I’m a sucker for a licensed game, especially one based on a franchise I really like (in this case, Evil Dead), so the announcement of Boss Team Games’ RetroRealms Arcade piqued my interest, even if it also made me question its business model more than anything else. In short, RetroRealms Arcade features two distinct action platformers, one based on Halloween (the movie franchise), and one based on the Starz TV show, Ash vs. Evil Dead. The thing is, they are accessed via the same hub, and need to be bought separately. In short, RetroRealms Arcade is a launcher within a launcher, offering two short experiences for a steep price. But hey, if they are good, that won’t matter, right? That was my initial thought.

Both Ash and Michael can access a separate hellish realm for a brief period of time.

I was thinking on whether or not I should do separate reviews for Halloween and Ash vs. Evil Dead, but after playing them, I realized there was no need for it. Sure, there are differences between both games in terms of the characters you can play as, the plot, and the level design, but for all intents and purposes, they are similar enough that reviewing both at the same time wouldn’t feel out of place. This is already a point against having RetroRealms Arcade act like its own “hub of licensed horror platformers”, if all of its games are meant to look quite similar to one another.

No matter which game you decide to pick and play, the premise is quite simple. Ash and/or Michael Myers must traverse blood-soaked levels, kill a bunch of enemies, defeat the occasional boss, and utilize a special spell that allows them to traverse between two different realms of existence: a really crappy human realm, and an even crappier hellish realm. Some puzzles can only be accessed upon smartly using this traversal mechanic, encouraging a bit of exploration. Each level features tickets which can be used to purchase Halloween and Evil Dead-themed memorabilia in RetroRealms Arcade‘s main hub.

Without Bruce Campbell’s voice acting, Ash Williams just sounds like a douche. Not a loveable douche.

In both cases, the gameplay is… decent. It’s a mid-paced action platforming control scheme, with each character having access to a melee attack, purchaseable combos, and a ranged attack which uses ammunition. The reduced pace works really well with Halloween, basically giving it pseudo-Splatterhouse vibes, but not so much for Ash vs. Evil Dead. That game really needs a more Devil May Cry-ish vibe. Furthermore, whilst the controls are, for the most part, responsive, I’ve noticed some issues in some areas, namely when traversing between realms. Nothing that made me want to ragequit, but something worth mentioning (and patching up).

Boss battles can be a bit tough at first, but it’s all about recognizing attack patterns, and reacting accordingly.

Now, what will really bother players in general is RetroRealms Arcade‘s overall pricing model. Each game is very expensive, and I really don’t think they are worth the admission ticket. Were they being sold for, say, fifteen bucks a pop, this whole “launcher-within-a-launcher” schtick would have been an actually neat idea. But twenty five dollars a game, with additional DLC on top of them, in order to unlock additional characters? Yeah, I’m not so sure about that. Both games are very arcadey in nature, and thus, aren’t very long, so I don’t exactly agree with the really expensive entry fee. I get that a chunk of price is a consequence of licensing fees, but even then, there are much meatier games being sold for less. It’s not like those titles stand out in terms of visuals and sound, either.

If you’ve played any of WayForward’s 2D platformers in the past, you KINDA know what to expect from these two games.

You can have quite a bit of fun playing as Ash Williams or Michael Myers in RetroRealms Arcade, but I can’t help but think that this collection’s entire structure is completely unnecessary. Both Halloween and Ash vs. Evil Dead could/should have been released as separate games altogether, and for a slightly lower pricetag, devoid of DLC practices. Doing so would have made their issues stand out a bit less. As of now, considering the entry fee and short length, RetroRealms Arcade is only fully recommended to die-hard fans of those franchises. For anyone else, wait for a slight discount.

RetroRealms Arcade is available now on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, PC and Switch

Reviewed on Xbox Series S.

A copy of RetroRealms Arcade was provided by the publisher.