Sir Daniel Fortesque, the hero of MediEvil, prepares for a reworked version of his classic adventure, launching on PlayStation 4 just ahead of Halloween. We gave the reworked classic a spin and decided if it’s still worth your time and money, even with the lower pricetag. Did we enjoy our time in Gallowmere? Let’s jump back in!
The hero of Gallowmere
Our story starts in the fictional town of Gallowmere where they celebrate the heroic acts of Sir Daniel Fortesque. The brave knight went down in history as a true hero, fending off a deadly attack of the evil wizard Zarok and his battalion of minions. The actions of brave Sir Daniel led to the deadly defeat of Zarok and although the knight also fell in battle, he lived on as a hero in the minds of many. Or at least, that’s what the king made his people believe as a matter of national security. The truth is that Sir Daniel didn’t die a heroic death at all, he even failed at defeating the evil wizard, who made a return to the living, years after the battle. In the aftermath of bringing back the dead to raise a new army, the evil wizard accidentally brought back Sir Daniel as well; giving him a second chance to save the world, forcing him to stand upon his own tall shoulders.
A fun story
The story is a huge part of MediEvil and it’s great to see how well the team managed to rework the classic. The animations are flawless and the return of some of the original voice actors only adds to the atmosphere. The voice actors give it their all to bring the cartoon-esque characters to life as good as possible. As a player, this results in a fun experience and an interesting story until the end of your adventure. Since it’s inspired by the original, you won’t find new content in the PlayStation 4 version, meaning that the story is fun but it won’t last long, you can easily clear the game under ten hours. This might sound short but it’s just long enough. The pacing is just right and the unique twists keep it entertaining throughout the entire adventure. Sir Daniel starts off as a failed knight but the more you advance, the more his confidence will grow. Watching him evolve throughout his journey is extremely rewarding and even leads to some truly hilarious situations. As an adventure game, the emphasis really lies in the story and its progression based on your actions. Thanks to the power of the PlayStation 4, the world of MediEvil truly comes to life, which really is a huge leap forward compared to the original adventure.
More than just a story
Of course, a great story is a good start but it doesn’t automatically result in a great game, the actual gameplay is the crucial element. At its core, MediEvil is a classic action-adventure game where fighting off enemies goes hand in hand with solving some environmental puzzles. The variation of fighting the undead and solving puzzles is what makes the game this good, you’ll never get the feeling you’re constantly doing the same, you’re always facing new problems. At first, it all feels a bit too easy but things quickly change the more you progress. Although it never reaches the same levels as Dark Souls, the level of difficulty is just right in MediEvil. Hard enough to give you a challenge but never too hard to be unfair. If you collect the right kind of weapons and armor for your task, you’ll have a fair shot at defeating your enemies.
Collecting the right set of armor and weapons is a big part of the game and you’ll spend a lot of time chasing the rarest equipment. Your arsenal varies from standard swords to gigantic hammers and flammable arrows later on. Experimenting with the new weapons and upgrading your armor was one of the more impressive features in the original and even to the modern standards of gaming, it’s pretty impressive to see your armor and weapons change in real-time. Dressing Sir Daniel in different outfits results in some hilarious situations thanks to his stellar animations. But, it goes beyond the aesthetic value as picking the right set of equipment can really change the outcome of the battles. If you defeat enough enemies in a level, you’ll unlock a special chalice in the Hall of Heroes, a place where the ghost will give you a powerful new weapon after they called you unworthy of entering the legendary Hall.
As said before, the game offers more than just this. Battling enemies and collecting new gear isn’t everything this game has to offer. Every level has its own little atmosphere and puzzles you’ll need to solve. Without the puzzles, the game might feel a bit too repetitive but thanks to the inclusion of these elements, the team really created a game that remains interesting until the very end of the adventure. Compared to the combat, the puzzles aren’t that hard to solve but it’s great to have these slower segments in between the rather intense battles.
But, it’s not perfect
At its core, MediEvil is a great game and this PlayStation 4 version is the best version by far, but it’s not perfect. It struggles with some technical issues, the camera being the major issue. People complained about the smart camera in the original and I’m afraid not everybody will like this reinterpretation of the camera controls. During your adventure, the camera will automatically follow you and show you a portion of the level that is most fit for your actions, as judged by the smart camera. Of course, this leads to some frustrations. The camera doesn’t always go where you want it to go and although you can alter its position with your camera stick or use an over the shoulder perspective, it never really works flawlessly. Compared to the original, it’s a huge improvement as the camera does a way better job than it ever did, it’s just a shame that the team failed to deliver a flawless system. On top of that also comes the fact that this is an older game, following classic rules. Compared with modern action-adventure games, it might all feel a bit too easy or a bit too clunky, but that really depends on your taste in gaming. None of these problems are truly game-breaking, but it does keep the game from becoming a modern classic.
Conclusion:
MediEvil is a great game to have on PlayStation 4 and it never looked better. The gameplay stands tall after all those years and you’ll get a lot of great content for its smaller price. It’s a shame not all elements are worked out to perfection but in the end, it’s a memorable and enjoyable adventure filled with zombies. It’s the perfect game for Halloween and the perfect game for those looking for a fun action-adventure game on their PlayStation 4.
