Raze's Hell

Last updated
Raze's Hell
Raze's Hell Coverart.png
Developer(s) Artech Digital Entertainment
Publisher(s) Majesco Entertainment
Director(s) Rick Banks
Paul Butler
Richard Cooper
Producer(s) Howard Perlman
Designer(s) Rick Banks
Josh Bridge
Tim Sandwell
Programmer(s) Tim Sandwell
David Eccleston
Andrew Creskey
Richard Lalancette
Artist(s) Kristofer Eggleston
Cory Humes
Chris Hale
Composer(s) Mike Keogh
Platform(s) Xbox
Release
  • NA: April 21, 2005
  • EU: February 17, 2006 [1]
Genre(s) Third-person shooter
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Raze's Hell is an action game developed by Artech Digital Entertainment, and published by Majesco Entertainment for the Xbox console in 2005. It was made available on the Xbox Live Marketplace in 2008.

Contents

Gameplay

The player character, Raze, has attacks consisting of using his wrist blade and rolling. When an enemy Kewlett is killed, it splatters on the screen or bursts into bloody chunks. Raze can suck up the Kewlett chunks to restore his health and can use stealth mode. Raze also sucks up insects called Squibs, which serve as ammunition.

The Kewletts want to exterminate the Squibs. Different types of Squibs have varying effects, such as: Raze can breathe fire by sucking in flames, much as he does to the Squibs. Red crystals are scattered about the levels that explode when attacked.

Four mini-games can be unlocked in Raze's Hell:

A two-player mode allows two players to cooperate to kill the Kewletts, as well as an online mode that features a variety of mini-games. The multi-player games consist of:

Plot

For centuries the Kewletts, a cute and happy race, lived an idyllic existence inside the hallowed walls of Kewtopia. They never went outside the gates of their city because they had everything they needed inside: a wonderful princess, perfect weather, wealth, and privilege. The Kewletts parody different types of cute creatures found in the media. Kewletts get their news from a show called QTV'. Before the events in the game, the Kewletts lived isolated from the rest of their world. Their first attempt at diplomacy with the creatures of the hinterlands was brief and failed.

Afterwards, their Princess decided to launch "Operation Fresh Hope" to "cutetify" all of the monsters outside of Kewtopia. The true nature behind "Operation Fresh Hope", unknown to most Kewletts, is the retrieval of three ancient artifacts that the Princess desires due to her being a Huggly. Because the Kewletts are intensely nationalistic, they support the idea of expanding Kewletts throughout the war have no problems with "cleansing" the hinterlands of all monsters. Their belligerent, racist worldview is in sharp contrast to their cute, gentle appearance.

The Kewletts' increasingly vicious colonization efforts carry on until they meet Raze, an ugly, simple beast who is transformed when he accidentally stumbles upon ancient artifacts. Raze's heroics spark a swelling underground guerrilla movement.

Development

Producer Rick Banks said the idea for the game came after focus groups had a positive reception to hidden features Artech added to children interactive products, "such as setting cute characters on fire", and made the developers decide to make a game where one would "kill and maim the commercially created cute", with the starting point being that those creatures would be cold-blooded killers. The game spent over three years in development, starting as a test bed for an in-house engine, picked up by a publisher that wound up encountered financial difficulties, and after months stalled being ultimately picked up by Majesco. [2] Audio designer Mike Keogh had his first opportunity to do sound and music for a video game, which featured vocals by his future wife, and over 6,000 lines of Kewlett dialogue, mostly performed by Keogh himself, who also wrote them with the help of his high school improv friends. [3]

Reception

Raze's Hell received "average" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. [4]

Related Research Articles

<i>Doom 3: Resurrection of Evil</i> 2005 video game

Doom 3: Resurrection of Evil is a horror first-person shooter video game developed by Nerve Software and published by Activision. It was released for Microsoft Windows on April 3, 2005, as an expansion pack and sequel to Doom 3 and on October 5, 2005, for the Xbox video game console. The Xbox version does not require the original Doom 3 in order to play, and includes The Ultimate Doom, Doom II: Hell on Earth and Master Levels for Doom II.

<i>Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict</i> 2005 video game

Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict is a first- and third-person arena shooter video game developed by Epic Games and published by Midway Games. It was released in April 2005 for Xbox. The game is part of the Unreal franchise, and is a direct sequel to 2002's Unreal Championship. Unreal Championship 2 was designed from the ground up to take full advantage of the Xbox Live gaming service.

<i>Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix</i> 2002 video game

Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix is a first-person shooter video game developed by Raven Software, the sequel to Soldier of Fortune. It was developed using the id Tech 3 engine as opposed to the original's id Tech 2, and published in 2002. Once again, Raven hired John Mullins to act as a consultant on the game. Based on criticisms of the original game, Raven Software developed Soldier of Fortune II to be a more "realistic" game, with more modern tactical shooters like Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis (2001) and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six (1998) serving as inspirations, rather than Quake (1996).

<i>Serious Sam: The Second Encounter</i> 2002 video game

Serious Sam: The Second Encounter is a 2002 first-person shooter game developed by Croteam and published by Gathering of Developers. It is the successor to Serious Sam: The First Encounter and the second game in the Serious Sam series. Taking place immediately after The First Encounter, it follows the soldier Sam "Serious" Stone, whose spaceship crashes back to Earth on his way from ancient Egypt to Sirius, requiring him to seek the Holy Grail to continue his journey. As Sam, the player traverses linear levels, either enclosed or set on open plains, and battles increasingly large waves of enemies with an expanding arsenal. The gameplay builds on that of The First Encounter while adding additional weapons, more enemy types, and platforming elements, and additionally contains the Seriously Warped Deathmatch mod by A Few Screws Loose.

<i>Conker: Live & Reloaded</i> 2005 video game

Conker: Live & Reloaded is a platform video game developed by Rare and exclusively released for the Xbox in June 2005. The single-player mode is a remaster of the 2001 game Conker's Bad Fur Day for the Nintendo 64. However, it includes a new multiplayer mode using Xbox Live that is different from the Nintendo 64 version. Development started the moment the studio was bought by Microsoft in 2002. The game was made available as a part of Xbox One's backwards compatibility program on April 17, 2018.

<i>Unreal Tournament 3</i> 2007 first-person shooter video game

Unreal Tournament 3 (UT3) is a first-person arena shooter video game developed by Epic Games and published by Midway Games. Part of the Unreal franchise, it is the fourth game in the Unreal Tournament series, and the eighth game overall; its name is in reflection of the game being the first in the franchise to use Unreal Engine 3. It was released on November 19, 2007, for Microsoft Windows, December 10 for the PlayStation 3, and on July 3, 2008, for the Xbox 360. OS X and Linux ports were planned, but they were eventually cancelled. A free-to-play version, entitled Unreal Tournament 3 X, was announced by Epic Games in late 2022 and cancelled in 2023.

<i>Advent Rising</i> 2005 video game

Advent Rising is an action-adventure third-person shooter video game developed by GlyphX Games and published by Majesco Entertainment. The game was released on May 31, 2005, for Xbox and on August 9, 2005, for Microsoft Windows. Its story was created by Donald and Geremy Mustard and featured a script written by science fiction writers Orson Scott Card and Cameron Dayton; the full orchestral soundtrack was done by Tommy Tallarico and Emmanuel Fratianni. As of September 14, 2006, Steam began offering Advent Rising for download.

<i>The Darkness</i> (video game) 2007 first-person shooter video game

The Darkness is a first-person shooter video game developed by Starbreeze Studios and published by 2K for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was released in 2007 in North America and Europe and it is based on The Darkness comic book series published by Top Cow Productions. A sequel titled The Darkness II was released in 2012.

<i>James Camerons Dark Angel</i> 2002 video game

James Cameron's Dark Angel is a beat 'em up video game based on the television series Dark Angel. It was developed by Radical Entertainment and co-published by Fox Interactive alongside Vivendi Universal Games and their subsidiary Sierra Entertainment. It was announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in May 2002, shortly after the TV series was canceled. Jessica Alba and Michael Weatherly reprised their roles from the series, voicing Max Guevara and Logan Cale respectively.

<i>Whacked!</i> 2002 video game

Whacked! is a party game developed by Presto Studios and released in 2002 by Microsoft Game Studios exclusively for the Xbox. It was one of the two original games to be made available for Xbox Live, and it received mixed reviews. Whacked! was the last game developed by Presto Studios before it went defunct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Artech Digital Entertainment</span> Video game developer company

Artech Digital Entertainment, Ltd. was a video game developer formed in 1982 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Also known as Artech Studios, the company developed games such as Raze's Hell, Monopoly, Jeopardy!, Wheel of Fortune, and a remake of Q*bert.

<i>Land of the Dead: Road to Fiddlers Green</i> 2005 video game

Land of the Dead: Road to Fiddler's Green is a first-person shooter licensed video game based on the George A. Romero zombie horror movie Land of the Dead, developed by Brainbox Games and published by Groove Games.

<i>Celebrity Deathmatch</i> (video game) 2003 video game

Celebrity Deathmatch is a professional wrestling video game by American studio Big Ape Productions, based on the MTV series of the same name. It was available for PlayStation, as well as Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2 and Xbox. The game features celebrities and movie monsters as playable characters.

<i>Vampire Rain</i> 2007 video game

Vampire Rain is a survival horror stealth video game developed by Artoon. It was released for the Xbox 360 in Japan on January 25, 2007, and in North America on July 3, 2007. The game was later ported to the PlayStation 3 in 2008 under the title Vampire Rain: Altered Species. It received negative reviews for its difficulty, poor artificial intelligence, and controls.

<i>BlackSite: Area 51</i> 2007 video game

BlackSite: Area 51 is a first-person shooter video game, released for Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows on November 12, 2007 in North America, and PlayStation 3 on December 10, 2007. The game is mostly unrelated to the 2005 multi-platform game Area 51. The game was developed by Midway Austin and published by Midway Games.

<i>Spy vs. Spy</i> (2005 video game) 2005 video game

Spy vs. Spy is a video game developed by Vicious Cycle Software and published by Global Star Software. The game is based on the MAD magazine's titular comic strip. The game features the two spies in a unique story mode, plus two other game modes, and a multiplayer mode for up to 4 players. A GameCube version was planned, but it was cancelled.

<i>Cobalt</i> (video game) 2016 video game

Cobalt is an action side-scrolling video game developed by Oxeye Game Studio and published by Mojang Studios. It was released on 2 February 2016 for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and the Xbox One consoles.

<i>Call of Duty: Ghosts</i> 2013 first-person shooter video game

Call of Duty: Ghosts is a 2013 first-person shooter video game developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision. It is the tenth major installment in the Call of Duty series and the sixth developed by Infinity Ward. It was released for PlayStation 3, Wii U, Windows, and Xbox 360, on November 5, 2013. The game was released with the launch of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

<i>Painkiller: Hell & Damnation</i> 2012 first-person shooter video game

Painkiller: Hell & Damnation is a first-person shooter video game, both a remake of and a sequel to Painkiller, developed by The Farm 51 and published by Nordic Games. The game was released on October 31, 2012, for Microsoft Windows and for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on June 28, 2013, in Europe after suffering multiple delays. It was released in North America for Xbox 360 through Xbox Live on October 1, 2013, and for PlayStation 3 through the PlayStation Store on November 26, 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Majesco Entertainment</span> American video game publisher and distributor

Majesco Entertainment Company is an American video game publisher and distributor based in Hazlet, New Jersey. The company was founded as Majesco Sales in Edison, New Jersey in 1986, and was a privately held company until acquiring operation-less company ConnectivCorp in a reverse merger takeover, becoming its subsidiary and thus a public company on December 5, 2003. ConnectivCorp later changed its name to Majesco Holdings Inc. on April 13, 2004.

References

  1. 1 2 Vandervell, Andrew (March 6, 2006). "Raze's Hell Review". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  2. ↑ Raze's Hell Q&A, GameSpot
  3. ↑ Raze's Hell , Mike O.K.
  4. 1 2 "Raze's Hell for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  5. ↑ Parkin, Simon (February 16, 2006). "Raze's Hell". Eurogamer . Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  6. ↑ Helgeson, Matt (June 2005). "Raze's Hell". Game Informer . No. 146. p. 131. Archived from the original on November 4, 2005. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  7. ↑ Davis, Ryan (April 29, 2005). "Raze's Hell Review". GameSpot . Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  8. ↑ Chapman, David (April 25, 2005). "GameSpy: Raze's Hell". GameSpy. Archived from the original on December 26, 2005. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Raze's Hell, Review". GameTrailers. May 5, 2005. Archived from the original on February 17, 2007. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
  10. ↑ Hopper, Steven (April 24, 2005). "Raze's Hell - XB - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on February 29, 2008. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  11. ↑ Clayman, David (April 21, 2005). "Raze's Hell". IGN . Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Raze's Hell". Official Xbox Magazine . June 2005. p. 86.
  13. ↑ Marriott, Scott Alan (June 24, 2005). "Raze's Hell Review". X-Play. Archived from the original on July 3, 2005. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  14. ↑ Huschka, Ryan (June 5, 2005). "'Raze's Hell'". Detroit Free Press . Archived from the original on September 17, 2005. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.