It's hard not to think of Sam Raimi's 1981 film The Evil Dead when talking about the horror genre. The low-budget movie spawned a popular franchise, put both Raimi and star Bruce Campbell on the map, and would influence horror movies for years to come. The franchise includes a highly regarded movie series, video games, comic books, a television show, and finally a new pinball machine. Created by Spooky Pinball, Evil Dead is arguably one of the company's best games.
Finding Spooky games in the wild isn't always easy, but thankfully Holy Frijole's in Baltimore, Maryland, isn't shy about putting Spooky machines on their floor. I was initially taken in by the awesome cabinet art by Christopher Franchi who captures the look and feel of the movies. Game designers Spooky Luke and Corwin "Bug" Emery bring both movies to solid-state life with a two-level wide-body machine. The playfield itself is fast and fun and includes four ramps, numerous multi-balls, and electrifying sculptures by Back Alley Creations.
I find wide-body games more fun as they offer more playfield for the ball. Evil Dead does offer a challenge for players - on my first few tries I was unable to get to the lower playfield. Hitting the ramps and targets was easy, but if you're looking for an easy-going game this is not that game. The two Deadite popups on the playfield did surprise me the first time I triggered them, but that's what I expect from anything Evil Dead. Spooky surprises!
Bruce Campbell returns to the Evil Dead world to once again play the role of Ash, and his callouts are terrific. This is a truly immersive game that should prove that Spooky Pinball knows what they're doing. My only critique is that there is a lot going on in this game. I am a fan of Evil Dead so I know that the movies are also packed with frightful fun, but an over-packed pinball machine means more chances for something malfunctioning or the ball getting stuck. While I did not see or experience that with this machine, I have been a lifelong pinball player (and collector). At a certain point one becomes prepared or accustomed to detecting flaws in new machines.
This is a brand new machine so there is no after-market data for it yet. But Evil Dead merchandise can be highly sought after and can command high dollar amounts in auctions. Recently, an ungraded clamshell VHS for The Evil Dead sold for $3,499. On Heritage, a copy of A Fistful of Boomstick WATA graded 9.8 for the Xbox sold for $1,140. Going through multiple listings of sold items tells me one thing - Evil Dead fans are loyal, and love their merchandise. While many modern machines have not had the time to fully ripen into a collector's piece, I do believe there is potential with Evil Dead.
If you have the chance to play Evil Dead, do it. I've seen Spooky come a long way since their first few machines, and I'm happy to see them finally come into their own. This machine, as Ash would say, is groovy.
