Brandon Heat, also known as Grave, just can’t get a good rest. Despite the anime coming out 19 years ago—animated by Studio Madhouse—Gungrave has more lives than a cat as the medium hasn’t stayed dead releasing numerous games, even a VR game, and now a modern console title! Gungrave G.O.R.E we had the pleasure of playing the beta and while it wasn’t perfect, we had some positive things to say and that is why we’re happy we now get to see how the final product plays. Should Grave put away his large casket and his powerful dual pistols or does the undead gunslinger deserve to keep decimating foes even in the current gaming age? We find out in our review of Gungrave G.O.R.E for the PS5!

In case you’re completely new to the world of Gungrave—though there is a handy history video within Gungrave G.O.R.E—here’s the gist of the tale. Brandon Heat is killed after being betrayed and is resurrected—becoming the killing machine called Grave—in order to take down those who wronged him. Skip ahead to the current story, Grave is once again forced to take out his arsenal of weapons to take down an evil syndicate alongside his friend/partner Mika and their group of warriors. Gungrave G.O.R.E kind of assumes you don’t remember much of the original plot and really doesn’t make a serious story. What you need to know is Grave is a literal tank and his foes are about to turn into meat chunks.

That is one of the strengths of Gungrave G.O.R.E, the simple theme it goes for. At its core, this is a third-person shooter straight from the early 2000s. You unleash various special moves and unload billions of bullets to take down various baddies and try to reach the end of the stage to rinse and repeat in the next. Yes, this is a format that many grew tired of but in our minds, it brings back a sense of nostalgia as it just tries to be an old-school shooter that really makes you feel like a walking army of one.

Despite being very simple, Gungrave G.O.R.E works because it is a simpler title. Beat a level, unlock points based on your performance of said level, upgrade Grave’s weapons and moves and then head into the next stage to unleash hell. As grave you’ll be running down enemies with his dual pistols and iconic casket, all while enemies will try to overwhelm you with sheer numbers. You have plenty of abilities to use to kill such as Grave’s various gun-arts and his demolition shots which can be equipped for various effects like shooting from Grave’s casket or creating a giant missile to launch at unsuspecting foes. Despite the overall game feeling like any age could pick it up—though this is an M-rated game so don’t let anyone just play it— Gungrave G.O.R.E is fun and very nostalgic for those who loved the PS2/PS3 era of third-person shooters.

Gungrave G.O.R.E we mentioned feels like a game from the early 2000s…and it kind of looks like it at times too. Visually, Gungrave G.O.R.E reminds us of an early PS4 game at best and while that isn’t a bad thing, we also kind of have gotten used to games with a bit more polish in this newer age. While the cutscenes for Gungrave G.O.R.E look pretty sharp—especially when they are some anime-like stills—the settings and overall character design leave much to be desired. Gungrave G.O.R.E feels like it was made in the wrong time period—something we mentioned in our beta preview—and that might make it a hard sell in this current gaming age.

As gamers, we have played our fair share of titles that make you squeeze the trigger and just keep hitting the buttons for hours. Gungrave G.O.R.E keeps this theme and after about an hour…our trigger fingers were screaming for a break. Playing Gungrave G.O.R.E for long periods is a difficult venture as it will make you feel like you have arthritis after long sessions. Maybe this won’t be a feeling shared by all but we can bet many will complain they need to put their weapons down and relax for a bit so they can resume the carnage!