Review: 'Evil Dead: Hail to the King'

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	GALLERY

by Atomic Dawg

(IDG) -- "Evil Dead: Hail to the King" shambles zombie-like in the footsteps of the PlayStation port, and that ain't good. To it's credit the game bends over backward to pay homage to the great Evil Dead movie trilogy it's based on. Fans will recognize story elements and visuals from "Evil Dead 2" and "Army of Darkness." However, imprecise control just kills Dead's gameplay, reducing the all-too-frequent fights with Deadite demons to clumsy, one-button jams. Bruce Campbell's dead-on vocals may be enough of a draw for fans, but uninspired action will scare off hardcore gamers.

Graphics: 3.0.
Faithful reproduction of movie sets and scenes go a long way here, but the monster designs lack fire and the animation is stiff and uninspired.

Sound: 3.0.
Bruce Campbell's vocals bring Ash's wiseguy attitude to life in entertaining fashion, but there are few other audio highlights and the "I'll swallow your soul!" line is overdone.

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Controls: 2.0.
Hit-or-miss, mushy controls mean you're dead more often than not even though combat with Deadites is a simple button-smashing slugfest. The imprecise inventory management system makes managing your gear an adventure.

Fun Factor: 3.0.
Despite its flaws, Hail to the King's faithful attention to Evil Dead details might enable the film trilogy's mystique to carry true fans through this wonky game. Hardcore gamers, however, will not even find this a guilty pleasure.

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