Gungrave: Overdose
Direct sequel to Gungrave, adding new characters and a revenge story.
Gungrave: Overdose is a third-person shooter for the PlayStation 2, serving as a direct follow-up to the original Gungrave. It was published by Red Entertainment in Japan and by Mastiff in North America. The game is notable as the only title fully developed by the animation studio Ikusabune, which had previously only handled the animation and cinematics for the first game (that title was developed by Red Entertainment). Released two years after its predecessor and after the anime adaptation of the original had already concluded, the game preserves Yasuhiro Nightow's distinctive artistic style. It introduces new playable characters and a fresh story, where the anti-hero Grave continues his quest for revenge against the sadistic son of a Mafia boss, who has allied with a symbiotic seed threatening to take over Earth. Critics received the game slightly less favorably than the first, with a Metacritic score of 55 compared to the original's 56, though reviews remained mixed overall. Praise focused on its longer length—IGN noted it could easily exceed six hours, a stark contrast to the first game’s two-hour runtime—as well as its art style and value. GameSpot’s Greg Kasavin highlighted its "good-sized series of action-packed missions, multiple difficulty settings, three different playable characters, and dirt-cheap $15 retail price" as excellent value. However, the graphics were criticized for being simplified to avoid the slowdown of the first game, and the lock-on system was deemed unwieldy and confusing. In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 26 out of 40.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Gungrave: Overdose
- Developer
- Ikusabune Co., Ltd.
- Publisher
- JP · Red Entertainment · NA · Mastiff · EU · Play-It
- Director
- Naohito Hanai
- Producer
- Tōru Kubo
- Designer
- Tomohiro Maruyama / Takashi Hata
- Writer
- Hidenori Tanaka / Takashi Hino / Tomohiro Maruyama
- Artist
- Yasuhiro Nightow
- Composer
- Tsuneo Imahori
- Series
- Gungrave
- Platforms
- PlayStation 2
- Released
- JP · March 4, 2004 · NA · September 13, 2004 · PAL · October 7, 2005
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Gungrave: Overdose picks up where its predecessor left off, following its main character through a variety of stages on a path of revenge. Two years after the original Gungrave, and after that game's anime adaptation had already concluded, this sequel was released. Preserving Yasuhiro Nightow's flair and artistic style, the game adds new playable characters and a new story in which Grave resumes his tale as an unlikely anti-hero tracking down the sadistic son of a Mafia boss who has struck a deal with a symbiotic seed bent on taking over Earth.
Reader's Guide
Gungrave: Overdose received more favorable reviews than the first game but still garnered mixed reviews according to Metacritic. Critics praised its longer length—IGN noted it can last more than six hours, compared to the first game's two hours. The art and visual style were also praised, as was the game's value; GameSpot's Greg Kasavin stated that its good-sized series of action-packed missions, multiple difficulty settings, three different playable characters, and dirt-cheap $15 retail price made it an excellent value. However, the graphics were criticized for being simpler to prevent slowdown present in the first game, and the lock-on system was criticized as unwieldy and confusing. In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 26 out of 40.
Did You Know?
- Gungrave: Overdose is the only known title fully developed by animation studio Ikusabune.
- Critics noted the game can last more than six hours, in stark contrast to the first game's two-hour length.
- GameSpot's Greg Kasavin praised the game's $15 retail price as making it an excellent value.
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