2. Michigan: Report From Hell (PS2) (2004)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AasXmJrVUB8 Released for the PS2 towards the end of the last console generation, 'Michigan: Report From Hell' or if you're Japanese, simply 'Michigan', was released in Japan back in 2004. The game was developed by Grasshopper Manufacture and designed by Suda51 A name most Gamers associate with innovate, fun and usually highly-bizarre games. Michigan:Report from Hell placed Gamers in the role of a local news camera man. That's right; the unsung badasses of the real world, War correspondents have nothing on these baseball cap wearing monster slayers. As a mysterious fog descends upon Michigan. A local news team are dispatched to cover the story. They soon discover the towns inhabitants are being mutated into horrifying leech monsters. Not your typical News at 6 weather report. The game is played entirely through the perspective of the camera lens. Accompanied by a reporter and sound engineer, you must find a way to survive the outbreak while keeping your friends alive. With most survival horror games, weapons, health packs and ammo are rarely in short supply. With Michigan: RFH, all you have is your reporter friend sporting a small firearm. Avoiding enemies is the preferred option, but if forced to fight, you have to direct your reporter friend into attacking the foe. By forcing you to visually confront enemies, you are essentially punished for displaying any form of cowardice. Before long, the game becomes nothing but pure survival horror. It never lets up. There's no experience curve, no weapon upgrades and health boosts. You play the entire game in a constant state of high vulnerability. Slightly flawed in places and sporting a fairly poor control scheme, Michigan: RFH, isn't a great game. Yet, If you're a horror fan looking for some uniquely old-school survival horror with a twist, you can't go wrong with this one. Michigan was made available exclusively for the PS2 in both the U.S and Europe in 2005.