PowerSlave: Exhumed PS4 review. Way back in the mists of the 1990s, there existed a veritable quartet of elite, genre pushing first person shooters represented by DOOM, Quake, Half-Life and Duke Nukem 3D. Arguably existing as design touchstones for a great swathe of genre efforts in the years and decades that would follow, these games have long been acknowledged as existing at the apex of the first-person shooter genre. However, there were other offerings that snuck under the radar at the same time and one of the best of these was PowerSlave: Exhumed, a beautifully designed hybrid of first-person shooter action, Metroidvania design and twisted Egyptian mythology that now finds itself unearthed in 2022 on modern platforms.
PowerSlave: Exhumed PS4 Review
A Stunning Port Of An Overlooked FPS Gem From Yesteryear
Given the A+ porting treatment by the supremely talented Nightdive Studios, a remaster focused outfit whose soaring profile has been emboldened by the excellent recent re-releases of Quake and Shadow Man Remastered, PowerSlave: Exhumed’s recent re-release is akin to an archaeological discovery that remains more relevant than ever today, but which also provides a compelling glimpse at a bygone era.
Thrust into action as a commando that must defeat an alien menace which has resurrected and mutated the various gods and monsters of Egyptian mythology into frightening foes, PowerSlave: Exhumed immediately seems like a cross between Duke Nukem 3D and The Mummy, thanks in no small part to its leveraging of sprite-based enemies and a veritable onslaught of Egyptian mythological creatures to blast into smithereens.
For the most part, that initial assumption proves largely true as you go from one area to the next, blowing up monsters, collecting bigger and badder weapons, seeking out secrets and generally leaving a trail of carnage as you reach the end of the level before continuing onto the next. Pleasingly, I can also happily report that the array of monsters that you’ll tangle with is wonderfully varied, running the full of gamut of relatively harmless hopping scorpions, through to fireball throwing Anubi and towering, insectoid Egyptian deities that can conjure all manner of elemental attacks all the while summoning a raft of smaller minions to aid them in battle.
Equally, the weapons that you’ll leverage to smash them into pieces is also nicely varied and satisfying, with our gruff hero able to lay waste to his enemies with machetes, machine guns, grenades, flamethrowers, magical staves and much, much more besides. If a first-person shooter is measured by its arsenal (and to an extent they all really should be), then PowerSlave: Exhumed gives a very favourable impression of itself indeed.
Where PowerSlave: Exhumed really meaningfully separates itself from its genre stablemates however, is in how its level design incorporates elements of Metroidvania design to keep things fresh and compelling. As such, PowerSlave’s level design is appropriately intricate in that there are a number of areas that will prove inaccessible to you until you scoop up the necessary trinket to get you there – be it the ability to leap higher, or bust through select walls and surfaces.
Because of this, you’ll spend a reasonable chunk of time in PowerSlave returning to earlier locations in order to use your newfound powers to reach new levels and uncover previously inaccessible secrets. Rather than being a chore however, the backtracking in PowerSlave is actually a lot more compelling than it otherwise would be, thanks to some extremely snappy loading times (even on base PS4) and intelligent level design that makes orientating yourself a cinch as you eagerly use your newfound powers to open up all new areas of the game.
Speaking of which, it’s also fair to say that each of PowerSlave’s levels are a (often literal) blast to explore as well, taking on all manner of underground waterways, temples, trap-stuffed tombs, catacombs and even otherworldly realms – all of which serve to keep PowerSlave’s furious shooter action effortlessly compelling. Quite simply, to say that PowerSlave wanders far away from the usual brown boxes and warehouses that serve to blight the genre in later years, would be something of an understatement indeed.
With over twenty levels to blast through and a king-size sarcophagus worth of secrets to find, PowerSlave: Exhumed will also last you a good 12-18 hours, depending on your appetite for collecting trophies and exploring every nook and cranny. That said, if you’re looking for any substantial modes beyond PowerSlave’s admittedly highly enjoyable campaign, you’ll be disappointed – but then again, PowerSlave: Exhumed is obviously a product of its time, so it feels churlish to be criticising it in this regard.
Despite its impressive calibre glimpsed elsewhere, there are certainly some some odd design choices at play in PowerSlave: Exhumed, too. When you collect Weapon Power for example (which is essentially PowerSlave’s version of ammo), it only reloads the weapon that you are currently using, rather than other weapons in your inventory. Now while it’s hardly a big thing, it can seem a little strange after more contemporary shooter fare deals with ammo replenishment on a per weapon basis, allowing you to collect ammo for weapons that aren’t currently in use.
Additionally, changing weapons can also prove occasionally fiddly too, as PowerSlave: Exhumed not only allows players to cycle weapons normally with a touch of the triggers but also use a weapon wheel and the analogue stick to get the job done. The problems with both of these methods though, is that the former feels much too sluggish to use properly during combat, while picking out weapons from your arsenal by using the weapon wheel can often feel imprecise and inaccurate.
And then there is the toweringly excellent remastering work that Nightdive Studios has wrought here and the wealth of new improvements are almost too numerous to detail. From a full widescreen display to a solid 60 frames per second, much higher screen resolution, improved lighting effects, fully toggleable filtering and CRT slides, not to mention a combination of the classic PlayStation and Sega Saturn map designs to boot, this is absolutely the very best way to experience one of the most underappreciated retro shooters of the last few decades.
Ultimately then, PowerSlave: Exhumed is a throwback to an earlier era – that much is true. However, while it clearly and proudly wears its retro design sensibilities on its digital sleeves, so too does its satisfying blend of classically frantic shooter action and Metroidvania design provide us with a bittersweet reminder that so few others have seen to follow in its largely forgotten footsteps.
PowerSlave: Exhumed is out now on PS4.
Review code kindly provided by PR.