Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick Review

Flesh-eating zombies have returned to the peacful Michigan town of Dearborn, and where those scummy Deadites are, you're sure to find their arch-nemesis, Ash, the hero of the Evil Dead film franchise. Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick is the most recent game release in the Evil Dead empire, and it rejoins Ash as he is forced to do battle with the Deadites after a portal from hell is reopened, unleashing the undead upon the once-serene Michigan town. Armed with his trusty chainsaw, boomstick and a dialog consisting of nothing but one-liners, it's time to head into the city and make sure the dead stay that way.

Gameplay
Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick is a third-person action/adventure game in which our hero Ash runs around town completing tasks from his to-do list so that he can return the city to its non-Deadite peacefulness. The only thing stopping him are those pesky Deadites, who are hell-bent on keeping you from getting your job done properly.

The Deadites, being dead, have only one attack, which is a bum rush followed by a bite and then a bash attack. This is not a problem when you are only facing a few at a time, but it becomes a big problem when you are facing upwards of ten or more at a time. Waves of rushing, chomping and thumping Deadites will make quick work of our dear hero Ash, so you need to make it a point to get used to the combat system immediately. Unlike games where you hit the attack button and automatically strike the nearest opponent, in Evil Dead, you swing or fire in the direction you're currently facing. This can get nasty, since you'll swing into thin air if there's nothing in front of you. This lack of automatic lock-on can, and probably will, cost you your life on more than one occasion, so make sure you're always facing those mindless zombies before you swing or blast away.

Outside of the aiming issue, another problem you'll have is with the temperamental camera, which will shift angles at the wrong time, causing you to lose track of your targets. The good news is that you'll get used to this pretty quickly, and learn to adjust your aim accordingly.

To help counter the unfairness of twelve-on-one standoffs, Ash can collect powerful spells along the way. The spell powerups appear as a square on the screen, and if you're not paying close attention, you'll never realize you just picked one up. Along with spells, Ash also accumulates weapons (chainsaws, boomsticks, dynamite and the like), health kits (which never seem to be around when you really need them) and ammunition.

While the gameplay is almost entirely based on bashing, chopping and blasting Deadites, there is some relief in the form of short movie sequences. These sequences serve as a guide through the levels in the game. Although the movies are not as elaborate as those from GTA: Vice City, for example, they are funny and I found myself watching them more than once for a good laugh. The movies are not only funny but give you insight as to the different characters as well as areas you need to be aware of. Unlike the cutscenes in most other games, you won't skip through these.

I'm a big fan of beat 'em up games, and in that aspect, Evil Dead delivers! There are no elaborate puzzles or codes to break, it's just straight killing while completing tasks such as finding other characters and collecting items and weapons. Even though there's a "to do" list, there's still plenty of room for exploration of the levels. It will be a rare occasion that you'll have to spend hours on a single puzzle or have to die twenty times trying to beat one boss character.

Overall, the gameplay in Evil Dead is all about having fun and not spending hours on solving puzzles. If you are a fan of the Evil Dead movies, or just enjoy games where you get to mow through dozens of bad guys at a time, then you will enjoy Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick.

Graphics
The graphics of Evil Dead are pretty good, but certainly not outstanding. The main characters sport plenty of detail, such as Ash's strong chin or a Deadite's funky mouth; however there are also plenty of character sprites that are obviously cut from generic models and lack any real detail.

The gore level in this game is just as campy as it is in the movies. With huge shotgun splatters and plenty of dismemberment, this game earns its "M" rating. Somehow, this huge amount of gore doesn't come off as shocking, which speaks to the production value of this game (pure campy fun).

As for the environments, I find it hard to believe that such detail would be put into the design of buildings and landscapes that the player can't interact with. It just seems odd that a designer would spend so much time, for example, texturing windows and doors that you cannot open or pass through. Although Evil Dead takes place in some really dark environs, the developers did a nice job with the lighting effects, ensuring consistent shadows and dynamic lighting.

The animation in Evil Dead is very fluid, which is important in a game like this, since you're constantly on the move. Although the opening video looked great, the rest of the in-game FMVs are just ok, lacking detail in the faces and having some other very polygonal features.

Sound
Armed with an ominous pipe organ soundtrack, Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick makes sure that you never forget that you're playing a horror game. Keeping pace with the Deadite attacks, the soundtrack exudes a sense of foreboding that'll keep you on your toes during gameplay. There's one little problem with the soundtrack: it never changes. After hearing its endless loop for a few hours, you'll have it stuck in your head for weeks while wishing they could've put together some other tracks to keep things fresh.

Most of the game's sound effects were quite good. Footsteps, for example, change in tone depending on the surface you're crossing. When it comes to capturing the sounds of Ash's weaponry, the sound designers did a great job. From chainsaws to shotguns, all the weaponry sounds like its real-world counterpart.

The voice acting is great and really is the high point of the game. Sarcasm and wit are well captured, and since Bruce Campbell does the voice for Ash there isn't much that could go wrong. The dialogue is enjoyable and hearing references to Vanilla Ice, Deep Throat, and those sappy Master Card commercials are reason enough to play this game. Deadites unfortunately only make generic grunting noises and Ash tends to also grunt when wielding his chainsaw, which can get pretty tiring. When Ash delivers a one-liner, however, you realize that the banter is what makes this game and the Evil Dead films great.

Replayability
While the basic game doesn't offer much replay value, there is an arcade mode that you can play after completing each level. The arcade mode is nothing more than a bloodbath, there's no more annoying plot to deal with, and you just smash Deadites. Once you finish an arcade level, the computer will assign you a grade. If you're like me, you'll keep fighting through those arcade levels until you max out the score. Other than the arcade mode, however, there's nothing about Evil Dead that will keep you coming back for more.

Overall
Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick is a relatively simple but humorous game that's pretty enjoyable all around. The practically non-stop killing, clever dialog and $20 price tag provide ample enough reasons for Evil Dead fans, or fans of a good beat 'em up title, to purchase this game.

Overall: 6.5

A basic, yet fun game for fans of the "beat 'em up" genre or those who appreciate the humor of the Evil Dead films.

-- Christopher Walker

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