-Justin

THQ Turns Heads With Evil Dead

Calabasas Publisher snags former Parasite Eve developers to turn cult film classic into PSX game.

October 8, 1999

THQ announced today it will publish a brand new PlayStation game based on the cult horror film Evil Dead, and has plans to create sequels for the franchise for PlayStation 2.

As part of THQ's new long-term growth plans, the publisher also announced the acquisition of the development team Heavy Iron Studios, made up of several former members of the Square LA development team that created Parasite Eve, currently in development with Evil Dead: Ashes 2 Ashes.

THQ plans to complete the game by Fall 2000 for PlayStation, but has the interactive rights of Evil Dead for the next five years, in a deal it completed with Renaissance Pictures, which is responsible for A Simple Plan, For the Love of the Game, and other movie and TV projects. THQ |Executive Producer Scott Krager explained, "Both the PSX and PC versions will release simultaneously with the PSX being the lead sku. And yes, we do want to see this thing sequalize."

THQ President Brian Farrell added, "We anxiously await the arrival of Sony's PlayStation 2." We have development kits right now and will be ready with games at the launch of PlayStation 2." Game details are brief at this time, and more information is promised in the next few weeks, said THQ, however, several aspects of the game are known at this time. Evil Dead is a single-player, realtime 3D adventure game blending action, adventure and puzzle elements into a Resident Evil style game. With full-motion, layered, 2D backgrounds, Evil Dead's producers boasted absolutely no load times at all, as the team plans to use high-ratio compression schemes and several techniques proven to elude standard load times found in games such as Resident Evil and Dino Crisis.

Players assume the role of Ash, "a Square-jawed, shotgun-toting, chainsaw-armed hero from the Evil Dead trilogy – in a story that continues the ongoing saga of the Necronomicon ex Mortis, also known as the book of the Dead." With both a chainsaw and shotgun, players can bet on Evil Dead boasting a good amount of blood and gore. As one might expect, Evil Dead will receive a rating of either teen or mature, a change in pace for the family-oriented publisher image that THQ is attempting to shed. Bruce Campbell, star of the Evil Dead Trilogy explained, "Today's technology will give millions of fans their first chance to experience the sometimes horrific but often times humorous adventures of Ash and Necronomicon."

Here's a quick rundown on some of the features:

•Ash voiceover by cult hero Bruce Campbell, star of the "Evil Dead" trilogy

•Richly detailed animating backgrounds rendered and displayed in 24-bit

– the first for a PlayStation game

•Gameplay comprised of action, exploration and puzzle solving

•A wide variety of enemies including new horrific "deadites" as well as some returning favorites ·

•A large array of upgradeable weapons

•Numerous in-game cinematic cut scenes as well as pre-rendered sequences

•Cinematic camera movements and angles true to classic horror films

•Environments that include settings from "Evil Dead" as well as new and unique locales that offer a variety of gameplay

•Non-linear design allowing for added replay-ability

IGNPSX will have more on Evil Dead soon.

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