Evil Dead Regeneration

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PSM2 gets busy decapitating zombies with Ash and his semi-dead-headed chum Sam

One of the top bods at THQ must have a thing about woodchippers. First there was The Punisher and its gangster-mulching scene, and now there's Evil Dead Regeneration... where, within minutes, you've already hoofed your sidekick, Sam, into a tree-guzzling machine.

Not to worry, though - your midget Mafia sidekick Sam is a resilient little chap. Being half-Deadite, he can even be kicked into enemies. It usually ends up with him getting ripped in half, but he'll distract them long enough for Ash to rip them a new chainsaw-hole.

In later levels, it's even possible to set Sam on fire and use him like a sweary little Molotov cocktail.

Sweary? Oh, yes. This is an adult game, alright. So brace yourself for some mum-worrying potty-talk from Sam Raimi's brother Ted - who plays the tiny gangster - as well as watching him get shredded every two minutes.

You'll also be hearing Bruce 'coffin-chin' Campbell do the honours as Ash, hero of the films, who is in the loony bin for hacking up his girlfriend up with a chainsaw.

Slung unwillingly together when the Deadite invasion starts, Sam and Ash have to find the Necronomicon - which, in practical terms, means dashing about unleashing spirits and getting killed a lot.

The one time when you can't let Sam die is when he's been possessed by one of the many spirit pods that infest every level. Then it's your job to escort him back to the one-eyed monster that'll eat him and give you safe passage to the next section.

Look, it's based on a film where Bruce Campbell spends 20 minutes fighting his own hand - nobody said it had to make sense.

To help him out, Ash is packing all sorts of weapons and moves - including cool stuff that you might remember from unofficial sequel Army of Darkness, such as the spin-backwards-and-shoot move.

It's all looking pretty tasty, if a bit one-note, and you really have to see the puking Deadites to believe them. And take our word for it - there'll be a wood-chipper in the next Smackdown. Guaranteed.

Evil Dead Regeneration is out for Xbox, PS2 and PC in the autumn