Thank you for doing this series of podcasts. I've enjoyed listening to them, especially how you mixed in a variety of voices across the 10/20 picks.


IMHO, HotD:O is not even the best light gun game on Wii, let alone best third party game. The comment at the end of the pocast that literally ALL 9 other third party picks may be better made is true. I don't see "outrageousness" as a strong positive. Maybe it's a novelty to draw eyes, but it can't be the game's heart. Yes, the ending is far, far out there. And? Dead Space Extraction has a better story, Ghost Squad has _more_ camp IMHO but backs it up with faster paced action. RE:DC has more challange and generally georgous graphics. HotD:O has poor graphics (as mentioned in the podcast), too easy (WHY hide the better route for AFTER beating the game?), too samey, and weapon upgrades are pointless (in RE:DC and DSE there is the option to apply stragety to weapon choice that is meaningful in the game) as one only needs to upgrade the handgun. The framerate judders. And look, it has to be said, but the f-word in this game is the most puerile facet of all-- and that's this game's hook? I felt less embarassed playing The Muncables.

All valid points. I just disagree with you about this game.

For me, and I'm assuming the other folks on staff who ranked this game fairly high when we all voted, I can boil this down to why this is up there on my list of favorite third-party Wii games.

I don't remember the story of Dead Space Extraction at all despite beating it. I've never gone back to any other light-gun game I've played on Wii outside of Overkill. I've played through Overkill all the way through easily close to 10 times.

So yea, it might have some poor graphics and an occasional shitty frame rate, but it's damn entertaining. This whole list isn't based around technical merits; it's based around NWR staff personal preference. I think it's refreshing to see so much debate over the third-party games because it means that, surprise, there were a lot of good ones.

And don't be hating on The Munchables. That game was kind of fun. :)

Well, this series ended with a resounding "meh".

I don't care how artificially "badass" a game is. It's technical merits are unimpressive, its story and ending are ripped from better zombie movies, and the majority of the other entries on the list are of better quality. It's fun at times, but I honestly can't agree with it being number one. But again, this is your list, and I respect that. I just think that placing Monster Hunter Tri the lowest here and this game as the highest is a bit disappointing, just because the quality of this game is so low in so many respects. The funny thing about this list is that you didn't really have much to say about your top choice.

Still, you guys have balls for putting this at the top of the list. It's a choice, but at least you committed to it. I don't think comparing this to Conker is valid, though.

Monster Hunter Tri suffers from, as we've said a lot of time, the fact that it's a divisive game. We have a lot of people who love it on staff, but there's also a lot of people who have tried it and don't really care for it that much.

The third-party list was very close throughout, and for anyone who's curious, our voting process consisted of every staffer sending in a top 10 list of third-party games from a nominees list we compiled. Then, each game receives 10 pts for a 1st place vote, 9 for a 2nd, 8 for a 3rd, etc.

The total difference between the first game (Overkill) and 10th (MHTri) was 15 points, and we had around 20 staffers contribute.

Then we had a staff meeting to do some fine-tuning. That's actually the way Tri got on the list at all. It was actually just off the list, but no one seemed to interested in writing about Rayman Origins, and we had a lot of passionate MHTri fans.

I don't think there's any argument that it's a really good 'light gun' inspired game. I'm just a little surprised that it took the top spot, and that's got a lot to do with the genre.

I don't actually think 'light gun' shooters are all that engaging. HOTD: Overkill is a prime example of the genre, but the genre itself just isn't interesting to me, either mechanically or structurally. They can be fun with a few beers and some friends but they don't stimulate me in the same way that denser more mechanically complex games do.

I, uhh, can't argue with that. I'm baffled this made the top spot. Absolutely zero rigging was involved in its top placement. For me? It was my #2, right after Skylanders. :)


And well, here's my top 10 3rd party for any interested parties:


1. Skylanders
2. Overkill
3. A Boy and His Blob
4. Silent Hill SM
5. Trauma Team
6. Goldeneye 007
7. Boom Blox Bash Party
8. Red Steel 2
9. Little King's Story
10. Monster Hunter Tri

I don’t really care about the list, as I have seen games I really like, and those I don’t care for make the cut; that, and the fact the outcomes don’t affect my tastes anyway.  Really, the only thing I found amiss, is that the director of one of the most respected Nintendo-centric sites on the web, appears to consider a singing pile so sh!t to be one of the best things to happen in video games. Please understand, I like Concker’s (Grim Reaper Greg is my favorite), but is that one of the best things in the game, let alone best things on a Nintendo console, or gaming in general? I love the idiosyncrasies of this mature title, and understand they are appropriate for the game. However, if the next Mario or Zelda featured a singing sh!t boss, would that make the game better?  Again, I have no problem with HOTDO being number 1; but singing crap is not one of the best things in gaming. And the statements implying this don’t meet the criteria that the other exemplary content NWR is known for (at least from my perspective).  I really enjoyed these countdowns, so thank you NWR; but it would be nice to see a modicum amount of class when describing the best (arguably) third-party Wii game available.

Wow, I can't believe there's so much hate for this game. I think the greatest aspect of Overkill is that it's short, manageable, and offers a lot of over-the-top fun. Is Dead Space: Extraction a better game? Technically, sure. But the story is a pretty weak setup for some Dead Space 2 DLC. Is Umbrella Chronicles a better game? Of course it is. But it's long and requires a lot of replay. And there's a least SOME technical prowess to playing it right.

Overkill can be played with a friend who's last light-gun shooter was Time Crisis 2, and they will feel right at home. It is mindless, mindless, zombie-killing action with lots of F-bombs and a stripper named Varla Gunns. I can't think of a better cap on our Top 10 3rd Party list.

I wonder if part of the problem comes from people not getting the voting process - even though it was explained earlier.


Nobody is (necessarily) saying that House of the Dead Overkill is the best third party game on Wii. The way voting works, a game like this benefits from being accessible and easy to play while longer and more involved games are likely to split votes since fewer people will have played them enough to really fall in love with the game. Being a "middle of the pack" game on many lists is better than being absolutely adored by a few people in this type of poll, and apparently the final scores for games in the Top 10 were extremely close from top to bottom.

House of the Dead Overkill is short, shallow, and most definitely an over-the-top exercise in gutter humor. It's not a game for everyone - as the M rating clearly indicates. But it's a great "guilty pleasure" type of diversion that is sure to leave an impression, and is also one of the best examples of an accessible and original on-rails shooter (a genre that Wii excels at) in recent history. With those points in mind, it's not difficult to see how it could appear on many individual Top 10 lists.

Anyone who doesn't like the final list here should make their voice heard!  There is a thread in the forums taking votes now for the NWR Community Top 10 lists. Follow this link and make your opinion count:
http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/forums/index.php?topic=39463.0

Hey I actually picked this game up because Neal recommended it on Connectivity. On their games that people are going to be considered to be classics in the next few years. I really like how Headstrong just went balls out on this game. I like this game over the Resident Evil shooters they were just boring for me. I loved House of the Dead 2 and 3 Return on the Wii. This game just added so much laughs, and so much fun. There have should hve been made more light gun shooters for the Wii and this is the only descent one. I can't say much for Dead Space because I never played that.

Can no one take a joke? Conker's Bad Fur Day is funny. So is House of the Dead: Overkill. Some of my favorite N64-related memories are related to Conker, and yes, I do think that the Great Mighty Poo is really funny and something ballsy and crazy in a video game. I appreciate that. I also appreciate that Conker's BFD is a fun game. Like House of the Dead: Overkill.

I am sad to find out that people don't like the Great Mighty Poo song...

Rad, dude. I'm always touched when people check out games I recommend, even more so when they dig the game.

I am outraged!

I ranked Silent Hill at the top of my list, and I stand by that.


That said, HotD:Overkill is a lot of fun, and a good example of something that was fun and unique to Wii (at least until it wasn't unique to Wii any longer).

I mean, it's not that the elements of the game are bad- it has funny moments and the game has some quality content- but it's vulgar content isn't really original and most of what it does is pretty uninspired in comparison with the other games on the list. I'd even say Madworld is a better game than this- if vulgarity is what makes a game memorable and more worthy...

I think the thing is, the NWR staff chose just as niche a game as Monster Hunter for a majority of the third party slots, including number one. House of the Dead: Overkill is not an outstanding title in a number of respects, and you guys even admitted it- but f-bombs won you over in the end... I dunno, it kinda feels like a cheap list-topper. But AGAIN, it's your list, and if you guys think Overkill is the best game on the Wii- you're entitled to your opinion. It just seems like the staff's perspective was quite skewed- which I find surprising since I find myself agreeing with a lot of your opinions. I'm surprised Overkill made the top of the list because I'd expect something different from a large group of people.

@Evan_B

Well put.

Also, how funny would it be if, sheerly down to the odd way in which our votes are counted, Overkill took the number 1 spot on the the forum users top 10 list as well? lol.

Man, to be honest, Overkill deserves some serious recognition, if for nothing but that one song. "But Dad!" Umm... I'm not your dad. I just f*** your mom".  :cool;
  For real. The game is just fun. I wouldn't personally rank it number one or anything like that, but I can see why somebody would.

I'm surprised that it's #1 but its still an excellent game, great podcast series guys

I played through the game with my sister, although we didn't beat it because the game locked up during the final boss. This was the third time it had done this too, so she got tired of it. It took us only three hours, so it's a short game. I think it's a good arcade shooter with a style that fits, but it's too short and glitchy for it to be on a list like this, especially high up. I know that the game received a high score on this site, but I'm surprised that everyone on staff liked it so much.