Released over 40 years ago, Evil Dead was not exactly a hit upon release, call it a slow burn horror movie. Boy when it finally caught fire, it exploded. Starring a then unknown actor named Bruce Campbell, Evil Dead was off the rail’s horror mixed with comedy, while not the first to mix the two genres, it is definitely one with the longest longevity. Sadly, part of that slow burn means missing out on tons of pop culture over the last several decades. No one came knocking to make action figures, bed sheets, or shot gun sleeves or amputee hands or anything with the Evil Dead license. Over the last decade or so that has slowly changed. Now there is an Evil Dead pinball game coming and I challenge you to find a better fit for the bright lights and tabletop action pinball provides.
While it would probably have been impossible to make a recognizable pinball game around something like Friday the 13th, Evil Dead doesn’t have that problem. Other than Nightmare on Elm Street (later entries when Freddy is a jerk) I cannot think of a horror franchise that has memorable one liners. While Freddy grew into them, then burned fans out with going too far, Evil Dead did it in one movie.
This one movie having it all certainly helps with bringing the atmosphere over to something like a pinball game.
There are tons of voice clips both from the first two movies and originally created for this pinball game. There are many scenes to interact with as well. The infamous cabin is in the upper right corner of the table, looming over your adventure.
Half the fun of this pinball game is finding all the references.
This pinball game is not the only Evil Dead game out there. In October Retrorealms released an Evil Dead game. That game is a 2D side scrolling action game that does not follow the plot of any Evil Dead movie, though it does quite well at capturing the attitude of Bruce Campbell.
Pinball games are a hard sell for many reasons. For one, the space a unit takes up. This Evil Dead pinball machine is apparently a “wide body” according to Straight Down the Middle.
Another is price. Pinball machines are not exactly built like gaming consoles or arcade units like the Neo Geo. You can’t just swap a few things and bam, new game. Each table is unique and expensive.
If you thought Neo Geo carts were expensive, Evil Dead Pinball will set you back a cool $10k.
Head over to Spooky Pinball’s website and check out Evil Dead and the many other pinball machines they have available. If you want one, just be prepared to open that wallet.
