MediEvil Resurrection | a Review
originally published on 28/05/2021;
Hello everyone, I am the recently resurrected G.E.M.Simov, a mighty warrior with a discerning taste in all things beautiful, and I have come to tell you about MediEvil: Resurrection, a game for the PSP.
Simple review details - I rank games on an out of 10 basis, granting up to 3 points in 3 categories, as well as a last, single point from my own self, depending on my experience with it. Also, I am a gameplay designer and a writer so I got the credentials to talk shit.
Gameplay
This is a 3rd person action adventure game, with small platforming and puzzle sections. What does that mean? It means that, unlike almost any single game that features a knight-like character, this one does not have almost anything to do with RPGs. And that’s refreshing, frankly!
Now, first things first, I need to point out that this game has a few issues, before I get to the fun stuff.
Issue number one - sometimes, the framerate drops. I mean, it does, and that’s a little confusing, to say the least, because its graphical fidelity isn’t overwhelming. However, these drops in framerate sometimes really get in the way of playing the game, and so they’re quite nasty to get. Though, I should point out they only happen in certain sections, and it is very unlikely to get them in others. Still, that’s a problem and I did not like having to watch a pseudo-slideshow of Dan (Daniel Fortesque, the main character) doing his funny run animation.
Another problem would be that this game is designed in a very strange manner. How so? Well, it’s actually made for real children. Almost, but not quite. Even though the game is touted as being for everyone, 7+, it’s far beyond any seven year old child’s ability to beat it. However, it is possible for one such child to play and manage to derive enjoyment out of this game, I figure. Why is that?
Well, the game is designed with the idea of the player taking damage. There is no designated mechanic that allows for dodging! I mean, there are some more in-depth means to avoid damage, via performing button combos at the right time, but the game is still designed in a manner that really urges, and expects, the player to just walk up to the enemy and start wailing away at them, while the player, too, wails away at the enemy.
The attacks of most enemies are ridiculously hard to avoid, when it comes to melee, and so the best course of action is to just hit them and try to keep them in a continuous Stun-Lock, caused by the slight stagger they receive when hit by the player, until they die. Sometimes, the player might think that they’ve managed to interrupt an attack, but then they will still get hit by it, because it goes off regardless of whether the enemy is dead or not.
The range and hitbox detection on attacks are also quite wild, and the health pools of some enemies are straight up ridiculous, to the point where it becomes an unbelievable chore to fight them. Another problem is that some enemies are very hard to hit, due to strange collision boxes on them, with even stranger hitboxes attached to those collision boxes. It’s as if the player is any person with a gun, and the enemy is Neo from the Matrix. There’s no hitting ‘em.
Lastly, when it comes to attacking and getting attacked, some enemies have actual dodge rolls or backsteps, which allow them to avoid damage. In fact, it seems as if those dodge rolls, or backsteps, provide them with invulnerability frames, which is just shocking, in a sense. I am left appalled at the fact that this is not something the player can do, but, then, when I think about it, there’s really no buttons that could have had that function assigned to them.
Already there’s a massive amount of use that the buttons see. Every single one of ‘em, with the exception of the Arrow Buttons (The Directional Pad), although those, too, have their use - it’s far easier to perform combos when using them, instead of the analog stick - so there’s virtually no vacant functions. Even the Select and Start buttons get used. This game actually doesn’t have enough buttons on the PSP - the interaction button is the same button as the one for attacking, and the only means of actually interacting with things is by slapping them over the face with the player’s weapon. It’s… Unique, but it shows that the game has been, obviously, held back by the hardware.
Apart from those things, which are, admittedly, relatively minor, the game is actually really pleasant to play. Movement is normally fast, and there’s even the option of going EVEN faster, and, as a result of that, the player feels good while traversing the world. Health is handled in such a manner that the player keeps gaining more and more of it, to the point where they have, technically, more than 7 health bars at the end of the game, and it’s, quite frankly, a very good way of making the player feel powerful, or, rather, feel as if their character is growing in some way.
The combat features 2 means of attack - X Button for Light Attack, Square Button for Heavy Attack, but, as mentioned, that is not all. Almost all weapons have some kinds of combos that can be performed, and every weapon can have either of its attacks held down and made a Power Attack, which just slaps me on the knee, because it adds a layer of complexity to this relatively simple game that I just adore it greatly.
NOT only that, but there are so, SO many weapons to use. If the player plays well, and finds all the secrets, they can get an actual Lightning Bolt, which absolutely MELTS the last boss, to the point where I thought him dying was a part of the fight, and he would resurrect and refill his health bar. But no, it’s just an insanely powerful reward for PLAYING the game and EXPLORING the world. It really felt good!
I mentioned secrets, and I need to elaborate. This is where the HIDDEN genre of MediEvil: Resurrection comes in - it’s actually a bit of a Metroidvania, because when the player collects some items in the later stages of the game, they unlock new paths or content in older levels, which have, supposedly, already been completed. This comes into play in the form of the ‘Chalice Challenge’, which requires the player to FIND the Chalice, hidden somewhere in the level, and kill enough enemies to get from 0% to 100%.
Why does the player want to do that? Well, if the player does that, they go to a special level, where they are rewarded with a new weapon, or, in the late game, an extra life bar, as well as some really, really intriguing character interaction. It’s grand. So, I take it the reader is now aware of how the Metroidvania thing kicks in with the ‘Chalice Challenge’, yah? For those who aren’t: Some Chalices are inaccessible, because the player needs to have an item that they have not yet obtained. So, they can’t complete the challenge, but they can complete the level.
When they come back, with that new item, they can see if they can find the Chalice and complete the challenge, to get stronger. It’s grand, and, due to the fact that the secrets are so nicely strewn about, and the level design is generally great, I am really happy to inform that this is some top-tier gaming.
HOWEVER, there are a few issues. There are a few levels (maybe 2 or 3 in total) which do not have that immaculate design that the rest do. It’s either that they have a dependency on a very wonky mechanic, that appears only for that level, they’re visually identical and drab, thus making things hard to discern and leading into a heightened difficulty when it comes to navigation, or, simply, an overwhelming amount of enemies who are tough all-game round.
One last issue, that isn’t associated with the levels, is the camera… Or, rather, the lock-on feature. There’s a green little light, somewhat like a crosshair, that moves around the screen to indicate in which direction Dan is looking. If there’s an enemy behind it, it becomes red. That crosshair-thing is what decides whether the player can shoot at an enemy and, perhaps, hit them… However, as soon as the player moves, the crosshair-thing moves as well.
The remedy is to hold down the R Trigger/Bumper, which serves as a lock-on mechanic, although, well, that doesn’t work most of the time. Still, even while locked on, it is possible to literally turn around at more than 90 degrees and completely waste some ammo. It is possible to just walk out of the range that the game allows for locking-on, and, suddenly, the player is no longer locked on.
The feature is not necessary to beat the game, and it isn’t totally broken, but it’s in a state where it kinda works, but it kinda doesn’t. It’s annoying.
Those are, of course, exceptions, but they can really sour the experience and leave a nasty taste in the player’s mouth. Overall, this game is very pleasant and enjoyable to play, although it does have some drawbacks which stop me from giving it the highest grade. 2/3
Presentation
MediEvil: Resurrection is STYLIZED. It’s incredibly cartoonish, partially because it’s meant for kids, probably, but that is no issue - it makes it incredibly charming and unique. After all, being able to recognize what game is being shown in a screenshot, without the opportunity to mistake that game for another, is a good quality.
Though, even if stylized, it seems a little ugly. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but it appears, to me, as though this game really took it upon itself to present every single character as a caricature of something. Most of them have distended, bloated cadavers, crooked, gigantic teeth, bulging eyes or other uncanny facial features.
This ugliness also translates into the Voice Acting, which is a testament to how well voice acted the game is! But what do I mean here? Well, almost every character has some kind of morbidly heavy accent, coupled with a dreadful dialect, that leaves the juxtaposition between the characters who speak proper English, and everybody else, quite shocking and unpleasant.
As I said, though, that’s a testament to the quality of the Voice Acting. Truthfully, I can’t really speak on the matter, but I don’t think there was a single individual who had a performance that was less than satisfactory, and a large portion of them went above and beyond, providing some incredible sounding dialogue or speeches. It was very, very pleasant to listen to the characters, who spoke in a pleasant manner, and even those who spoke in an unpleasant manner were admirable in their performance.
Now, I need to point out that there’s a large variety of characters in this game, and they all look unique. They stand out, their designs are fresh, in my eyes, because this game came out in 2005 - cliches who? Nevermind that, as I was saying, there are some truly impressive characters, designed and looking stellar. In fact, every single entity in this game looks unique and is incredibly easily discerned as different from the rest. That’s excellency, which I feel the need to point out and compliment.
Another front at which MediEvil: Resurrection reaps victories is the music department. It’s not mind-blowingly good, it’s not something that shocked me to my very core and convinced me to listen to it for as long as I live (unlike LISA), but it’s got a soundtrack that’s quite pleasant and I could appreciate it all throughout my playtime.
The SFX did not strike me as that astonishing. There were a few interesting choices, there were a few weird choices, but nothing incredible. They did their jobs, which is good and what I want out of the SFX in any game I play.
Then there are a few other things I need to mention… This game has a LOT of cutscenes. And I mean at least 15, which is a very large number, and they all look great. NOT only that, but it also has something I don’t think I’ve ever seen in a game, other than MediEvil: Resurrection - each loading screen has a disembodied voice tell the player the name of the level that is being loaded… And then present a quippy statement about it.
Alas, it is not all rainbows. Sometimes it is hard to tell where the character is going to land, after jumping, because the shadow (or lack thereof) of Dan is very indicative of nothing. That makes platforming difficult, and, considering this is a game with a camera that isn’t set or automatic, but rather manual, that’s a problem.
In addition there are, oftentimes, bugs that stop the player’s weapon from appearing - it’s, supposedly, selected, but it doesn’t load in, and I don’t think I can even attack with it while that is happening. This partially affects Gameplay, but I think it comes as a presentation issue, too. Lastly, though, the aforementioned crosshair-thing is, sometimes, very hard to make out.
Overall, the presentation is incredible, though, as I mentioned, that feeling of unsightliness remained with me throughout the whole ordeal, and then there are these little issues which… Aren’t actually that little. They’re, more appropriately, medium sized… Such as the rating for the presentation, alas. 2/3
Story
The story is incredible. Daniel Fortesque, the HERO of Gallowmere, has been dead for a century. But his nemesis, the reason he’s dead, Zarok, the evil sorcerer, returns, and attacks the town. He resurrects the dead… And Dan ends up resurrected as well.
Turns out, however, that Dan wasn’t actually a hero. He died, first thing in the battle 100 years ago, and didn’t even get to swing his sword. Disgraced, for it is known to the dead and Zarok, Dan is given a second chance to do battle with Zarok and his forces, so as to reclaim his honor and become a true hero!
The benefits of being a true hero include: Being accepted by the other heroes in the Hall of Heroes (like Vallhala, but not affiliated). This game’s plot is really solid, and it presents interesting solutions to things, but the TRUE hero of this game is its character writing.
It’s beyond amazing, to me, how quirky and interesting every single character who appears in the game, is. Even throwaway characters, who show up for a single level, or have a single line, are interesting. The most immaculate characters are, of course, Zarok, Dan, and Al-Zalam - a genie stuck inside Dan’s cranium.
What is this game’s approach? As with the presentation, it’s got everything put on caricature mode. The peasants are all ESPECIALLY illiterate and stupid, the heroes are especially prideful and haughty, the villains are incredibly evil and over the top. It takes the tropes and either really boosts them into oblivion or flips them on their heads. It features a lot of humor, some of which even lands, and there’s an INCREDIBLE amount of sexual jokes in conversations, which is… It’s great.
I really can’t say a single bad thing about the game’s story, because it is not only well conveyed through the use of the masterful dialogue, but there are also lots of tidbits strewn about. There’s also a DRAGON encounter, and it is as amusing as you’d expect - very much so!
The total highlight of it all, however, are the heroes in the Hall of Heroes. A large portion of them are unique, in the sense that they are assholes, but then there are a few who are actual jewels. Precious, wonderful characters that make me feel very good about having come to know of their existence. That’s what it is - I am glad I played this game, and I got to experience its story. 3/3
Legendary Point
Does this game get the legendary point, so craved and wanted by all and none at the same time? Does the quest of Daniel Fortesque get to be sung of in legend? The answer to that is a resounding YES! I would have given it the point even if it was garbage in every aspect other than the story, I would have given it a yes even if the story was also trash, but the characters in it were as magnificent as they are.
This game has something special - an incredible theme, a great execution, and a cast so scintillating that I wish there was more content featuring them! 1/1
Conclusion
8/10. MediEvil: Resurrection is a great game. It’s so good that I would urge anyone to have ever played video games to try to get their hands on the story - watch a YouTube series, or maybe play it if they have a PSP laying around. It’s not good enough to justify buying a PSP - they’re still relatively pricy - but it’s a damned requirement to play this if you DO own a PSP.
I tuck it under my belt, another shining achievement that I proudly display, with tears of joy streaming down the sides of my face. Alas, it is no LocoRoco, but it is a treasure.