Probably one of the most interesting things I saw at the show this weekend was a new title from Boss Team Games and Wayforward, RetroRealms: Halloween, and RetroRealms: Ash vs Evil Dead. My demo opened up with me entering a dingy arcade, dust caking every surface, and as I explored every decrepit room I soon found myself at two arcade machines, and thus the central hook of RetroRealms became clear. The arcade itself is a 3D environment that works as your main hub, and the arcade machines are how you start up the Halloween and Ash vs Evil Dead games which are 2D beat ‘em ups.
As you explore the arcade, you’ll find other rooms like a video room where you can watch VHS tapes of various developer interviews or a memorabilia room where you can redeem tickets you earn from the arcade machines to unlock iconic items from these movies in display cases such as Ash’s chainsaw or Michael’s childhood Halloween costume. I was told the goal of this entire zone is to eventually expand it with more arcade machines, featuring games from other horror icons such as Killer Klowns or The Thing; these were my wishes by the way, the devs were pretty tight lipped on what horror character might be next as they’re focusing entirely on releasing Halloween and Ash vs Evil Dead first.
After poking around the arcade for a bit, it was time to actually dive into one of them, and as a big Evil Dead fan, I obviously opted for that one first. Immediately I was asked to choose between the man himself, Ash Williams, or Kelly Maxwell. Both play a little differently, with Ash being a bit slower and both having their unique projectiles. Ash and Kelly also both feature their unique dialog, which will make replaying levels a lot more interesting. I get it’s extra work, but it’s always a bit of a bummer replaying these types of games with the extra characters you unlock and having to see the same dialog as before; getting to see things through Kelly’s perspective, even if the levels themselves are the same, adds a nice amount of replay value. After choosing your character, you’re quickly introduced to this evil entity who steals the Necronomicon which kicks off the whole journey.
A fun gimmick that’s introduced is the ability to jump into the “nightmare realm”, a quick button press and I was immediately transported into a hellish version of Ash’s trailer park. You’ll need to hop in here to solve various puzzles at times, but the main appeal of hopping over is getting to face off against stronger enemies that will leave you with higher rewards that can be used to upgrade Ash or Kelly’s stats like increasing their ammo or unlocking new moves. After tearing my way through the trailer park, killing any deadite that came my way, I made it to the end of the stage and it was time to check out the Halloween machine.
Entering that machine gave me the option to choose to be Michael Meyers or Laurie Strode, with Meyer’s dialog humorously being people confusingly reacting to his silence. Playing similarly to its Evil Dead counterpart, I proceeded as Michael through a mental asylum, tearing crazed inmates apart with Michael’s signature knife. After making my way through that level, I was then shown another core aspect of the game: you can bring any of these characters into each other’s games.
So Michael can wreak havoc through Ash’s trailer park or you can send Ash to the looney bin. I was told that the goal was to make any future games added to the arcade be allowed to have their characters crossover into each other’s worlds, allowing you to play levels with whichever character you want. As a big horror fan, my time with RetroRealms left me happy to see horror enthusiasts making sure these two games were perfect homages to their films, and thankfully you won’t have to wait long to get your hands on this as both games drop in time for Halloween this October.
