MediEvilMediEvil is an action-adventure video game for the PlayStation developed by SCE Studio Cambridge and published by Sony in the year 1998. Today, I will introduce you to everything this game has to offer.
Story:
The story is about a hero from the medieval times in a fictional land called "Gallowmere" named Sir Daniel Fortesque, who (as the player gets to know almost immediately after starting the game) has died in a war against Zarok the Sorcerer and his army of undead. (Wait, what?! This game follows a story of a dead person?!)The legend has it that Sir Daniel Fortesque lead the entire army and defeated Zarok himself, but suffered from fatal injuries in the process. This has earned him the title "Hero of Gallowmere". The player later learns that the whole legend is vastly exaggerated and that Fortesque was in fact the first one to die in the war.
It has now been an entire century since the war and Zarok has risen from the shadows and steals the souls of several villagers to resurrect his army of undead, but the waves of his magic have unintentionally resurrected Sir Dan Fortesque himself.
Gameplay (Addictiveness/Depth):
The gameplay in this game is really unique. The player guides Fortesque through many different puzzles and battles. There is no way to talk about all of the gameplay in one paragraph, so It will be split up into several sections:
Weapons: The weapons in this game are all unique and creative. The game features several melee weapons, such as swords and a hammer, and several ranged weapons, such as the throwing daggers, the longbow or even chicken drumsticks and shields which can protect Fortesque. Each of the weapons have their own strengths and weaknesses. It's up to the player to master using the entire arsenal this game has to offer.
Enemies: The enemies Fortesque meets vary from level to level. All of the enemies fit the locality they are found in (and since there is a lot of localities, there aren't too many enemies of the same type). There is a lot of enemy types to be found in the game, including zombies, armoured knights and even asylum patients. The enemies' methods of attacking Fortesque (firing projectiles from afar, charging head on)
vary, so the player should always predict the enemies' patterns.
Chalice of souls: The game features an unique mechanic - the chalice of souls. Every time Fortesque kills an enemy, the chalice gets filled up a little bit (and every time Fortesque kills a villager, the chalice drains a bit of souls). When the chalice is filled up to 100%, Fortesque can then collect it. If it has been collected and the level has been completed, Fortesque will then be transported to the Hall of heroes. The hall of heroes contains statues of heroes who have helped Gallowmere before. But these aren't regular statues! These statues can actually move and talk, and will help Fortesque on his quest to defeat Zarok. The statues can give Fortesque money, extra health and even new weapons that will make the game much easier. These statues also expand the main story, as they are all somehow linked to Fortesque (even including Fortesque's lover)
Secrets: This game also has a few secrets that aren't always easy to find, and sometimes even require backtracking to previous levels. These secrets hide money, extra health or even sometimes a chalice of souls.
Levels: All of the levels in this game are unique and non-linear. The themes of the levels are always changing and never seem like repeats of an older level (except for when Fortesque goes through the graveyard a second time). These levels include, but are not limited to: Crystal caves, Pools of the ancient dead and Inside the asylum.
Graphics:
The graphics this game has to offer seem extremely detailed and fitting in with the rest of the game. Every single bit (pun intended) of the visuals (including pre-rendered cutscenes) was made with care and attention to detail, which makes the game look beautiful when compared to other games for the PlayStation.
Sounds:
All of the music in this game is amazing. The music feels ambient, exactly what you would expect from a game about a war between the undead. The music seems sort of frightening, but in place and to be fair, kind of nice to listen to. The cutscenes also feature well done voice acting which is quite ahead of other PlayStation games.
Difficulty:
The difficulty of this game can vary drastically. If the player doesn't collect optional items, the game will be much severely more difficult than if the player collects the optional items, the entire game becomes as easy as a walk through a park. This is also an interesting game to try doing low% runs on.
Overall:
This video game is a masterpiece. It certainly isn't easy to make a game that is interesting to play, has magnificent graphics and music and offers a deep, yet easy to follow story. This game (and its sequels) is one of the best games to be found on the PlayStation.