After taking a bit of a gamble on publishing mature titles such as The Conduit and MadWorld on the Wii, and seeing poor sales of those titles as a result of the seemingly impenetrable and unpredictable market surrounding the console, SEGA has decided not to pursue the development of any further non family-friendly titles for the Wii.

According to SEGA of America’s studio director, Constantine Hantzopoulos, and once again speaking to the guys of the ‘4 Guys 1Up’ podcast, the publisher will “probably not” develop or publish any more mature Wii titles. Hantzopoulos said:

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Ever wanted to try your hand at creating a terrifying movie poster for a slash horror film? Well, now you can… sort of.

SEGA have put together a poster creation toolkit for their upcoming Wii shooter, House of the Dead: Overkill, which allows users to slap backgrounds and decals together in order to create a menacing poster of your own. They’ve provided all manner of zombie related media, including blood splats and horrific backgrounds to mix and match.

Once your masterwork is complete, you can download it in a variety of sizes and show it to all of your friends so they can find out just how sick and twisted you really are. Head on over here to get started on that masterpiece now!

House of the Dead: Overkill is out on Wii this Friday… the 13th. How fitting!

With the release of The House of the Dead: Overkill just around the corner, Sega has announced that a Collector’s Edition for the game will be released in the PAL territories.

The Collector’s Edition will be encased in an exclusive collector’s slipcase and will include an exclusive graphic novel titled “Prelude to an Overkill.” This specially commissioned comic will only be available in the Collector’s Edition and through selected retailers as a pre-order bonus.

“Prelude to an Overkill” takes a closer look at the stories of Agent Washington and Varla Gunns on the night before the events of the game.

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Despite Sega announcing House of the Dead: Overkill yesterday at Leipzig, the game will not see a release in Germany. Shortly after revealing the new game, Sega delivered a brief press release stating that The House of the Dead: Overkill and Madworld (both Wii exclusive titles, published by Sega) would not be released in Germany.

This is not the first setback that has plagued Madworld. Mediawatch-UK has already called for the title to be banned in the UK, alleging that it will spoil the family fun image of the Wii.

Germany has strict censorship regulations and it seems that Sega has predicted that The House of the Dead: Overkill would be banned in any event. Sega Germany “deeply regrets this decision” but “based on the images shown so far, an ESRB release would be possible but very unlikely.”

It is doubtful that Sega will change the game play so the titles can be released in Germany. This is not the first title that German gamers will miss out on, Gears of War was also effectively banned in Germany in 2006. Microsoft did not release Gears of War in Germany after the game was refused a rating there.

Dead Rising suffered a similar fate in 2006. The game was denied a rating and since Microsoft does not allow unrated games to be published for the Xbox 360 in Germany, Dead Rising was effectively banned in Germany.

Source: Nintendo-Online

Yesterday at Leipzig, Sega took the wraps off The House of the Dead: OVERKILL, a new “pulp-horror reinvention of the classic SEGA light-gun shooter franchise.”

Created by Headstrong Games, The House of the Dead: OVERKILL promises to be “jam-packed with arcade style shooting, over-the-top gore and a whole lot of zombies!” The game is a prequel to previous House of the Dead titles so will take gamers back to the beginning of this series and uncover the secrets behind the House of the Dead when it is released exclusively on the Wii in early 2009.

According to Sega, the game will get a new retro look taking audiences back to horror movies from the 70’s and 80’s. It will feature “distinctive graphics, sound and attitude that will add to its horror status” but will also stay true to its original game play. Special Agent G (fresh out of the academy) and Detective Washington team up to investigate a series of mysterious disappearances in Bayou City, Louisiana – unaware that zombies await them in the streets and swamps.

Use the Wii Remote to fight off zombies, whether that be hand-to-hand combat or using the trusty shotgun. Players will be able to use “Slow-Mofo Time” to get in the perfect head-shot ot “Evil Eye” to send environments up in flames. The game will also feature a co-op mode where two players can take on the zombies together.

If you are a House of the Dead fan you won’t want to miss the debut trailer, but if you have a nervous disposition you might want to give this one a skip!

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