Splatterhouse - Ports

Ports

Splatterhouse was released in various home version ports on the TurboGrafx-16, FM Towns and PC. Though the Japanese PC-Engine (the Japanese name of the TurboGrafx-16) version of the game remains largely unedited, the Western TurboGrafx-16 version features a number of changes, as well as standard changes for an arcade port at the time, caused by the less-powerful hardware of the console (loss of graphical detail, removal of some sounds). They include the following:

• The arcade version opens with an animation of Rick and Jennifer running through the storm and into the mansion, followed by an exterior shot of the mansion and the sound of Jennifer screaming. The console version opens simply with the exterior of the mansion, and no sound effects.
• The Terror Mask is changed from a white hockey mask to a red mask with black accents in the US Turbografx version. This is to keep Rick from looking too much like Jason Voorhees. The mask became more skull-like in later games.
• The first weapon in Stage 1 is changed from a meat cleaver to a 2x4.
• The overall violence and gore is toned down; enemies bleed less and the sound effects are less gruesome.
• In the arcade version, the Stage 4 boss fight takes place in a chapel. After defeating the boss, Rick approaches an altar with a crucifix and sunlight shines in through the windows as a hymn begins to play. Several seconds later, suspenseful music plays followed by Jennifer screaming. In the US Turbografx version, the chapel is a generic hallway. After defeating the boss, Rick inexplicably approaches a large, empty room; the hymnal, sun animation, and suspenseful note are left intact but Jenifer's scream is removed for an unknown reason.
• The Stage 4 boss in the arcade version is "Evil Cross," a giant, inverted cross surrounded by floating severed heads. In the console version, the cross is replaced with a new enemy, a demon's skull called "Evil Sleep." The heads are referred to as "Nightmares," and only three of the six present in the arcade version appear. Also, the weapon for the boss is changed from an axe to a gold meat cleaver, the only cleaver in the game.
• The death of the womb boss of Stage 6 is changed from a graphic spilling of embryonic fluids into a generic fiery explosion in the console versions (both western and Japanese releases).
• The final boss uses different attacks in the console version.
• The final boss' grave is changed from a wooden cross to a tombstone in the western console version.
• The end cut scene is changed from the original arcade ending, in which the mask breaks from Rick's face, followed by a shot of him walking away from the burning mansion and an additional cut scene showing the mask reform and laugh. The ending in the TurboGrafx-16 version only shows the mask explode, followed by a picture of West Mansion burning while the credits roll, and finally a large red and orange "End" is displayed.

The TG-16 version was also released on the Wii's Virtual Console in Europe on March 16, 2007 and in North America three days later on March 19, 2007. The version of the game ported to the Wii Virtual Console is the western TurboGrafx-16 port; therefore it is the "censored" version as opposed to the "uncensored" original arcade game. Namco Bandai had announced that the arcade version would be ported to the Japanese Virtual Console and was released on May 26, 2009. There are currently no plans for a U.S. release.

The FM Towns version, ported by Ving Co. and released only in Japan in 1992, is a pixel-perfect rendition of the original arcade, with no substantial changes apart from a new menu interface in the title screen. There was also an LCD handheld version released, Splatter House, but it is not a port of either games. It is considered to be an original Splatterhouse game in and of itself, though many elements in it are similar to the original game.

There is also a version available for mobile phones. The only change in this version is that Rick's mask will look like how it does in the 2010 remake.

It was then ported to iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad. The mask in that version looks like how it does in the original arcade game, but it now adds a "Splatter Rush" mode where enemies continuously spawn from both ends of a wide screen with music from the 2010 remake playing in the background.

The original arcade game was included as an unlockable extra in the 2010 remake.