Dead Head Fred

"Being dead has never been so much fun"

His name is Fred, he's missing his head, and in case you didn't already figure it out, he's dead. But on the contrary, his debut video game is definitely alive and kicking!

Fred Neuman was a detective who rubbed some gangster folk the wrong way, and we all know what happens to those that mess with such criminals - POW!!! Luckily for him, though, the kingpin's resident mad scientist retrieved his body from the dumpster and remade him into a new man, so to speak. Alas, there was one final body part left unaccounted for (his head, obviously) and it so happened that the chief crook himself kept it as his own personal trophy. Once Fred realises this, he's understandably pissed off and goes off on a headhunting journey spanning several miles of outdoor and suburban locales that have recently been overrun by a whole bunch of other dead weirdos.

Dead Head Fred's trump card is Fred's newfound head switching ability. He may no longer have his natural rugged good looks, but with the help of a necrotic hunchback salesman, he's able to attach several foreign heads onto his body, gaining their unique personalities, skills and traits in return. The default head is the glass jar (a crude vessel for his brain) which offers him the power of stealth and life recovery. Others include the bone head which gives him the ability to shoot bony projectiles and scale mesh walls, the shrunken head which allows him to enter small areas such as hollow tree trunks as a microscopic figure, and the mannequin head which allows him to pose as an uptight gentleman to converse with the local human residents.

There are eight different heads in all and each one offers Fred a new way to play. Some heads are more suited to dealing massive damage to foes, like the stone head, whilst others offer unparalleled agility and the power of temporary flight, such as the corpse head. Their uses extend far beyond trivial matters with head switching playing a vital role in many of the game's environmental puzzles. For example, if you need to douse out a fire, you can use the corpse head to suck out water from a nearby fire hydrant, and then blow it out over the burning area. And if there isn't any source of clear liquid in sight, you can always suck up the blood dripping out of the decapitated body over there.

Dead Head Fred has a very macabre setting, but it isn't trying to be a grotesque game; it just likes to poke fun, a lot. This is especially evident in the many cutscenes that bulk up the game, perhaps too much. However, they are all of the highest quality featuring some hilarious dialogue full of dead jokes delivered by some of the best wisecracking voice actors I've ever had the pleasure to listen to. The story itself is weak, but it doesn't matter when every few steps you're treated to some of the most "loud" cutscenes ever seen in a video game.

The humour translates across to the gameplay very well, too. Each head is individually kitted out with enough unique special moves that a typical action-adventure hero might have, and many of them are a laugh to watch, such as the bloating of the corpse head when sucking stuff up, flinging black crows like a straw-stuffed cowboy when donning the scarecrow head, or the stuck-up hand gestures and permanent pearly white smile of the mannequin head. As the game progresses, it only gets better, and by gathering hidden worms you can buy new upgrades that grant you even more crazy powers.

It is unfortunate that the combat doesn't deliver the same creative quality seen elsewhere. Fighting is a simple two-button mashing affair, and it doesn't help that the camera can't switch from a standard third-person perspective to a more battle orientated one, with no lock-on whatsoever. It's a good thing that the game frequently saves checkpoints for you will die a lot; not because of the bad camera, mind you, but how the enemies seem to be invulnerable to everything but the third hit onwards in your strings allowing them to interrupt you much too easily. That and also how they can shoot up your ass from a distance with scarily precise accuracy.

But in general, the combat isn't that much of a problem, thanks to the many checkpoints. However, some platforming sections can be troublesome due to the wonky camera in such confined areas. It reminds me a lot of the Nintendo 64 Castlevania games whereby a floaty camera would suddenly jerk as you move along and accidentally throw you off into a bottomless pit. There aren't as many of these platforming instances here, though, but there will be some frustration to be had, I can guarantee you that much.

I'm not surprised that Dead Head Fred has flown under the radar of most PSP owners. After all, it was developed by a relatively unknown group whose only real star was the recent smash-hit puzzle/RPG game, Puzzle Quest. But there is no denying that Fred's first effort is both a looker and a stunner of a game. Despite obvious camera flaws and a poor (but workable) combat system, the ingenuity shown with the whole head switching gimmick coupled together with some interesting boss fights, top-notch voice acting and a macabre, film noir setting that never takes itself seriously makes Dead Head Fred one of the most entertaining games of the year.

Fred may be a dead head, but he sure knows how to have fun.

VERDICT - 8.5/10 A wonderful surprise PSP hit that only makes me crave for more dead stuff.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/30/07

Game Release: Dead Head Fred (US, 08/28/07)