MediEvil Resurrection Review

I am starting to wonder when the PSP is going to put out a playable action-platforming type game. Death Jr. did a noble job at bringing run-and-gun action to the PSP, but the camera was awkward at times (to say the least) and slow-down occurred too frequently. Enter MediEvil Resurrection, a game flawed by crappy camera angles, riddled with funky controls, all while the game slows down on a reoccurring basis. Unless you have a fetish for PlayStation nostalgia, I can already tell you that you will probably want to pass this up.

If you are not familiar with the original game, you play as Sir Daniel Fortesque, a knight of the kingdom of Gallowmere, killed by an arrow to the eye in a battle with the evil necromancer Zarok. The king portrayed Fortesque as the winner of the battle, which cost him his life. A century later, Zarok returns, set on ruling the world by casting spells that raise the dead, creating an army of zombies. The magic brings Fortesque back as well with a decision to defeat Zarok once and for all.

Probably the biggest problem you will encounter is the camera, which combined with slowdown force you to grow an early distaste for the game. This situation is not rectified with the lack of checkpoints which force you to start an entire level over again, despite any progress you may make, just because of a silly error. There is really not much point to combat regardless, but if you encounter enemies that must be relinquished, your melee and long-range attacks don’t do much good.

You will likely carry a sword or you can use your arm as a boomerang of sorts. You can target an enemy by pressing and holding R. The ranged attacks are pointless unless you are targeting an enemy directly in front of you. Poor collision detection is evident as you will try to land a hit on targets, but often won’t avoid getting hit yourself. R can also be used to center the camera.

To the game’s credit though, there are some creative sequences. For instance, in one level you will be required to light an area in a room to unlock a door. What shall you use to carry a flame from one side of the building to the other? Hmmm… how about your arm? This kind of over-the-top kind of gameplay humor is nice, but it can hardly save a game that makes it nearly impossible to get to enjoyable parts.

In conclusion, MediEvil: Resurrection should not have been resurrected from the PlayStation cemetery. The bone-headed enemies, abhorrent camera angles, tedious combat, and slowdown all make this one of the most disappointing PSP games to date. I am afraid not even Fortesque can save this game from a bad review score. There is absolutely no reason why anyone should buy this game. If you like to be frustrated, you might enjoy yourself.