Lollipop Chainsaw’s RePOP Review

Initial release date: September 12, 2024

Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, Microsoft Windows

Developer: DRAGAMI GAMES, LTD.

Genres: Adventure game, Fighting game

Publishers: DRAGAMI GAMES, LTD., Limited Run Games

Engine: Unreal Engine 5

The unfortunate reality of video games is the complex issue of preservation. The medium is more complex than literature or cinema because many games require specialized platforms or will not function on newer PCs due to technological concerns that I do not understand. Other times, games are delisted, out of print, and never re-released due to expired licenses.

Lollipop Chainsaw was released in 2012 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Nobody anticipated that this cult hit would become a difficult game to obtain later due to the multiple licenses in its soundtrack and variant costumes. At the time, it was considered a mediocre action game when compared to Devil May Cry 4, Bayonetta, and even its developer’s previous titles, such as No More Heroes. It developed a cult following over time thanks to its James Gunn ties, inventive leaders, and raunchy fanservice.

Lollipop Chainsaw was on the verge of losing his license. Fortunately, it did not, but not without sacrifice. There was always a question about how modern sensibilities™ would effect a game that predominantly catered to guys and had a fan servicey protagonist. Given the problematic circumstances regarding the licensed soundtrack, is it even the same game? Find out more in our Lollipop Chainsaw RePop review!

Juliet Starling has everything going for her. She captains her cheerleading squad, has a loving and supportive family, and her boyfriend Nick is the coolest and most devoted guy at San Romero High. It’s a good thing she and her family come from a long history of zombie hunters, since Swan, the local goth outcast, performs a necromantic ceremony to summon the undead apocalypse. All because she turned down his advances.

Swan summoned the Dark Purveyors to infect the globe with the zombie virus. These zombie rock lords arrived from Rotten World and are willing to die for their Master. Each represents a different type of music. Zed represents punk, Lewis Legend is the embodiment of rock & roll, Mariska represents psychedelic pop, Josey represents funk, and Vikke is death metal personified.

Juliet hurries to San Romero High, where the student body has almost totally turned into zombies, to save her ailing boyfriend. Nick is debriefed about his girlfriend’s zombie-hunting history, but not before being decapitated and mysteriously reanimated. Juliet will have to cut her way through an army of undead if she is to defeat the dark purveyors and prevent the summoning of the Zombie of Zombies.

Lollipop Chainsaw was Grasshopper Manufacture’s best-selling game, and much of its success was due to James Gunn’s story and writing talents. This was before he became a Marvel shill, and he was still capable of coming up with some outrageously imaginative and edgy ideas. There are numerous humorous incidental lines scattered throughout the game that are clearly Gunn-isms if you are familiar with his work on Tromeo and Juliet.

Combining a Buffy-esque premise with punk in a gory and over-the-top action game was an innovative idea made possible only by Goichi Suda’s willingness to collaborate with unconventional creatives. It’s a shame there was just one Lollipop Chainsaw title because there seemed to be promise for a fun series in which Juliet and her family might embark on new adventures.

The game is fast-paced and contains significant ramifications for a bigger world. Unfortunately, Lollipop Chainsaw RePop is still a somewhat short game. It only contains six stages, however there are multiple cutscenes that cannot be missed. It would be ridiculous to expect the developers to provide fresh gameplay content, but they might have at least made all cutscenes skippable, making replaying stages for a higher rank less tiresome.

The gameplay is very much a reflection of its time. Stages are linear setpieces containing combat, gimmicks, and occasionally a minigame. Juliet can save a handful of her classmates if they don’t glitch out. However, RePop is quite buggy. While the original game was not perfect, this remake contains new bugs that are more prevalent.

When sawing through doors, there are missing effects, the lighting frequently fails to function properly, and foes occasionally spasm and break. The RePop visuals are likewise not as appealing as the original. The new designs are too bright, removing pop art elements such as comic screen tones and high contrast lighting.

Fortunately, the Lollipop Chainsaw is uncensored. Juliet’s gorgeous and tight physique looks fantastic, and the skirt physics are convincing as it twirls, rises, and flips up. There was no compromise. You will not see any unattractive shorts or a black void. Juliet’s panties are safe and protected.

The chainsaw combat is the same as it always was. Juliet uses both high and low attacks, as well as cheer techniques. She can purchase combination strikes to offer diversity to her moveset, but nonetheless, players will want to keep zombie heads rolling in one fell swoop.

When Juliet’s saw bites down on the various types of undead, the sound has the right crunch (assuming no glitches). The sound issues remain in cutscenes, where some lines are not audible.

Regardless, much of the conversation sounds muffled. Worse, numerous songs were deleted, and they were critical components that detracted from the whole experience. When Juliet uses her super mode, “Hey Mickey” is replaced by a generic-sounding melody. All of the boss songs have been redone, which is a shame because they were among the greatest pieces in the game.

Load times have been thankfully reduced, but there were also some excellent music in the transition moments. The developers should have made the load times false, lasting around seven seconds, and skippable. These animations were necessary because they bridged the gap between locations where one level finished and another began.

Other faults with this adaptation include certain poor design choices from the original game that are still bad in 2024. When Juliet defeats a Dark Purveyor, she obtains a new skill. This is beneficial because it expands gameplay options. However, the approach is flawed because the upgrades can only be used before the stage is acquired.

As entertaining as the chainsaw run and baseball blaster are, gamers will not be able to progress to the earlier stages. RePop had the opportunity to correct this, but it is now just another error in this port’s long list of mistakes.

Other faults that run deep in Lollipop Chainsaw’s core include the complete squandering of voice talent for Juliet’s family and the Dark Purveyors. Michael Rooker voices Vikke, the heavy metal zombie, and he has almost no material to work with. Greg Henry, who plays Juliet’s father, is given little to work with, which is a shame given his amazing talent and variety.

Michael Rosenbaum as Nick delivers the best and funniest performance. He plays a superb straight-man jock who is struggling to deal with his ludicrous situation.

Tara Strong delivers a classic ditzy performance as Juliet, who is purposefully constructed as a very dumb and flat character. She gives the persona a lot of enthusiasm and sounds like a real high school cheerleader, but the character is really one-dimensional.

Lollipop Chainsaw RePop required additional time to polish. This is a shoddy and scratchy port that is even worse than the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions. The glitches and missing music aren’t worth the improved visuals and (inconsistent) frame rate increase. It is also far more expensive than Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered, another Grasshopper Manufacture game from the seventh console generation.

If you can’t get your hands on the original version of Lollipop Chainsaw and are yearning to hunt zombies with panty shots, try OneeChanbara Origin. Perhaps if the developer fixes things, RePop will be as great as it should be. The lack of music will always be a concern for this port, but is it still Lollipop Chainsaw?

Review Overview

Gameplay: 84%

Controls: 82%

Aesthetics: 87%

Content: 80%

Accessibility: 78%

Value: 83%

Overall: 82%

SOLID!

Summary:

“Lollipop Chainsaw’s RePOP” revives the cult hit with refined visuals and the same over-the-top action that fans enjoyed in the original. The gameplay is deliciously chaotic, combining hack-and-slash basics with offbeat humor that never takes itself too seriously. While the controls are generally responsive, there are times when the action feels too fast to be precise. The graphical changes bring new vitality to the game’s vivid universe, but some content may become repetitive with time. Overall, it’s a nostalgic, enjoyable trip for both returning fans and beginners seeking an exciting zombie-slaying adventure.