Published by Ratalaika Games and sold for a measly $5, Evil Diary is a single player horde-mode style shooter that offers high action in 10–15-minute increments. It is a simple game without replay value, but Achievement hunters will want to take note.
You play as a young girl in a world that was destroy by aliens. After living in ruin, you decide it is better to fight your way through the horde to reach a suggested safe zone. Armed with a pistol, an unlimited supply of bullets, and a beam sword, Eve must reach the secured area without much rest.
Although the story is dark, the gameplay is rather simple. With one button to shoot and another to swing a sword, gameplay is literally a button masher. Each stage takes place on a screen that slightly scrolls left/right but always contained to a single area. One stage will task the player with defeating a certain number of enemies, another you might need to survive for a certain amount of time, and there are even brief QTE style cutscenes that forces the player to button mash quickly or die. Since shooting is restricted to left and right (you cannot shoot up, down, or diagonal), and reloading is automatic (and only takes a fraction of a second), survival mostly comes down to how fast you can tap the shoot button. In fact, I only used the laser sword a few times in my embedded stream just to demonstrate it. Since the gun works much better, the melee attack doesn’t even need to be there at all.
Clearing each stage usually takes about 30 seconds and I was able to clear the entire game on my first run in 15 minutes. The low challenge makes it a bit dull, but it is one of those games you can enjoy without having to think; it is a simple way to destress after a hard day at work. However, without upgrades, new weapons, and repeating enemy types, it gets boring and very samey. Therefore, the 15-minute clear time is just enough to get your action fix before it overstays its welcome.
The name Evil Diary comes from the fact that the female protagonist logs that day’s events in her diary at each stage’s conclusion, so it is a little creative. The 2D pixel-based sprites are also simple and remind me of the chunky blockheaded characters from a Kunio game. But this one-dimensional action shooter is accurately priced at $5, offers a solid 15 minutes of fun, and Achievement hunters will want to take note. Unfortunately, without replay value or extra features, the quest will be a one and done.
SCORE: 7/10
More Action Based Than: Sentry City
Don’t Forget About: Super Sunny Island
Wait For It: Egglien 2
By: Zachary Gasiorowski, Editor in Chief myGamer.com
Twitter: @ZackGaz
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