition (although wouldn't that be the ultimate kick- Dom DeLuise stars as Fatty McDead and says, "I'm gonna eat your guts out...right after this Cannonball Run II blooper."). No, this is actually a light-gun happy shooting game from Konami, one consisting of actual interaction.

Think of it as pre-House of the Dead fare. You travel through several tombs, blasting several different types of, well, dead things (no, it's called Crypt Killer because you're killing nannies), and trying to collect the Six Eyes of Guidance, which will make your life better one way or another somewhat. Guiding you through each stage is a floating head that gives you "advice", which actually seems like mumbling that sounds as if it's coming from a guest on Donahue. Anyway, you can play with a control pad or a Stunner, a very different change of pace from the pump-action shotguns the coin-op used. So, is Crypt Killer worthy of your gaming bucks? Sadly, not really, but read on anyway.

The graphics in Crypt Killer consist mostly of sprites, although Konami has built some pretty good 3-D terrain in each of the stages. Enemies come out of every angle, and in every shape and size. One minute you're blazing through a horde of angry skeletons, the next you're shooting water blobs as they spit smalled water blobs at you. It all looks OK, but, in comparison to Sega's Virtua Cop games, it's really glitchville. But, hey, with what Konami tried to do, it could've been worse (do I have to mention Corpse Killer? Huh? Do I? Like I wanted to bring the pain of Digital Pictures in this review...) Another thing that bothered me about the graphics is that the screen flashes after every shot. How bad is this? By the time you finish playing, you're still blinking from the flashes. Did Konami really have to include this feature?

The music actually rocks for a game of this stature, mixing pretty cool Gothic tunes together to set the mood. The sound FX are standard once more, with the possible exception of some really good skeleton screams (you know, "AHHHHHHHHHHH", but only different) and some monster roars.

Interaction is simple- point and shoot, point and shoot. It's not an RPG, I tell ya. However, Crypt Killer does offer you a choice of paths, as you come upon a set of doors once in a while, leaving you to choose one. But, no matter which one you take, you still face each stage eventually, so it's not entirely original. Also, the endings never change, and they are unusually lame (the big floating head simply "thanks" you- I went through all this hell for that?! No "dark side" option? Come on!)

This game is kinda fun with two Stunners (John Woo style is really a preference of mine, it is- scares the mailmen, too), and it really isn't that bad an alternative when you've gotten your load (um, bad term) of Virtua Cop, but Crypt Killer still seems kinda weak in the age of House of the Dead and Gunblade NY. Its critical flaws make it only a one-try than a full-own, and I believe that's not what Konami intended. I give it a 4 out of 10 and recommend it only as a rental for the gun freaks. Whoa, there's that flashing again...Aunt Susie?