Michigan: Report from Hell is a survival horror game developed by Grasshopper Manufacture and published by Spike. Directed by Akira Ueda and planned by SUDA51, the game focuses on a news crew for the fictional ZaKa TV, dedicated to covering strange phenomena. The game is unique in that it is played almost entirely through the viewfinder of a camera, and in that the game is lost if the player runs out of film before solving each level's mysteries. Because of this lack of direct gameplay, Michigan was denied a North American release by Sony.[1] The game was however published in Europe without SUDA51's knowledge by 505 Games. Red Ant Enterprises also distributed the 505 version in Australia. Consequently, the localized versions of the game sold for much higher than the Japanese pressing.
Although the word Michigan by itself usually refers to the State of Michigan or, less commonly, the University of Michigan, the game takes place in Chicago, Illinois, and centers around Lake Michigan.
Gameplay[]
The player films Ann
Michigan is played from a first-person perspective, viewed through the television lens of a television news camera. Players take the role of the cameraman in a news crew, and are accompanied by a reporter and sound engineer/boom operator as they explore the game's locations.
The main method of interacting with the environment is by "tagging" objects. This draws the reporter's attention to it, causing her to interact with it in some way. In battle, players can tag an enemy to have the reporter attack it with her weapon. Players can also attack an enemy by slamming against it with their bodies, although the effectiveness of this maneuver is fairly limited.
The object of the game is to film interesting footage by pointing the camera at objects and events of interest, such as documents, monster attacks, and live on location reports given by the reporter. Players can earn three types of points in the game: "Suspense," "Erotic" or "Immoral." These points are determined by the player's camerawork and what events and objects they choose to focus on. "Suspense" points are the most standard, earned for good camerawork and the recording of interesting events. "Erotic" points are earned for things like filming up the reporter's skirt and videoing pornographic magazines lying around the game's levels. "Immoral" points are earned for inhuman filming, such as recording people being attacked by monsters instead of helping them. The type of points the player focuses on determines which of the three endings they receive as well as the physical appearance of the player's character.
The game is notable for the inclusion of multiple action events in which the player can determine the fate of various secondary characters. Most prominently, the player's action or inaction can result in the death of the reporter, in which case the game automatically advances to the next level and she is replaced by a new character. In fact, other than the inability to finish out the level, the player is not penalized for allowing the reporters to die and can even quickly skip to the game's ending by trying to get each of the reporters to die as soon as possible.
Main Characters[]
The six primary reporters. Clockwise from top left: Justine, Nina, Carly, Ann, Pamela, and Paula.
- The Cameraman - a rookie cameraman for ZaKa TV and the player character. He is a classic silent protagonist who does not speak or appear on-screen until the ending. His possible identities are Dwight Murdoch, Andy Stemboat, Teddie Snooker, and Diego Morales.
- Jean-Philippe Brisco - the outspoken and excitable sound engineer and boom operator, Brisco accompanies the player throughout the entire game. Unlike the reporters, he cannot be killed during gameplay.
- Ann Anderson - the first determinant and default reporter. Described as an ice queen, she feels a strong rivalry with Pamela Martel and is determined to have shocking events filmed in their entirety.
- Carly Reis - the second determinant reporter. Due to her careful grace and temperament, she has earned many admirers at Zaka TV.
- Justine Rhoades - the third determinant reporter and the only who can also be encountered non-determinantly. Experimental, but with a certain refinement, she causes friction among her colleagues.
- Paula Orton - the fourth determinant reporter. The youngest of ZaKa's reporters, she is depicted as timid and uneasy around the horrors faced by the crew.
- Mark Bockwinkle - the fifth and final determinant reporter. He is the only reporter who cannot be killed.
- Pamela Martel - a non-determinant reporter and the star of ZaKa. She serves as the reporter in the tutorial level.
- Yan Yinling - a reporter who appears in a series of bonus levels in the Japanese release of the game only.
- Nina Valkov - a young woman who serves as the player's reporter in the cabin level, although she is not actually a reporter. She is found outside the cabin by the cameraman and Brisco while searching for her boyfriend Dwight, a ZaKa employee.
- Debora Flair - the cold and mysterious chief of ZaKa TV who sends several television crews out into the horrors of the mist in order to cover the monster outbreak, holding more stock in notoriety than safety for her employees.
Minor Characters[]
- Dr. O'Conner (VA: Jack Merluzzi | Seiyuu: Hiroshi Matumoto) - The professor involved with the Gange Virus
- George Gange (VA: Robert Tsonos | Seiyuu: Isao Yamagishi) - Dr. O'Conner's Guinea Pig when making the virus. Believed to be the origin of the outbreak as his death puts an end to the fog.
- Christian Henning (VA: Robert Tsonos | Seiyuu: Goblin) - A director in Zaka TV that investigated the Miller Mansion and lost his crew and left leg to the monster within. He clues in the reporter about their next lead before bleeding to death.
- Patty Debiase (VA: Rachel Walzer | Seiyuu: Rina Sato) - The first lady Pamela's crew encounters. She briefly and vaguely mentions about the monsters that killed everyone before getting eaten herself.
- Becky Wanz (VA: Rachel Walzer | Seiyuu: Mai Hoshikawa) - A lady trapped in the Center Building's observation deck, trying to run away from the monster inside. She makes a distress call to the hotel room Ann and the cameraman were in. She was full of despair on making it out alive. And despite all efforts from Ann and the crew, she tragically dies at the hand of the monster.
- Robbie Adonis (VA: Robert Tsonos | Seiyuu: Goblin) - A sound guy who started before Brisco and Carly's boyfriend. He was out investigating the Forrest Building before getting infected himself. To avoid burdening everyone else, he hid in a locker. If found by the crew, he will begin to mutate and attack the crew. If the reporter is Carly, however, she will sacrifice herself, unable to take a shot at her boyfriend.
- Sebastian Bock (VA: Jack Merluzzi | Seiyuu: Hiroshi Matumoto) - The owner of the motel the crew rests in before the going to the Great Thesz Airport. If the player sleeps in room 104, he'll be heard crying from the bathroom in the room across the player's. He had let someone stay at his hotel who was infected and mutated into a monster that killed his wife. He has lost all hope in his life and was ready to end his own unless the player chooses to save him. Saving him, however, leaves him scolding the crew as he's still unsure of how to live
- Carrie Graham (VA: Rumiko Varnes | Seiyuu: Mayumi Wanagisawa) - A girl seen on the tape "08/22 18:07 ???" is threatened to tell whoever is recording about what they know regarding Dr. O'Conner. Carrie claims that the one threatening her knows way more than they do and is shot regardless.
- CIA (VA: Robert Tsonos | Seiyuu: Goblin) - Encountered in the Grant Park Station, he was waiting for a friend when he somehow had his leg injured. He requests for help off the tracks from the crew and can either be saved or left to die via train. Even after being saved, he continues to wait for his friend. He mentions his ID got dropped on his way over here, which the player can find at the bottom of the stairs in the middle platform.
- Jemba Slaughter (VA: Robert Tsonos | Seiyuu: Goblin) - A ZaKa TV employee seen restrained and blindfolded in the tape "08/22 19:45 ???" He denies knowing the connection between ZaKa Group and the government along with a name mentioned. After admitting his info about the bioweapon is true, a familiar reporter adjusts the camera to face away from him before he's shot to death by that same person.
- Glen Buckland - The ZaKa TV Staff member locked up in a room at the Von Erich Library. The chief assigned the crew to rescue him, but he was killed by a monster before they could open the door.
Plot[]
On August 17th, three days before the start of the game, an unidentified plane crashed into the shores of Lake Michigan. Zaka TV reporters rushed to the scene to find even the army acting jumpy on location. The following day a mysterious fog begins to cover the town of Chicago, setting the stage for the game's events. Within the following three days, a rookie cameraman for ZaKa TV, entertainment division of powerful conglomerate ZaKa Group, is assigned to cover an outbreak of mysterious happenings in and around Lake Michigan. Brisco, an outspoken sound engineer, and Pamela, a reporter, are also put on the assignment. The three go forth to investigate a strange mist that has descended on the area. Within their first day of investigating, they run into a bloody woman named Patty Debiase who is shortly eaten by a monster from the fog. They attempt to run away, but Pamela loses her cool, freaks out and vents her frustration on the crew. Brisco desperately tried to calm Pamela down and even warn her about a monster creeping from behind, but by the time she turns around she's already devoured and the camera cuts off from there. Around this point, the government had issued an evacuation advisory for Chicago. Despite this, however, ZaKa TV still had their crew members investigating the mysterious incident. Some at the cost of their lives from things outside of the monsters.
Another three days later and substituting Pamela is Ann Anderson as they investigate the Chicago International Hotel for a potential survivor. However, the cameraman and Ann both lose track of Brisco and find no one in the hotel. A call makes it into the hotel room Ann and the cameraman were currently in from a survivor in the observation deck within the Center Building, crying for help and freaking out that "something is coming" before hanging up. Ann takes up on the chance for both a lead and a chance to rescue someone. They reunite with Brisco downstairs to find him mourning over Pamela, drunk, and slapping keys on the piano. He grieves about letting her die, his feelings for her, and how he can even relay the news to her folks. Ann sympathizes with Brisco, reminding him that Pamela and Ann started at the same time as reporters and rivals, and that she knew the danger she was getting herself into. Ann insists that pushing through finding the truth would be the best way to ensure Pamela didn't die in vain. This convinces Brisco to get his act together, but not after first sobering him up with water. On their way out (assuming the player saved Ann from a spider attack), a tentacle breaks through the door, spewing small leech-like monsters that the player must tag for Ann to shoot at. On a success, they escape the hotel and drive off to the Center Building.
On their way, the crew discovered another news fan parked outside with no one inside. Upon further inspection, they find a bloodied Pamela mysteriously still alive. Brisco panics and expresses all of his regrets of being unable to save her. However, she's strangely quiet and is only heard erratically breathing through it all before vomiting a leech and acting very zombie like as she attempts to cling onto the cameraman. The cameraman successfully shakes her off while Brisco is in a confused state, not understanding what was happening to Pamela and not appreciating her getting shoved until she starts crying and walking forward while her back is still on the ground. This freaks Brisco out as he finally understands that Pamela has become a monster herself. Ann evacuates them into a nearby office-like hallway where they attempt to find somewhere to hide or escape, but ultimately return to encounter Pamela, now further mutated in her pelvis region with a monster-like mouth, still walking the way she did earlier. Ann's bullets prove ineffective on her, and if the cameraman isn't quick to tag the shutter, Ann will get eaten by Pamela. Upon successfully closing the shutter, hit slams into Pamela's mutated pelvis and supposedly takes her out. Brisco cries and says both his farewell and confesses her love to her before they leave for the Center Building.
In the Center Building, they do a report on the state of the building, looking at the damage, finding corpses including whose face exploded. Going up to the observation deck and resuming their report to find survivors, they find the woman who called earlier, Becky Wanz, trapped behind rubble and filled with little hope regarding her survival, even asking the crew to deliver a message to her parents for her. Ann assures her that she will be fine as they're coming over to rescue her. After Ann risks her life crossing a few beam to get to the other side (followed by a crawling with fear Brisco), they make it to Becky, albeit too late for actual saving as she's heard screaming in the distance before the camera catches her being eaten. Ann's true colors for a scoop over morality are exposed her, as she encourages to keep filming every single detail before Brisco pulls the cameraman back. The two engage in an argument of morality and job priories, Ann insisting that it's their job to film until the end they go back to see what was left of Becky "because that's what she would've want." while Brisco refuses to go and (on our behalf) says the cameraman won't go with Ann either. This causes Ann to reluctantly give up, but not without threatening to tell the chief about them "shirking their duties." On the way out, they encounter a monster coming out of the elevator and Ann falls back. Ann can either be made into the monster's lunch or left behind if the player closes the elevator door after Brisco is in, but not Ann. Both result in Ann screaming for help or cursing out the cameraman for closing the door behind her. In the case of saving Ann, Brisco and the Cameraman lead her to a nearby corpse for the monster to eat, and the cameraman patiently waits for Ann to arrive before closing the elevator and making their escape. Ann once again scolds Brisco for beingly manly about the whole ordeal and Brisco is just disgusted with the lack of heart he's seen Ann display.
The crew at this point of the story always return to HQ with or without Ann. In Ann's route, she first returns to get changed which opens up an optional scene to both peek on her and potentially get her killed by a tentacle monster. Upon saving her, she'll scold them for filming her without her permission and even threatens to sue. However, after she reunites with the crew, the dialogue implies she saw the footage of her attack. She then apologizes, and then thank them before moving on. In Carly's route the crew learn that everyone else is still out there covering the news before Carly leaves to gather some stuff she left at the office. The crew then goes into the archives and finds the Zaka TV Staff Year book, containing photos of everyone including Pamela, this once again triggers Brisco into his mourning state over Pamela. When reuniting with Carly she's implied to have been updated on everything as she comments on how Pamela and Ann were both people dedicated to their work. From here, regardless of the reporter, the crew check around the office to see if anyone else is in the building when a call comes in from the Brody Nursing Home. An elderly man was left behind and failed to evacuate the city, telling Carly he couldn't get out of bed. With the rescue services and police already gone from the city, he had no way to get ahold of either of them. The reporter takes it upon herself to take the crew to go rescue him, much to Brisco reluctance to be subjugated to more danger. Ann expresses how she can't rely on such services. When Brisco calls out the reporter for wanting a good scoop, Ann doesn't deny that part of her while Carly is offended Brisco would think of her like that. Regardless, they accompany the reporter and head off to the nursing home.
The crew begins filming inside the Brody Nursing home when they hear a familiar voice in the distance. The crew discovers Justine Rhoades chain cuffed onto a pool table. Justine claims that she was knocked out from behind while she was out the office and woke up strapped to the pool table. After observing the missing balls from the table, the crew conclude that the shackles will open if they gather the four missing pool balls and thus search the nursing home for the balls. In the process, they find some disturbing scenes or locations for most of the balls. Upon collecting the One Ball and leaving the room, Brisco notices that the chandelier is swaying dangerously and risks falling on top of Justine. If the player does not reach the room containing the Four Ball within 10 in-game minutes, then upon collecting the Four Ball and leaving, the chandelier will drop on Justine off-screen and she will die. On the successful rescue, Brisco pulls Justine off the table just in time for the chandelier to drop. The cameraman helps Justine from off the ground and she goes to reward him with a kiss on the cheek, much to Brisco's protests to doing most of the work. The crew was unable to find the old man in the end. Justine claims she was the only person in the home, as no one but the crew responded to all of her cries, making them wonder if it was some trick to lure them over. Despite coming through the front door, the reporter uses a key nearby their feet to unlock a door to the garage where they encounter a highly mutated monster with a ton of bodies mangled together at the bottom with a long neck. Impervious to bullets, the cameraman tags a nearby gas tank for the reporter to shoot before shooting the monster again to roast them like a campfire. After they regroup with Justine, the crew tries to figure out where to go next. The reporter wanted to check back to the office and make sure everyone else was okay. Justine confirms that the chief told everyone to go home as she was the one who saw everyone out (prior to her attack) personally. Believing everyone else but her family escaped, Justine is offered to be taken home while the reporter wanted to go check on the other teams that haven't returned. Justine tells them that Christian Henning's team is investigating the old Miller Mansion for a possible monster sighting and the report is set to heading after Christian.
At the Miller Mansion, the crew is met with a giant bug-like creature guarding the staircase. The monster doesn't move from the spot and will only attack if approached (Marking one of the three ways the cameraman can die). The crew is set off to look around the mansion for some kind of lead. They discover the corpse of one of Christian's team in a basement. In an adjacent room, they find a key that allows them to get ahold of a shotgun inside of a case. With the shotgun, they're able to take down the monster in three shots and advance to the 2nd floor. Unlocking a door by draining the water of a bathtub, they open the door to find a dying Christian, missing a part of his left leg and slowly bleeding to death. He laments getting his team killed and his status as a director. He questions what's going on in this town and what ZaKa TV is doing. The only clue he has is that Jeff/Rob might have an idea due to ZaKa sending him on special assignments, his latest assignment doing a report in St. Matthew's church. Before he passes away, he requests the crew to deliver a message to his wife that he won't be coming back, as if he's off to get the biggest scoop of his life. The reporter takes a moment to mourn Christian's death and they head down to St. Matthew's church.
The report at St. Matthew's church begins with the reporter feeling despair over the losses in these past few hours, leaving her uncertain on how even describe what has even transpired other than a state of tragedy. The reporter is certain that her search for Jeff/Rob would be her last report. In the church, various dead and mutilated bodies can be found on the pews and floors until they reach the center where they discover a Jeff/Rob, who has already slightly mutated into a monster. His head then splits open to release a tentacle that's capable of releasing the smaller leech-like monsters. The reporter is initially freaking out until the cameraman encourages them to take a shot. As with the case of most of the bigger monsters, bullets prove ineffective and they run to safety. Unsure what to do, the reporter heads to the 2nd floor where they spot a large statue hanging right above where Jeff/Rob is located. Upon successfully shooting the statue a few times, the breasts and lower half of the statue fall and crush Jeff/Rob. The reporter freaks out over the act of murdering Jeff/Rob amongst others (Ann adding Pamela to the body count). However Brisco assures the reporter that they were no longer who they originally were, and instead of worrying about that, they should worry about what to do next. The reporter goes their separate ways from the crew, the reporter chooses to investigate more around town. Ann adds checking in on her family while Carly wants to find something she can do to help. Brisco and the Cameraman plan to return to ZaKa TV's main HQ to find the chief and protest about the horrors and losses everyone has been dealing with. On the way back to HQ, the dense fog made visibility non-existent. For some reason, Brisco loses control of the car and flips it over in the process.
If the player loses Ann back in HQ, gets Justine killed by the chandelier or if Carly dies in St. Matthew's, they'll skip right to the aftermath of Brisco crashing the car. The crew had been wandering around until they found a deserted camp ground. They attempt to find an open lodge for them to get some rest at when they spot someone on the ground near the entrance to once. It's there they meet Nina Valkov, who was waiting at the lodge to meet up with her boyfriend, Dwight Murdoch, until she had been knocked out. Since Dwight works for ZaKa TV, she immediately recognizes the uniform worn by the crew and wondered if Dwight had asked them to come. Nina seemed to have a hard time remember much other than meeting Dwight, so Brisco ushers everyone inside the cabin before resuming discussions. The crew learns that Nina did get the evacuation advisory, but Dwight had already been sent out to cover the story and couldn't afford to meet up at the apartment. Brisco, recognizing the name, establishes that he and Dwight started at the same time, but never knew nor heard about Nina. He also began to wonder about the culprit who knocked out Nina and why, although, it all amounts to nothing. It starts raining outside and even freaks Nina out with a lil thunder strike. Nina attempts to call Dwight's pager, to no avail, so the crew decides to get some rest and wait for the rain to stop. If Dwight doesn't show up by the time the rain stops, they agreed to leave with Nina's car. In the meantime, they went off to take a shower. The player has a choice to either shower themselves or peep on Nina or Brisco taking a shower, both getting scolded by them for different reasons, or wander off into the living room and skipping it entirely. Regardless of the player's choice the next scene occurs as if nothing happened. The rain had stopped and they were about to get the car, but Brisco needed a moment to lay down a little longer due to feeling a lil dizzy. Furthermore, a noise was heard upstairs, so Nina runs off to investigate when she discovers a dead body of a ZaKa TV crew member and freaks out. The crew understood at that moment they gotta go before whatever got him would get them too. During this trip, Nina finds a shotgun and exclaims her confidence with guns. The cameraman and Nina walk for a bit to get to her car, she expresses how strange it was for Brisco to not have a heavy reaction over his dead co-worker. She contemplates if Brisco is cold blooded or if he's just gotten numb at this point, even wonders if he has anything to do with the incident, before dismissing it as tired thoughts. She herself feels the surreal unreal situation, even saying that it feels like a video game. Upon returning to the lodge, Brisco has recovered enough to leave, but then a giant fleshy venus flytrap monster emerges from underneath the cabin and attacks. Nina can successfully drive it off with three shotgun blasts just stand there and be casually eaten. Unfortunately, they spent too much time celebrating their victory rather than escaping and Nina gets dragged away by the monster. Unable to free her legs from the monster's mouth with her shotgun blasts, she tells the crew to make a run for it. With a confident smile, she assures that she'll take out the monster from the inside with explosions. The monster fully devours her and the crew make a run for it as the whole cabin explodes afterwards.
Brisco and the Cameraman make it back to ZaKa Group TV's main headquarters where they'll either be reunited with Ann, Carly or Justine (depending if any of the previous ones have died). Ann and Carly exclaim their relief to see the crew still okay while Justine is more matter of fact about it. The reporter tell us that their family successfully evacuated some time ago, however they couldn't find Jonsey (Ann's cat, Carly's puppy, Justine's rabbit), but Brisco assures them that the family took him along as well. Ann apologizes for her harsher treatment and Brisco forgives her and admits his own faults. He has a speech about the inhumane conditions the chief, Debora Flair, sent her staff through, how some lost their lives, wanting her to go through the same pain Pamela went through, ceasing dangerous operations, making promises on tape, and so forth. Only Carly seems to agree with her own two cents as Ann casually agrees and Justine seems indifferent. Justine gives credit to Brisco's filming idea as a way to corner her with video evidence before they head to the office. However, come the moment of truth, the reporter gets butterflies trying to relay the info. Ann and Carly chalk it up to having their heart pounding or getting flustered. This makes Brisco wonder about the rumors regarding the chief having "special relationships with her reporters" being true or not. Meanwhile Justine just doesn't want to get the chief mad, nor does he. But Brisco attempts to tell her when Debora cuts him off and throws him off by recognizing him and his efforts along with the idea of a promotion coming his way. The reporter snaps him out of getting caught by the chief's pace and begins his protest against her. Amongst his demands includes learning about what has happened to the team members, cease ignoring the evacuation order and actual leave, apologize compensate the families of the deceased team members. However, the chief claims she has already done those things. She informs Brisco that her negotiations with General Sanders landed her a military transport out of the city. She uses this to turn the tables on Brisco and make him do a favor for her in order to be included in the rescue. She orders them to go to the Von Erich Library to do a rescue mission report on one of their staff members Glen Buckland, who was supposedly on detention and locked up in the research room. She emphasizes how this could be the scoop of the lifetime, and then furthers her attacks on the reporter, telling her stuff hasn't been up to snuff. Justine being the only one to argue back against this claim, but to deaf ears. Ultimately, they agree to take the assignment and give it their all. Upon leaving the office, they lament on having been played by the chief. Brisco mentions that something about her made it hard for him to go against her while Ann and Carly agree that notion. That Debora makes them want to do the best report they can, even at the risk of their life. However Justine doesn't share that sentiment, saying that she's only acknowledging that she's her boss at this current time and that in 5 years, their positions could be reversed. The team is motivated to actually give this report their all, while Justine's take on it is more sassy competitive.
The four possible identities of the cameraman
The crew eventually discovers that the cause of the monstrous transformations is a mutative virus developed by a scientist, Dr. O'Connor, intended to be used against the enemies of the United States as a biological weapon. The virus was developed with the complicity of the U.S. Military, the government, and the powerful ZaKa group for whom the protagonists work.
After unsuccessfully attempting to retrieve a vaccine for the virus, the camera crew attempts to evacuate the city by heading to an airport on the outskirts of the city where a military evacuation transport is supposed to arrive. At the airport, the group encounters a strange young man who appears to be mentally disabled. He somewhat disjointedly reveals that he was Dr. O'Connor's original guinea pig, and begins to run around yell immaturely in a bizarre manner. After the player instructs the reporter to shoot him, he transforms into a massive pile of mutated flesh before exploding, spewing his bodily fluids everywhere. With the man's death, the mist clears, and Brisco theorizes he was the cause of both the mist and the monster outbreak.
In the game's epilogue, the camera crew approaches a nearby lighthouse, which the military has ordered them to activate so that the transport plane can locate and pick them up. While the tired reporter waits outside, the cameraman and Brisco ascend the lighthouse and activate the light at the top. Brisco discusses his many conspiracy theories with the cameraman. He'll always suspect the tired reporter as knowing the whole ordeal due to being the chief's favorite, expressing his beef against the chief, suspecting George as the cause of the fog, the relationship between the plane crash and the fog, suspecting some of the deaths weren't related to the virus. He tries to ask the cameraman for their thoughts, but to no avail. As they get higher, Brisco notes the fog being gone and the transport nowhere to be seen. But with the fog gone, he believes there's no more monsters and could go anywhere. Brisco starts to notice he's feeling tired and not feeling too good, realizing that he might be infected. Suddenly, Brisco begins to mutate. He begs for the cameraman to kill him but the cameraman flees. Brisco-creature is heard breathing erratically before parting with "It's been quite a ride, hasn't it?" then escapes through a window.
The game ends with a final film clip of the cameraman, whose appearance is determined by the player's actions, speaking in front of his camera. In three of the endings, the cameraman attempts to reveal the identity of the people behind the virus, but he's killed by an unseen assassin before he gives a name. If the player has obtained 75,000 or more "Immoral" points and keeps "Suspense" and "Erotic" bellow 500, then the unseen assassin reveals themselves and claims responsibility for the outbreak.
Packaging artwork[]
Future[]
On October 23, 2009, Joystiq revealed SUDA51's interest in developing a remake or sequel of Michigan: Report from Hell. SUDA51 explained, ""There's a Spanish horror film called REC, and when I watched it, I realized it was pretty much Michigan, right there. I still have a lot of ideas along those lines, and I'd love to work with Spike sometime to make a new Michigan or a remake."[1]
Regional Differences[]
- The intro video in the original Japanese version features some voice acting and certain sound effects completely absent from the European version.
- The music that plays when encountering enemies are vastly different. The Japanese version features the track "Counter," a more loud and intense sound with drums to follow after shooting the enemy, it's loud enough that some lines actually get drowned out by it. This version of the encounter can be heard near the end in the game's intro video. The European version features a sad guitar version of the main theme, but after shooting an enemy, it plays "Memorize-X," which is relatively quieter.
- There's a special fog effect (not to be confused with the draw distance fog) that's present when enemies are nearby that is strangely absent in the European version. This is typically the fog they're referring to in dialogue.
- In the European Version's Center Building where Ann can get eaten by the last monster, there's more of a chance the animation won't play properly and a lifelessly still Ann will yell at you. The animation plays properly right after her line finishes.
- "Jeff" in the St. Matthew's Church level is called ใญใ (Katakana for Robu which basically translates to Rob) in the Japanese version for some reason.
- After Club Gotchi, during the narration transition into Forrest Building, the reporters typically share their thoughts about what Dr. O'Conner said before contemplating to check on Adonis in Forrest Building or search for the vaccine. However, for some reason in the European version, Justine's dialogue is absent and they skip straight to figuring out which way to go. The fading in text speed seems to show this was potentially an intentional cut. Perhaps this is due to Justine's dialogue and response being vastly different from the response Ann and Carly give which are roughly the same.
- There's a glitch in the European version when reaching the Lighthouse while Brisco is in his HOPPER MAN outfit. This glitch turns him into Carly in her swimsuit costume. Consequently a few animations causes her body to contort and hair to flick around. Furthermore, Brisco's opening dialogue will always be the Carly version. This is easily fixed by going back to the SPECIAL options and changing him back to default before starting the last level.
- The SPECIAL menu in the Japanese version includes extra features involving Yan Yinling: Costume for her (Normal or swimsuit) SPECIAL Stage, Yan Yinling Show, and Yan Yinling Album, these are completely removed in the European version of the game due to licensing issues.
- SPECIAL STAGE has you replay the Chicago International Hotel level, looking for 5 tokens "YIN LING OF TOY JOY" while tagging fast enemies that try to kill her. Collecting those unlocks the Yan Yinling show.
- The Yan Yinling Show is the same as the European Version's "Secret," where you film Yan Yinling or your selected reporter doing suggestive poses in their swimsuit
- Yan Yinling grades on your filming performance for the stage while Brisco grades you in the European version
- Infamously, there's a glitch in the European version that prevents players from accessing the movie theater that replays all the CG cutscenes, which instead loads the Secret with whoever the player had left selected upon selecting Movie Theater. Due to this, 4 tapes collected throughout the game can't even be viewed.
- Yan Yinling photo album is card collectable item the player can collect on any future playthroughs. These contain promotional photos of Yan Yinling herself.
Trivia[]
- Names of characters, things and locations are mostly references to famous American professional wrestlers, although some of them are misspelled. Thesz Airport is a reference to Lou Thesz. The Gagne virus is a reference to Verne Gagne. Other names include references to legendary wrestlers such as Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes and the Brisco brothers among others.
Release history[]
- Japan disc โ August 5, 2004 (Spike, SLPM-65480)
- Europe disc โ September 29, 2005 (505 Game Street, SLES-53073)
Other names[]
- Japanese โ ใใทใฌใณ (mishigan), literally "michigan."
References[]
- โ 1.0 1.1 Suda 51 wants to remake Grasshopper Manufacture's 'Michigan'. JC Fletcher. Joystiq. October 23, 2009.
External links[]
- Official
- News