Developer: Grasshopper Manufacture
Publisher: Kadokawa Games, Warn Bros. Interactive
Platforms: Xbox 360, Playstation 3
Played/Reviewed On: Xbox 360
Released: June 2012
Genre: Action-Adventure, Hack-n-Slash
Modes: Single-player
Distribution: Physical CD
Rating: ESRB: M, CERO: Z, PEGI: 18
Content Warning: Strong Adult Language, Adult Situations, Suggestive Themes, Sexual Content

Lollipop, Lollipop, oh Lolli-Lolli-Lolli, Lollipop!

Before I begin my usual spiel, let’s get this out of the way; if this game offends you in any way, great, small, in-between and all that, then this game is not for you. Despite what you may think, not every game is designed to just please you. If you don’t like it, don’t play it. Simple as that.

With that out of the way, let’s take a gander at Lollipop Chainsaw. I kinda had the feeling from the word go that this game was going to be crass, crazy, and a little, well to put it mildly, weird. This is, after all, a Suda51 project. And with him, don’t expect things to be…..sane. Creative, over the top, mildly offensive, but never sane. Lollipop Chainsaw doesn’t buck that trend. So before I really delve deeper into the madhouse contained within, I just want to say God Bless you Suda51, you truly unique and creative son of a b**ch.

The premise is purposely ridiculous enough; You control Juliet Starling, a zombie hunting, high school cheerleader who, through her mystical powers of awesomeness, carries around (and chats with, and even, eh….kisses) her boyfriend’s enchanted severed head. If you’re feeling that “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” vibe going on here hey, you’re probably not the only one. The game’s visual style is this unique grindcore/underground eclectic comic book menagerie with deep cel-borders (almost cel-shaded really), broken up by cheery rainbows and star-glitter when Juliet performs some of her special attacks with her equally colorful chainsaw. Which can magically fit in a book-bag of all things.

This set up leads to plenty of surprisingly funny moments during the game (mostly from Nick’s disembodied head), though it’s sadly a very short exercise. You can expect to beat Lollipop Chainsaw in roughly four to six hours, depending on level of difficulty. Though, I have to admit, the game’s dialogue, even with the knowledge that the game never takes itself seriously, can get a little, well, salty and misogynistic after a while. There are plenty of F-bombs dropped during the course of the game, comments on Juliet’s breats, questionable sexual innuendo, masturbation, and, well, hell you name it really.

That can get a little grating after a while, because it’s saturated throughout the game’s dialogue. Not all though, there are moments, mostly between Juliet and her family that are actually great. But on the whole, the vulgarity and somewhat ham-fisted insults from the bad guys (one of which actually uses said insults as an actual weapon), gets to be a bit too much to take in at one time. Yeah I know, don’t take the game so serious, right? Personal gripe, is all.

The game’s soundtrack supplementing the action is this equally crazy mix that works surprisingly well. I honestly chuckled the first time I popped off Juliet’s super move and Toni Basil’s “Mickey” stared playing. I might have even hummed a little too. Just sayin’. This of course is interspersed with heavier riffs; Five Finger Death Punch’s The Way of the Fist, Dragonforce’s Hero of Our Time, and so on. I think I even remember hearing Dead or Alive’s You Spin Me Round. Like a record baby, right round round….er….*ahem.*

On a gameplay aspect, well, it reminds me a LOT of Splatterhouse. You progress through these blocked-off sections of the map that requires you to kill a certain set number of zombies before you’re allowed to continue on. But don’t worry, the game DOES try to break up the monotony by allowing you to do something different every now and then. Like driving a combine through a zombie-infested field (which was oddly more fun than it should be), to moving through a Pac-Man like maze while yes, you guessed it, Buckner and Garcia’s Pac-Man Fever played in the background.

Combat isn’t as stylish as it should be, and early on, with Juliet’s limited knowledge of moves and skills at her disposal, it can get kind of monotonous. I’d say that, about halfway through, when you’ve accrued enough coins to purchase more skills from the “Chop2Shop.zom Store,” the game starts to feel more fluid and responsive (and Awesome), but I would have liked to have had a more robust choice earlier on to break the boredom of combat.

The art style is welcoming. That’s the closest word I can use to describe this mish-mash of grindcore/almost hand drawn underground art style used in the game (most notably the load screens and the menu display). The heavy borders give it an almost cell-shaded rather than cell-rendered look, and the bosses are uniquely designed to make them as distinctive as possible. Is it perfect? No. But is it creative? Oh hell yes.

Mostly what drags this game down is the wonky camera angles that occur during combat. The game does have a lock-on feature, but, honestly, when you’re wading through a gang of zombies and the camera blocks up against a wall, or swings wildly while it tries to track your target, it can get frustrating. So I honestly found myself doing better by not using it.

Another aspect that I found displeasing was some of the mini-games which, while most ARE fun and break up the hack-n-slash/move on to the next area flow of combat, can get a little infuriating when you fail to meet certain (and strictly time-limited) criteria, which then leads to an instant game over and re-try screen (which affects your end-level score. Blah).

The game does have QTE’s (Quick-Time Events) that, personally, I detest. I don’t like them in games. While not saturated into every aspect of the game’s mechanic, they are prevalent throughout, and I hate them. They are sadly, in my opinion, the most uncreative aspect in a rather creative little title.

I loved the game’s music. From the aforementioned “Mickey” being played when I’m in (what I like to call) “Rainbow Rage” mode, to the just bestial riffs from Arch Enemy’s Nemesis. Which you’ll hear in Stage 5, just to give you a head’s up.

Environmental tracks are solid, and the voice-work is decent. Tara Strong as Juliet is a given solid, even though, like I’ve stated previously, she drops F-bombs faster than you can say What The F-uuh………sorry.

Story-wise, The Walking Dead this is not. But it’s not bad. I mean, it’s pretty clear-cut that the game just makes fun of itself to the point that it instills this sense to you, the player, to basically say “Don’t take us seriously. Just have fun.” And you do. The game is funny at times, though it can come across as being a bit crass. But on the whole, just have whimsical fun chainsawing zombies for a few hours. That’s all it wants you to do.

It’s sad, but as far as GAME DLC goes, there are none. Rather, there’s a rather lengthy list of DLC skins (some of which are unlocked after you beat the game, or purchased from the game’s Chop2Shop store), like dressing up like a Rockabilly (if you pre-ordered via Amazon), Ash from the “Evil Dead” series (via Gamestop), and so on. So if you’re hoping for an extended chapter or side-quest to compliment the game, sadly, there are none.

Final Thoughts: While there are some camera-hiccups and perhaps a little too liberal use of QTE’s in the game (and profanity), and the occasional mini-game frustration, the game is still fun. Short, but fun. Early on the combat can get a little repetitive, but if you hang in there it gets better. Is Lollipop Chainsaw perfect? No. But is it another creative attempt by Grasshopper Games and Suda51? Oh HELL yes.

And as crass as the game is, as borderline voyeuristic as it can sometimes make you feel, as line-crossing (heh, that’s putting it mildly) exploitative as it can be, Lollipop Chainsaw is still fun. And that is something sadly lacking in a lot of games here recently. While many games might try to stay on the safe and non-insulting narrow, Lollipop Chainsaw takes the path least traveled. True, it’s a profanity-laden road, but at least it’s not more of the same. The one real shame is, with THQ’s closure I don’t know if we’ll ever see a sequel to this game in the foreseeable future. We might, and I hope I’m proven wrong in this event. Because something this creatively crass deserves to lampoon its way across the gaming landscape for as long as as hard as it’s able. If not, well, I was happy to at least experience it one time in my life.

So God bless you Suda51. God bless you. You magnificently creative son of a b*tch.