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1[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screen_shot_2016_01_24_at_34622_pm.png]]
2[[caption-width-right:350:BoomHeadshot! Shooting zombies in skeleton outfits was never this fun!]]
3
4->''We are watching you.''
5-->-- AttractMode
6
7''Evil Night'' (also known as ''Hell Night'' in Japan) is a {{Light Gun|Game}} [[UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame arcade game]] released by Creator/{{Konami}} in 1998. The successor to ''VideoGame/CryptKiller'' from 1995, the game concerns three cops battling legions of TheUndead in an [[HauntedHouse old, decrepit mansion]] in search of their missing friend.
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9While reminiscent of ''VideoGame/TheHouseOfTheDead'', ''Evil Night'' uniquely offers three-player cooperative action: players 1 and 3 wield handguns that can charge powerful "Penetrating Bullets", while player 2 uses a [[ShotgunsAreJustBetter pump-action shotgun]]. Consisting of five stages, the game's branching paths and MultipleEndings are determined by collectible items.
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11Thanks to its unreliable Panasonic M2 hardware and being outclassed by the ''House of the Dead'' franchise, ''Evil Night'' faded into obscurity and is extremely rare to find in arcades (much less working properly). Despite this, it has garnered a cult following, especially for its [[BadBadActing hokey voice acting]].
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13[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6P2wGZl1rCY Three]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXkGdhKC6SM full]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vUV_1v_V_s single-player walkthroughs]] of the game are available on Website/YouTube, along with [[https://sp.nicovideo.jp/tag/%E3%82%A8%E3%83%B4%E3%82%A3%E3%83%AB%E3%83%8A%E3%82%A4%E3%83%88?sort=h&order=d&f_range=0&l_range=0&genre= a third]] older playthrough on the Japanese version. Other videos of the game's different endings have also surfaced.
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15Not to be confused with Creator/{{Sega}} and [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Namco]]'s fellow light gun game ''VideoGame/VampireNight'', also influenced by ''House of the Dead''.
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18!!''Evil Night'' provides the following tropes:
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20* ActionGirl: Player 2 is Alicia Sevigny, who's armed with a [[{{ShotgunsAreJustBetter}} shotgun]].
21* AdjustableCensorship: Operators can change the enemy blood to red, blue, streaks of lightning (the default), or dark blue. There is no setting to censor wounded or dismembered enemies.
22* AdvancingWallOfDoom: One with a giant eye on it appears in "Course A" of stage 1; [[GoForTheEye the eye must be shot]] to prevent players from taking damage.
23* AnachronismStew: In "Course B" of stage 1, there's computers, fax machines, and printers in one room. This is strange, considering that the mansion resembles one of those creepy, age-old, haunted mansions in the United Kingdom (complete with cobblestone floors and walls, metal doors, trapdoors, and panic rooms covered by bookshelves).
24** [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] with the implication that [[spoiler:recent human activity has taken place at the mansion; in this same room, a journal hints that scientists or archeologists were researching the underground ancient ruines on the premises. This also explains the hidden research lab in the underpass level]].
25* AncientTomb: The underpass or catacombs located beneath the mansion. Also doubles as [[spoiler:an ancient ruin, complete with murals of witchcraft and the occult]].
26* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: [[spoiler:The "bad" ending has a NotQuiteDead final boss transforming Liv and her friends into zombies]].
27* AnimateDead: The zombies here are created by some sort of supernatural force.
28* ApocalypticLog: A journal found in "Course B" of stage 1 [[spoiler: details a team of scientists or archaeologists who discovered the ancient ruins beneath the mansion. [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse We never find out what happened to them]]]].
29* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:In the "bad" ending, the final boss inexplicably returns after being defeated, [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie transforming Liv and her friends into zombies.]]]]
30* BigDamnHeroes: The main characters of the game are two males and one female, named from Player 1 to Player 3 as Henry Jones, Alicia Sevigny and Joe Hamilton. Their objective is to rescue a girl named Liv (see {{Damsel In Distress}} and {{Save The Princess}}) from a haunted house.
31* BlackEyesOfEvil: The female zombies in the first stage (when Course A or Course B is selected).
32* BodyHorror: Of the many zombies encountered are mangled-up, limbless ones wrapped in a ball and chain. When you kill them, ''their bodies split in half.'' Complete with a lovely "ripping" sound effect.
33* BookcasePassage: Not of the "spinning bookcase door" variety, but a SecretUndergroundPassage to the catacombs is found among bookcases in a library.
34* BottomlessMagazines: As with all light gun games.
35* ChainsawGood: Chainsaw-wielding zombies are encountered in the first two stages, and there are also a few weed wacker-wielding zombies. The butcher boss at the end of the first stage also attacks with one, once his life meter is almost completely empty.
36* ChekhovsSkill: In the end, Liv [[spoiler: reads from the mystical book that puts all TheUndead and evil ones to rest.]]
37* Main/TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: Sometimes, the screen will produce lots of enemies that are impossible to dispatch on time. Makes worse for fighting bosses whose [[Main/AttackItsWeakPoint weak-spots]] are not even pointed out, forcing the player to continously shoot them in the hopes of depleting the life bar. See also GuideDangIt.
38* CreepyCemetery: Seen in the intro and [[spoiler: the last stage.]]
39* CreepyPainting: Several depicting Liv are encountered throughout the mansion. In the fourth stage, there's also [[spoiler:a mural of Liv being portrayed as a goddess of sorts, reading from a spell book to resurrect the final boss.]]
40* {{Cult}}: One of the ancient variety resides beneath the mansion in an ancient rune. You battle what appear to be zombie cult worshipers in body paint. [[spoiler:A mural also depicts Liv as a demigod and resurrecting the final boss, who in turn plans to use Liv as a HumanSacrifice to achieve immortality.]]
41* {{Curse}}: As part of the backstory, the game's flyer and the machine cabinet states that "mysterious energy has released [[TheUndead the undead]]." One of the collectible items is a journal which suggests that [[spoiler:scientists or archaeologists accidentally invoked the curse through their research of an ancient underground rune.]]
42* DamselInDistress: Liv. See {{Save The Princess}}.
43* DavidVersusGoliath: The protagonists battle a giant, towering [[SnakesAreSinister snake]] on two occasions.
44* DeadWeight: Fat zombies in overalls wielding butcher knives are fought. Because of their size, they take way more bullets to put down as opposed to other zombies.
45* DemBones: A skeleton zombie (or at least what appears to be a zombie wearing some sort of skeleton costume) is one of the most common zombies encountered.
46* DestructibleProjectiles: The hanging meats and thrown zombies during the butcher boss, the entrails thrown by blue, limbless zombies coming out of the water and floors in stages 3 and 4, the axes and knives thrown by lumberjack and cult worshiper zombies in stage 4, and [[spoiler:the fireballs during the final boss's second form.]]
47* ElevatorActionSequence: During the runes stage, zombies and ghosts attack as you ride up an ancient elevator system.
48* EpicFlail: An interesting example. There's zombies that attack with a ball and chain...except that they're ''limbless''. One fan theory is that the ball and chain [[DemonicPossession is possessed by a spirit using the mutilated corpse as its host]].
49** Played straight with the second level boss, who actually swings around his ball and chain to attack.
50* {{Expy}}: Henry and Joe appear to be closely based off of Thomas Rogan and G, the protagonists from ''The House of the Dead''.
51** Liv also draws some comparisons with Sophie Richards, Rogan's girlfriend.
52** Some of the zombies fought in the game resemble horror movie antagonists [[Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet Freddy Krueger]] and [[Film/TheTexasChainsawMassacre Leatherface]].
53* GardeningVarietyWeapon: The weapons of some of the zombies invoke this. There's midget zombies that attack with hedge clippers, hooded zombies wielding scythes, and the normal chainsaw zombies, which occasionally appear with weedwhackers.
54* {{Go for the Eye}}: Taking "Course A" in the first stage includes a room with an eye on it, which proceeds to close in on the player. In order to escape and avoid damage, you must shoot the eye as fast as you can.
55* GoldenPath: Among the three selectable paths in the first stage, "Course B" contains one of the two collectible books. Also, to get the third key, one must enter the third stage with at least the second key equipped and ''not'' shoot the locked gate. There is no alternative to this.
56* GottaCatchThemAll: All the collectable hidden items, which consist of 3 keys and 2 books. While not ''crucial'' to beat the game, if you want the "Good" ending you'll need to collect all of them.
57* Main/GuideDangIt: It is very easy to miss the hidden keys or books if one plays this game for the first time.
58** The weak point of bosses are not elaborated so players are force to unload lead on them until the boss is defeated.
59* GrievousHarmWithABody: The first boss is a Giant Hulking Zombie which throws smaller zombies at you.
60* {{Guns are Worthless}}: Averted. See below.
61* {{Immune to Bullets}}: Averted big time. Not only do bullets kill zombies, they kill ghosts too. Heck, bullets even harm [[spoiler:the last boss despite its demonic appearance]].
62* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe:
63** [[https://evilnight.wikia.com/wiki/Limbless_Zombie Limbless zombies]] split in half once defeated.
64** [[http://evilnight.wikia.com/wiki/Torso_Zombie Torso zombies]] on the other hand, are ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin; zombies with only the upper halves of their body. They swing around by their hands while attacking the player.
65* {{HauntedCastle}}/ {{HauntedHouse}}: The big mansion the players enter.
66* HumanSacrifice: [[spoiler:The final boss's method of gaining immortality through a captured Liv.]]
67* LightGunGame: And one that supports up to ''three'' players, no less.
68* LockedDoor: A few doors in question can only be unlocked by collecting hidden keys.
69** Funnily enough, two of the keys happen to be inside locked doors themselves, requiring the player to blast off the doorknobs to go inside.
70* MonoChromaticEyes: Some of the zombies encountered feature these.
71* MultipleEndings: Much like ''The House of the Dead'' series, your performance determines the ending of the game. Unlike its predecessor, though, ''Evil Night'' features hidden items (keys and books) which seem to alter the ending.
72** In [[https://youtu.be/o97SEzvnyDM?t=439 the "Normal" ending]], [[spoiler:the main characters reunite with Liv and walk off. Liv looks over her shoulder as the cemetery gate closes; the camera cuts to the foot of the previously-defeated final boss stepping into the ground, implying that he's still alive.]]
73** [[https://youtu.be/rnwKfWpAtds The "Good" ending]][[note]](posted by Youtuber "[=GeamzinGuy=]" on April 23, 2017)[[/note]] [[spoiler:has the main characters reunite with Liv as normal. Liv accidentally drops a spell book, setting the entire mansion on fire; the main characters walk off together. Before the credits roll, Liv narrates: "After that day, we never heard that voice again."]]
74** [[http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm18221959?ref=search_tag_video&ss_pos=2&ss_id=28d9c0dc-5c5c-4b64-803f-a494e3c75059 The "Bad" ending]] [[spoiler:features a NotQuiteDead final boss [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie transforming Liv and her friends into zombies]].]]
75** The arcade cabinet mentions a fourth, "perfect" ending, though currently this yet to be seen or confirmed.
76* OurGhostsAreDifferent: Surprisingly, bullets affect ghosts in this game.
77* OurZombiesAreDifferent: It is heavily implied that the zombies here are created by some supernatural evil force or magic. They behave like the House of the Dead type of zombies.
78* PlaceOfPower: The Mansion, Underpass, Catacombs, Ruins, and the Graveyard have some form of unknown connection to Liv and the Undead.
79* RaisingTheSteaks: Bats, [[RodentsOfUnusualSize large]] [[YouDirtyRat rats]], spiders, and cockroaches attack the player.
80* RailShooter: Very similar to ''The House of the Dead'', as established before.
81* ReptilesAreAbhorrent: A large snake appears twice and serves as a miniboss. In the catacombs level, crocodile-like monsters appear, as well as a crocodile-lizard like miniboss.
82* RodentsOfUnusualSize: Giant rats are encountered in the second and third stages.
83* SecretUndergroundPassage: One that leads to the catacombs/underpass appears at the end of stage 2.
84-->'''Henry''': Look! There's an underground passage!
85* SaveThePrincess: The main characters are looking for a girl named Liv.
86* ShearMenace: Short, nimble zombies wielding [[GardeningVarietyWeapon hedge clippers]] are fought in the first and fourth stages.
87* ShootOutTheLock: Locked gates can be shot in the third stage and allow passage to alternate routes. Electing ''not'' to will take you on a different detour through the stage. There are two of them, and whichever one you encounter depends on how many or how little keys you've collected from the stage prior.
88* ShotgunsAreJustBetter: The second player is armed with a shotgun, which has a better effect in dispatching enemies.
89* ShoutOut: Several of them.
90** As stated above, some of the zombies resemble those from ''VideoGame/HouseOfTheDead'', as they wield weapons such as axes, knives, claws, hatchets, scythes, chainsaws, and drills. Furthermore, [[spoiler:the first form of the final boss resembles the Magician]].
91** The protagonists also fall under this. Both Henry and Joe resemble Thomas Rogan and G from ''House of the Dead'', respectively. Liv, the DamselInDistress, also draws comparisons with Sophie Richards.
92** The Runes stage -- complete with skeletal cult worshipers -- is reminiscent of ''VideoGame/CryptKiller'', another three-player rail shooter by Konami and ''Evil Night''[='=]s predecessor. Its Japanese title, ''Henry Explorers'', is also referenced in that one of the three main characters is named Henry.
93** The zombies with burnt skin, bald heads and claws [[Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet will look]]...''[[Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet familiar]]'' [[Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet to horror movie fans]]. Egregiously enough, Japanese ''Evil Night'' cabinets depict this same zombie twirling a hat on the marquee.
94** The butcher boss and ''especially'' the normal chainsaw-wielding zombies also strike similarities with [[Film/TheTexasChainsawMassacre another horror franchise]].
95** The Giant Snake boss is possibly a nod to [[VideoGame/ResidentEvil1 the first entry]] of the most successful survival horror games, which also featured a giant snake as a boss.
96* SinisterScythe: The Grim Reaper-like zombies in the second stage attack with these, naturally.
97* SnakesAreSinister: A giant snake is encountered twice.
98* SoundOfNoDamage: A "bullet ricochet" sound plays whenever you shoot a bullet and hit nothing (or the second level boss's ball and chain).
99* StrippedToTheBone: You can blast the arms of the lumberjack zombies down to bone. However, they'll still continue to hurl axes at you.
100* TheButcher: The first stage end boss, who attacks by pushing hanging meats, hurling zombies, and finally a chainsaw.
101* TheGrimReaper: Resemblance only. One zombie, probably a gardener, with a hood has a mask covering its face. Its main weapon is a scythe.
102* TheRenfield: There are two types of zombie butlers encountered: One with a knife and one holding a lantern and a cleaver.
103* TheUndead: Ghosts and zombies are mostly encountered.
104* TomeOfEldritchLore: Mystical books can be collected[[note]](one in "Course B" of the first stage, and the other by the second stage's end)[[/note]], which influence the storyline. [[spoiler:Liv reads from one of them upon defeating the final boss, vanquishing him and putting TheUndead to rest.]] Also, in the "Good" ending, [[spoiler:a book Liv drops sets the entire mansion on fire.]]
105* VaderBreath: One can be heard in the music tracks to the underpass and graveyard.
106* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: We never do find out [[spoiler: what happened to the scientists/archaeological team who discovered the runes and were trying to learn its purpose. Whether they all died or somehow managed to escape is never explained.]]
107* YouDirtyRat: Giant rats serve as enemies in the second and third stages.
108* YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle: Upon defeat, the butcher boss taunts the characters they will never find Liv.
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