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Doctor Hauzer is among the most well known 3DO imports, if not the most played (fairly rare). The reason for its notoriety? It is a great game!
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Comparisons must be made to 'Resident Evil', if only because it was the game that evolved this genre and brought it into mainstream gaming (sorry, Alone in the Dark only laid the groundwork). It is worth noting though that Hauzer predates RE by almost two years. Many of the things that were popular in RE are found in Hauzer. Obviously, given the pace of technology, a 1994 release cannot compete with a 1996 release running on newer hardware, at least in the graphics department. But Hauzer holds it’s own when compared to RE in most respects and even emerges ahead in some.
Hauzer begins on a dark night with a car driven by you, the character, approaching an isolated house. These images alternate with the opening credits, making the game feel like a movie. Great opening music really helps to set the mood and the sound effects (feet on the gravel, dogs howling in the background, etc…) also are a nice touch.
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Once you enter the house, you’ll really appreciate the graphics. The game makes good use of color, and objects look quite nice and detailed, as does the main character (with the possible exception of some of his facial expressions). You are able to view the graphics from 3 unique viewpoints. The standard RE style views are present but also included are two other viewpoints, first person and ceiling views. These are nice options and also rather helpful. The first person view allows you to complete some tasks that would otherwise be difficult due to an obstructed view, while the ceiling view gives you the full layout of the room. This is one area where Hauzer proves superior to RE (and several other games come to think of it). Of course there are a few graphical hiccups. The full motion video, although limited, is rather dark. Explosions also look poor. And some of the objects really would benefit by anti-aliasing. But for 1994, this was certainly one good looking title. Bound to please.
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I think the music in Hauzer is great! Yes, it does repeat but it is done so well done, with real good use of the piano and such, that it really adds to the game. Obviously musical tastes vary, but I really doubt too many would want to play this game with the volume down … it is too important an element to the game. It also adjusts appropriately near the end, picking up into a climatic rhythm. Good stuff.
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Although the game includes weapons like a knife, an axe, and a shotgun, don’t get too excited. These are only used for puzzles. Yes, think of Hauzer as an early RE minus the zombies. With the exception of the end boss, puzzles are the only enemies you’ll have to face. This can cripple an otherwise playable game, as Japanese language skills are necessary to make any real progress. You can of course save constantly and advance through trial or error. Or you can look for an on-line walkthrough (I hesitate to mention the walkthrough I used, as I believe the author is something of an unofficial rival to 3DOKid
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I’d advise against using a walkthrough, however, at least in the early going. This way you will be able to witness all the amusing death scenes. These can come quickly and unexpectedly, so stay on your toes, and save often.
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Hauzer has some areas that could have used improvement. The control is very slow and takes a little bit to get used to. Also, the ending is awful. It has cut scenes that can’t be skipped and you feel like your character is moving in quicksand. The ending animation is also rather lackluster. These are annoyances but only small ones.
Really, my review doesn't do this title enough justice. Dr. Hauzer is a great game overall and comes very highly recommended. It really is a shame that this game wasn’t released outside of Japan. With no real dialogue to speak of, it would have been an easy title to localize (and check out the newspaper clips in the opening … English! Another thing copied by RE). Don’t let the language barrier discourage you though, this is a game that should be in every 3DO owner’s collection (if you can find it that is ... keep checking Ebay).
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-Trev
P.S. If you like Doctor Hauzer, be sure to check out 'OverBlood' for the Sony Playstation. Somehthing of an unofficial sequel, the game was made by the same development team, RiverHill Soft (who also made the lackluster 3DO game 'Insector War') and shares several things in common with its predecessor.
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