Evil Dead: Regeneration PS2 Review

The Evil Dead films weren’t a massive success as such, although they still found a cult audience. Comedy and horror mix very well indeed, and Evil Dead was as corny as it was gory. Evil Dead Regeneration is a brand new escapade for protagonist, Ash, who just happens to be accompanied by a half deadite midget, one which you will probably want to kill straight from the off, so it’s a good job that you can!

Sam is your 4ft tall companion and the intention was clearly to make him as annoying as possible, and just like the orange hooded Kenny of South Park fame, he dies and comes back and then dies again. Sam is a resourceful tool whilst you play Regeneration; you can strategically kick him onto enemies for a team based effort and even employ him for some light puzzle solving. A good example is when you have to set Sam on fire to blow a door open, it’s both funny and inventive. You also get a more hands on approach with Sam at times, as Ash has the ability to possess his small sidekick at certain points in the game, this gives you the opportunity to get through small gaps and reach areas that Ash can’t, thus enabling you to create a route for the wisecracking hero.

Ash is armed to the teeth with weaponry as the game progresses. You start out with a chainsaw and shotgun which can be used in tandem against your enemies, the arsenal is later expanded to a grenade launcher, a flamethrower and a grappling hook like weapon, which allows you to drag foes towards you and then blast them with a shotgun. Like the Devil May Cry series, the guns boast unlimited ammunition and you can quickly switch weaponry without having to trawl through menus.

You can walk around using your firearms whilst a pretty good lock-on targeting system (switching between targets is also easily achieved) this keeps the action fast, and you can also put your enemies down with some cool finishing moves when you have dealt out enough damage. A green aura around an enemy signals you to do this, and a simple press of the triangle button results in an automated animation which sees your enemy decimated by a shotgun blast to the face or a chainsaw through their chest and so on.

A more powerful version of Ash can also be brought into action eventually, Evil Ash can be accessed by gathering evil energy. In this form Ash is faster and stronger and you’ll soon learn that it will get you out of some tight spots when beckoned.

Much of the game consists of seeking souls and then following and protecting Sam while he makes his way to his destination, if the dwarf ends up as bloody chunks you have to do it all over again, although rarely is it a tricky task to accomplish and Sam’s journey is never particularly lengthy.

Evil Dead: Regeneration is a fun game while it lasts, but unfortunately it’s as short as Sam and lacks the polish of similar action titles. It’s still well worth a look, if only to play around with Sam and hear the cheesy banter between him and Ash. We regard it as more of a rental than a purchase!

6/10