Originally released near Halloween in October 1998 (a rather fitting date for the games subject matter), MediEvil tells the tale of of a deceased knight (the noble Sir Dan) as he fights to rid the land of Gallowmere of the evil Zarok and his undead army.
Sir Dan is definitely a hero gamers can root for. He's the underdog-the knight who dreamed of being regarded as a hero by his peers. Unfortunately though, Sir Dan fell in the line of duty at the beginning of the battle against the evil wizard Zarok. Thankfully, MediEvil allows Sir Dan to have another chance at gaining this renown, after Sir Dan is resurrected to battle Zarok, who has returned once again. As a player, you can definitely feel the excitement as you inch Sir Dan ever-closer to being regarded as a true hero. As a consequence, the storyline is one of the strongest parts of the game.
To me, MediEvil is a cross between the gameplay of Ghosts 'N Goblins, and the gothic but fun aesthetics adopted in Tim Burton films, most notably The Nightmare Before Christmas. Being a huge fan of Tim Burton's work, I feel that this is why the game has stuck by me for so many years, and why I also have such fond memories of playing through it.
The game involves collecting and using a variety of weapons to hack through a hoard of creatures. Although hacking and slashing makes up a large amount of the game, MediEvil is punctuated with puzzle sections, each unique to the last. It makes for a nice change, and stops the game from becoming too repetitive and as a consequence, boring. There is also a chance to upgrade weapons by visiting gargoyles or opening treasure chests, and collecting items throughout the levels. Once a certain number of enemies are obliterated, a chalice can be gained which gives you access to the Hall of Heroes, a place where heroic ghosts give Sir Dan special weapons or items on each visit, which is a nice incentive to keep playing.
Unfortunately every game, even the supposed "perfect" ones, suffer from a flaw or two, no matter how great or small it may be. In MediEvil, it is firstly, the camera positioning. This is a common problem in this genre, and in this game, the perspective has to be shifted regularly in order to get a better view of the surroundings. Secondly, some may find the idea of repeatedly hacking and slashing through levels little tiresome, but if you're after a light-hearted, no-brainer hack and slash game, then look no further than MediEvil.
On face value, MediEvil lacks innovation, as it adopts the straight forward hack and slash platformer that we have seen many times before. However, the puzzles are a joy to complete, and the cartoon-gothic style is a pleasure to look at. MediEvil triumphs the most in it's goofy, humorous and engaging story and great, spooky looking visuals. The mix of unique levels and puzzles also add a substantial amount of diversity to the proceedings. The game is let down somewhat by the frustrating camera controls, but on the whole, this platformer is great fun.
A demo for Rayman Origins has landed on the Xbox Live Marketplace and Playstation Network just ahead of it's 15th November release date. Having played the original Rayman games (which, if I am being honest, I was terrible at), I decided to download the demo on the Xbox 360 to see what this upcoming game has to offer.
Before I continue, I must confess that for some reason, it appears that I am awful at Rayman Origins also, but this did not dampen my enjoyment of the demo, which I went on to complete, after several deaths of course. The demo can be completed either alone, or with up to three other players. The game adopts a drop in-drop out formula, so all four players do not have to be tied into a level for it's entirety if they do not have the time to play it through.
In the demo, you will play three of the 60 levels in the game, which demonstrate the usual Rayman gameplay, as well as some excellent visual treats. The demo levels comprise of a jungle themed area, a food world, and one ocean world level. Rayman Origins features some bright, vibrant and rather gorgeous 2D visuals, which look brilliant in HD. The game retains the old-school side-scrolling platform format of the previous games in the series, and the Rayman feel is thankfully, still here. The demo is definitely a lot more enjoyable when played through with a friend. The demo was quite a tricky one at points, and having a friend jump in on the action helps make these tricky moments a tiny bit easier to deal with.
I found it impossible to play through this demo of Rayman Origins without a smile on my face. Not only did the gameplay make me hark back when I was jumping, gliding (and dying) through a variety of levels in the Playstation One Rayman days, but the cheerful 2D visuals and charming music also helped with this.
Reviews of Rayman Origins have been excellent so far, and the demo promises a highly enjoyable multi-player experience when the full game is released in under a weeks time. Grab the demo now and see what you think.
Anyone who knows me well enough will know that I have a love of Disney films. Aladdin has been my favourite ever since it's theatrical release in 1993, and you can imagine my delight at receiving this as my first ever personally owned SNES game at 6 years old (the rest were my Dad's at this time).
Developed and published by Capcom, this Super Nintendo version is completely different from Sega Genesis version released at the same time. Whilst the Genesis version focuses on combat swordplay, the SNES version is much more focused on typical platforming elements. Fighting a string of guards with a scimitar has been avoided here. Instead, players can collect apples to throw at guards, and repeatedly jump on their heads to defeat them.
The game closely follows the events and settings seen in the Disney film, but like most game adaptations, the occasional change has been adopted to the story, in order to flesh out the game with more levels. In Aladdin, this is a welcome addition, as the non-familiar levels (such as the surreal world which acts as the Genie's "Friend Like Me" segment in the film) are incredibly fun. Occasionally, the jumping is a little tricky to master, and the Genie's level will cause some temporary frustration while you get to grips with it, but in general, the game play offered by Capcom is solid.
One great addition to the game was the bonus mini-games that could be unlocked at times. If the player manages to catch a golden scarab, or collect all the diamonds on a particular stage, they will be transported to a mini-game involving the Genie and a wheel. Spin the wheel and you will be granted whatever it falls on (eg. an extra life, more apples, etc). Sometimes the title screen will change depending on how much you have collected throughout the levels.
The boss battles are well thought out, with the final battle against Jafar (especially the section with him in his snake form) is well animated, and makes for riveting play. The sound is also worth noting. Capcom have faithfully re-created two of the songs from the film- AFriend Like Me and A Whole New World, as well as adding in a 16-bit score that fits well with the feel of the film.
Unfortunately like most games, Aladdin does carry a few flaws, but thankfully these are small. Firstly, the game is very short, and can be completed in a few hours. Whilst this is not necessarily a bad thing, I've completed this game several times now and still yearn for more at the end of it.
Another problem I had is that the game can be incredibly challenging and unforgiving at times. Even on the easiest difficulty, the game still has it's sticking moments. But what are these moments exactly? Well, it all boils down to the jumping. I do like a bit of a challenge at times, but not timing a jump correctly once again does get a little frustrating. Many jump sequences can be avoided by finding and using the parachute. Sadly if you mess up, the parachute does not appear again when you re-spawn after death though, which leaves you struggling to cover sections which are perfect for hovering over with a parachute.
Overall, Capcom have really managed to capture the spirit of Disney's excellent Aladdin, the graphics definitely look well-polished for it's time, and the game play on offer is incredibly fun. It's unfortunate that the game can be way too difficult at times, but there is enough on offer here to continue playing the game. As for a simple way of summing up Aladdin? Short, but definitely sweet.
