MediEvil (2019 video game)

MediEvil
File:Medievil PS4 box art.png
Developer(s)	Other Ocean Emeryville
Publisher(s)	Sony Interactive Entertainment
Composer(s)	Andrew Barnabas Paul Arnold
Series	MediEvil
Platform(s)	PlayStation 4
Release	25 October 2019
Genre(s)	Action-adventure, hack and slash
Mode(s)	Single-player

MediEvil is an action-adventure hack and slash video game developed by Other Ocean Emeryville and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. It is a remake of the 1998 PlayStation game MediEvil. It was released on 25 October 2019.

The game is dedicated to Zarok's voice actor, Paul Darrow, who died in 2019.

Gameplay

Sir Daniel Fortesque encountering a Rhinotaur in the "Crystal Caves" level. The optional "Dan Cam" camera viewpoint is being used.

MediEvil takes place across a series of levels selectable from a world map. The game's playable character, Sir Daniel Fortesque, starts with only his detachable arm to fight enemies, but is able to utilize a wide variety of weapons, ranging from close range weapons such as swords and clubs to long-range weapons such as throwing daggers and bows. Many weapons can be charged for a more powerful attack. Sir Daniel is also able to equip a shield alongside his weapons for defense. Shields can resist a limited amount of damage and do not protect Sir Daniel from certain types of damage, such as from long falls.

As Sir Daniel is hit by enemies, he will lose part of his health bar. If he loses all of his health, the game will end. While Sir Daniel does not recover health automatically between levels, he can utilize Life Bottles to automatically recover all of his health should it be completely depleted.

In each level, the player is able to find a Chalice of Souls, which can be collected if the player has defeated enough enemies. The player can use the Chalices to gain access to the Hall of Heroes. If the player collects all Chalices, the game's true ending will be shown.

While the game remains largely identical in content to the original MediEvil, several new features have been introduced. These include the "Dan Cam", an optional camera viewpoint which uses an over-the-shoulder perspective, as well as optional "Lost Souls" objectives, which require Sir Daniel to complete a mission received from a ghost found in each level.

Development

According to the executive producer of the project, Jeff Nachbauer, Other Ocean Emeryville wished to keep most elements from the original MediEvil intact, unless there was a good reason to change something. The developers researched music the original developers would have listened to at the time of the development of the original MediEvil. Level geometry was extracted from the original MediEvil and imported into the remake's engine to serve as a reference for the placement of level elements. Due to the game's farther draw distance and wider aspect ratio, new background areas that didn't exist in the original MediEvil needed to be created, and additional trees and foilage were added to certain areas. With the exception of Sir Daniel Fortesque's lines, all in-game dialogue has been recycled from the original MediEvil. Narration for the game's opening and hint books is now done by Lani Minella, who also reads entries in the game's new in-game encyclopedia.

Release

The MediEvil remake was first announced as a remaster of MediEvil at the 2017 PlayStation Experience. MediEvil was fully revealed on 31 October 2018, and was confirmed to be a full remake, rather than a remaster as was previously announced. In the 9 May 2019 PlayStation State of Play, the digital only "Digital Deluxe Edition" version was revealed, which includes the Super Armor from MediEvil 2, a theme based on the game for the PlayStation 4 user interface, a digital art book, a digital graphic novel prequel known as MediEvil: Fate's Arrow, and a digital music player featuring the game's soundtrack. In the 24 September 2019 PlayStation State of Play, a demo of MediEvil, known as MediEvil: Short-Lived Demo, was announced to be available from the end of the presentation until 6 October 2019. It features an exclusive helmet that can carry over to the full game. The helmet is based on the Japanese version of the original MediEvil, which has Sir Daniel wear a helmet by default, and also increases the game's difficulty level.

Reception

Reception

Review score

Publication	Score
IGN	6.5/10

MediEvil received mixed reviews. General praise was directed at the game for its story and visuals, which were considered to be faithful to the original MediEvil. General criticism was directed at some aspects of the game's gameplay, which was perceived to be outdated.