Resident Evil 5
When Shinji Mikami resurrected Capcom’s highly successful zombie infestation franchise in Resident Evil 4, he introduced a host of new improvements which set extremely high expectations for any sequel that was to follow. So when the release of a new sequel was announced, fans set outrageously high hopes that the new game would be able to appease their ravenous appetites for ripping flesh eating undeads into shreds once more. This has worked to Resident Evil 5’s misfortune, as the new game banked on new territory when players wanted more of what they were used to.
Where the past few games possessed a more survival-horror feel, Resident Evil 5 attempted to recreate the wheel by pursuing a survival action theme. While games like Gears of War and Metal Gear Solid have succeeded in this strategy, Resident Evil was meant to be a game where players were thrown into dark alleys with nobody to rely one, hence the fear factor. In this game, the introduction of a new character, Sheva – who follows you around everywhere you go, does little to help. It’s like playing the old games, but this time with the lights on.
Each chapter of the game plays out in one of two styles: taking out enemies in a free for all or solving complex intellectual puzzles to overcome the level. Checkpoints are scattered like marbles throughout the game, so even if you should die, you’ll be able to start somewhere relatively nearby from where you last stopped. The enemy AI, on the other hand, isn’t what it could have been, but at least they’re not so frustratingly dense as in some other games, so gamers should have an entertaining, if not wholly satisfying time.
On the bright side, thought, the game has managed to come out with revolutionary stunning graphics. Normally static objects like windows, computer monitors and fruit stalls shatter into oblivion when you knock into them or blow them apart, and the dynamics of the game is so convincing that you’d wonder who would take the time to code all this stuff. Also, the enemies are revealed in impressive detail, and in you don’t want to revel in the beauty of their rotting flesh while blowing them up, there’s a massive picture gallery where you can appreciate their structures from a safe spot.
However, critics have been quick to jump on the game’s lacklustre controls. While nobody expects the fluid physics simulation of Mirror’s Edge, the game doesn’t live up to expectations as the main character moves too slowly, he can’t strafe backwards, and there’s no peek-over-the-corner mechanics, all inexcusable burdens to a game where you are constantly swamped by unlimited waves of zombies.
Rating: 4.2 out of 5
Despite all the problems, RE 5 still remains a very fun game to play. It’s a little shorter, and the side character steals away some of the fear, but it’s a tremendously beautiful game, and should be viewed as an ambitious step in Capcom’s desire to satisfy us.