Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick

"It's all about the Boomstick, baby!"

Alright, you shotgun-toting horror fans, this is your lucky day. The Evil has landed, and it wants you. Once again, the jaded Sam Raimi and the ever-popular Bruce Campbell deliver unto their fans. After a trio of horror-comedy B-movies that are taken to the ridiculous extremes and one less-than-successful game, they've found the right kind of formula for a killer-cool game.

Ash has been sent to Hell and back...then he had to go again...and again... This time, the Evil is all over the place. The Deadite scum have all the right demonic creepiness and the gameplay involved in fighting them is much better than before, with your own trusty Boomstick and a Chainsaw that isn't gonna run out of gas. The controls for fighting allow 360 degrees-worth of flesh-ripping, gun-toting madness, and it's suppose to be able to handle the movements of 100 Deadites at once. (Better get alot of ammo.) There's some puzzle stuff, but only the usual find-it-so-I-can-use-it-and-get-the-heck-out-of-here kind of thing.

The voice acting is alright. Even the Deadites have got personality, and I mean more than just ''I'll swallow your soul!'' and the like. Ash lives up to his usual vulgar and funny self. ''Oh look, you're all out of precious bodily fluids.'', he might say while slaying. He taunts, he flaunts, he makes life hell for the demons.

The new concepts, like a bigger variety of weapons and the use of spells, are a great edition. It's funny when Ash screws up a spell, but get it right and look out!

Drawbacks? There are a couple. Even though it's impressive to see 100 Deadites on the prowl at once, you might think that that many demons can be a little too many to fight off or have a chance at winning against. This in itself isn't much of a problem. It's a challenge. Any gamer around likes a challenge. So even if it's Bruce Campbell VS. the Army of Darkness all over again, it's fun and crazy. (Like, ''How will I ever get myself out of THIS ONE?'') The real problem is health. It's too easy to get hurt sometimes when dealing with Deadites. They can bring you down to half-strength really fast. One would think Ash had some more endurance after having to fight these creatures and receiving more and more abuse from them all. (Everyone knows that Ash gets beaten on alot in the movies.)

It's worth it. I'm already loving it, despite any minor setbacks. It's good. It's gory...ish. It's great for the fans and great for the...errr...non-fans. Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick, the real deal in Deadite smashing. I give it 9 because it isn't perfect, but very close.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 05/27/03, Updated 05/27/03