Evil Dead Regeneration
Come get some. No, really, come get some.
Tags: Evil Dead Regeneration Categories: Reviews, Xbox Reviews
Posted by Jake McNeill on Nov 9th, 2005
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Evil Dead Regeneration (title page) | 1 | ||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Action | No | ||
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The Evil Dead License hasn’t had much luck in the videogame world, seeing the release of Evil Dead: Hail to the King, a terrible survival horror game, and Evil Dead: Fist Full of Boomstick, a disappointing State of Emergency-esque title. After two games like those, I’d argue there’s enough reason for anyone to throw in the towel and move on, but THQ and Cranky Pants Games are seemingly a bit more patient than I am, as they’ve had one more go at the license in Evil Dead: Regeneration. I’m glad they did too, because it seems the third time is the charm, and this is the game series fans have been waiting for all this time.
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Now, let me put it in context a bit. Evil Dead: Regeneration is an action game, kinda’ a poor-man’s Devil May Cry, with far more simplistic combat and nowhere near as much originality. If it weren’t for the license, it would have probably been quickly forgotten upon release as yet another face in a crowd, neither particularly bad nor anything to write home about. At the very least, the gameplay is interesting and doesn’t wear thin, which is just enough to let the license work its charms, and that’s where the game truly satisfies above and beyond.
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Regeneration’s story finds Ash in a mental institution following the events of the films because, let’s face it, the “zombie defense” doesn’t really hold up in court. Ash seems to have taken to life in the looney bin rather well, as free food and TV, a warm bed and a comfy straightjacket beat out an endless battle against the undead any day. Unfortunately, a life of catered meals and padded walls is not in the cards for Ash, as the doctor in charge of the facility is a wacky nut himself, looking to use the Necronomicon for world domination. When deadites roam free yet again and crazy stuff starts happening (well, crazy for even a mental institution), Ash naturally finds his way into some decent weapons and once again takes up his role as exterminator.
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The use of the Evil Dead license here is, in a word, perfect. This game is essentially a love letter to series fans, full of in-jokes and references to the films. Thematically, it seems to follow the “more comedy than horror” formula of Army of Darkness. A security guard fleeing into an elevator is turned into a geyser of blood, spraying Ash in the face. A door shudders on its hinges, laughing incessantly until you shoot it, upon which it promptly yells “Ow!”. And Ash is armed with witty one-liners both new and old, which he shares liberally. Upon reaching the first boss, an electricity-conducting “shock treatment” victim, Ash greets him with “Yo, static cling!”
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Bruce Campbell’s performance here as Ash is absolute genius. Really, after narrating the tutorials for the Spider-Man games, it seems like he should really do voice acting for every game ever. The guy is a laugh riot, and he’s in fine form here. And if there was any doubt that this game would please fans, he’s joined by an ADD-afflicted deadite midget sidekick named Sam who’s voiced by none other than Ted Raimi (director Sam Raimi’s little brother, probably best known for his role as Joxer on the Xena TV series). Ted’s character does the “annoying” thing juuuuuust subtly enough not to be too annoying, and makes a good foil for the eternally-tortured Ash.
The graphics here are good enough, but mostly nothing special. However, it needs to be mentioned that the character animation, particularly for Ash, is extremely good, and there’s a fair amount of attention to detail here and there. This is a title that won’t wow anyone with its visuals, but it’s got it where it needs it, supporting the game’s comedic brilliance quite sufficiently.
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As for the gameplay, as previously said, it’s nothing special but nothing intolerable. Fairly standard action game stuff, with combat that’s simple but fairly satisfying, a somewhat limited stable of enemies, some clever boss fights, and a little variety tossed in here and there, largely having something to do with Sam. Being a deadite, Sam can be killed over and over again without suffering any ill effects. Well, any ill effects that Ash gives a rat’s ass about, anyways (Sam doesn’t exactly like being used as a meat football). As such, Ash can kick him at enemies and obstacles, and on occasion take control of the midget to get to areas that would be otherwise inaccessible.
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In the end, the gameplay doesn’t go out of its way to push this game to awesome, but it doesn’t stand in the way of the awesome the license gives it either. So that will really be the deciding factor in whether or not you should snag a copy. If you’re a fan of the license, this game is a steal at $20, packing everything you love about Evil Dead into a videogame. If you’re not a series fan… well, odds are you wouldn’t be reading this anyways, would you?
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
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+ The Evil Dead license is used perfectly here. Series fans will be pleased + Voice acting by Ted Raimi and especially Bruce Campbell here is outstanding. + Character animation, particularly for Ash, is very good + This game is all-around pretty damn funny |
8.3 |
| What Doesn't | |
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- The gameplay is nothing to write home about - The graphics aren't particularly impressive |
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| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| Like I said, this game is a love letter to Evil Dead fans, and while the gameplay is nothing special, the license is implemented so perfectly that this game is worth every penny of its $20 price tag | |
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Tags: Evil Dead Regeneration
Posted by Jake McNeill on Nov 9th, 2005 and is filed under Reviews, Xbox Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
