Sweet Home (スウィートホーム, Suīto Hōmu?) is a survival horror game that was released for the Famicom in 1989. It was developed and published by Capcom. The game is related to the Japanese horror film of the same name.
Gameplay
From the game: the team approach Mamiya's mansion for the first time.
Throughout the game, Sweet Home follows a team of five people who venture into the deserted mansion of the deceased Mamiya Ichirou to photograph and restore her husband's frescoes. Upon entering the house, the door locks behind them and the group discover that the mansion is haunted by Mamiya, among other creatures. Now they must find a way out of the mansion before they are all killed.
Sweet Home was only released for the Japanese market and was never released outside of Japan, however, the game has received an unofficial translation to English. Despite selling poorly overall, the game had some unique and creative features such as:
- Permanent character deaths. Characters who die in battle can never be revived, unlike most other RPGs.
- Unique skills. Each character has a unique skill that is necessary to complete the game. However, should a character die, certain items can be found that will grant other character the necessary skills. For example, should Akiko (the team's nurse) die, the team may find Pill Bottles which can be used to heal ailments.
- Five different endings, as well as large environments and a scary atmosphere.
Characters
From the game: two characters roaming the mansion (English translation)
- Kazuo
- The team leader, and producer of the documentary. He wields the lighter, a very important item which can be used to burn down ropes and attack enemies. He has the highest HP. In the movie, his wife died prior to his exploration of the mansion.
- Taguchi
- Known as Taro in the translated version due to name length restrictions, Taguchi is a camera man. He takes photographs of the frescoes with his camera, which can also decode hidden messages within the frescoes. The camera can also be used to inflict damage to some enemies. In addition to having the second highest HP, he has the highest defence.
- Akiko
- She is a TV show host in the movie and can heal team members with her first aid kit. She is the weakest member of the team.
- Asuka
- An art restorer and love interest to Kazuo in the movie. Using her vacuum cleaner, Asuka can clean dirty frescoes and remove broken glass. She is the second strongest female character.
- Emi
- She is Kazuo's daughter. In the game, her character uses a key which can open locked doors in the mansion. She is the strongest female character, as well as the lightest of the team.
- Lady Mamiya Ichirou
- The main villain of the game. Following the death of her child, who accidentally walked into the furnace, Mamiya became insane, going so far as to kidnap and kill other children to act as "playmates" for her child in the next life. She has two forms in the game.
- Ichirou
- Mamiya's husband, as well as a famous artist/painter. He has left clues scattered around the house in addition to his diary.
- Yamamura
- A mysterious old man who operates a gas station in the movie. He gives the team aid in the later parts of the game. In-game hints suggest that Yamamura and Ichirou are the same person.
Film
There was also a film released in 1989. In an interview, with Capcom game designer Shinji Mikami, it was stated that the game was licensed from the movie. The game and the film were released simultaneously. Sweet Home's trailer is both an advertisement for the movie, and a sales pitch for the game, as it includes footage from both.
The film and video game versions both contain duplicate copies of very specific images. Even more so, specific things, such as the fresco, the skull statue, and the tool, look exactly the same in both the film and the game. More so, the facial appearance of the character portraits in the game mirrors the look of the actors in the movie.
According to the game credits, the producer for the game is Juzo Itami, who acted in the film.
Legacy
Though more of an RPG, Sweet Home served as the main inspiration behind Resident Evil. The first Resident Evil borrowed many elements from Sweet Home, including the mansion setting, the puzzles, the item inventory management, the emphasis on survival, and even the "door" loading screen.[1][2] While the horror genre can trace as far back as Haunted House on the Magnavox Odyssey, Sweet Home is "generally considered the turning point" for horror games and had a more direct role in establishing the survival horror genre due to its strong influence on Resident Evil.[3] These influences include solving a variety of puzzles using items stored in a limited inventory,[1][4] while battling or escaping from horrifying creatures, which could lead to permanent death for any of the characters, thus creating tension and an emphasis on survival.[1][3]
It was also the first attempt at creating a "scary" and frightening atmosphere within a game, through its "gruesome" story, ambient and tense orchestration, gory presentation, and "creepy" cut scenes.[4] It was also the first attempt at creating a scary and frightening storyline within a game, mainly told through diary entries left behind fifty years before the events of the game.[5] Resident Evil also borrowed various other elements from the game,[2] including the use of scattered notes as storytelling mechanics, multiple endings depending on which characters survive, backtracking to previous locations in order to solve puzzles later on, the use of save rooms to store items when the player's inventory is full,[4] and the use of death animations.[5] Some thus consider it the "first survival horror game."[4][6]
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