Resident Evil 5.

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Neo Cortex
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PostResident Evil 5.
by Neo Cortex » Fri Apr 03, 2009 10:48 am

You guys will probably think this is horse dung, but hey :oops:



Resident Evil 5.




Perhaps in hindsight Capcom will regret the huge array of accolades they garnered for Resident Evil 4. The game did not just revolutionise a tired franchise, it also unwittingly set expectations for a sequel so high that nothing short of a kind of god with eight arms would do. With that said however, Resident Evil 5 is still a great game; a top notch shooter that demands your attention from the get go that rarely gives you time to breathe. But if you are expecting the second coming of Christ, then you may as well switch to Hinduism.

Resident Evil 5 kicks off with series stalwart Chris Redfield monologuing his way into deepest, darkest Africa; a small town named Kijuju to be precise. Without even having time to breathe after such an epic monologue (who is he talking to anyway?) Chris bumps into his new partner/village idiot Sheva Alomar, and the two set off to kick some arse. You notice on your brief walk through town just how beautiful Resident Evil 5 is; Kijuju is a real treat for the eyes and never anything less than visually arresting. Resident Evil 5 is full of great touches throughout, such as the villagers kicking a human sized sack, only pausing to stare angrily as you walk past, the strange flying parasites that burst out of fallen enemies, or the interesting file notes dotted about. However it is a pity that Capcom could not extend the same level of detail to the animations in the game, the majority of the Majini seem to use recycled movements from Resident Evil 4, charging at you only to slow to a snails pace a metre from the tip of your customised atomic shotgun. It does not end there though; a lot of stuff is re-used from Resident Evil 4, and it simply reeks of laziness on Capcom’s part.

I can live with a few cut corners here and there though, my main gripe lies within the game design itself, notably Capcom’s insistence on cramming in co-operative game play into what has until now been a predominantly solo affair. That isn’t to say the levels aren’t well designed, for the most part they are immense fun; but in a few key places the AI partner really comes unstuck. Boss encounters for one usually seem to rely on one player distracting the oversized beastie, while the other shoots it in its special glowing weak spot, which is fine when you have two equally, or even reasonably skilled players. When relying on Sheva however things can quickly go pear shaped, she has a bizarre desire to waste bullets on near enough anything that moves, or simply stand still and get pummelled. The worst is when you want her to distract something, and she simply follows you around, before getting her arse pummelled into the ground. Although the game does employ a rather handy resuscitation system, if she dies and you can’t get to her; you die too.

AI gripes aside, grab another player and Resident Evil 5 goes back up a gear or two, you still cant help but feel it is a touch galling that Capcom would let the single player suffer even a little bit in that quest for co operative perfection. I got tired of having two characters needed to use card keys, open gates and push over wheelie bins in Resident Evil Zero. When you finally do get used to the little nuances (which does not take as long as you might think) the single player campaign really is immensely enjoyable, it does dip a little in the final few chapters, but not enough to ruin the experience; you simply have to change your play style a little and adapt to the new conditions. Certainly the storyline will make sure the Resident Evil die hards will see things through to the end
People are going to have issues with the general control setup of Resident Evil 5, especially after playing more recent and apparently up to date titles such as EA’s Dead Space, which (quelle horreur) allows you to move and shoot at the same time. While I can’t really defend Capcom’s insistence on sticking with the old methods, at least they have attempted a slight amount of polishing, by providing four separate control layouts for those who like to whinge a lot. The controls are still tank-like, but Chris does seems just that little bit more forgiving now, he appears to at least lean a little bit into corners, and thankfully does not get stuck on scenery all that often.


As one story arc closes, in Sheva’s case another opens, not forgetting the multitude of loose ends still left untied from previous games. If you are hungry for more action, Resident Evil 5 also has a multitude of bonuses to keep even the most anal gun toter going. As a survival horror game Resident Evil 5 leaves a lot to be desired, but as an action game it is never anything less than excellent, with a tense atmosphere it is thoroughly gripping to the end. Maybe the developers could not have spent a little more time polishing the product, then again had Resident Evil 4 not set the bar so almost unreachably high then maybe things wouldn’t seem too bad at all. As an apparent end to a story Resident Evil certainly goes out with more of a bang than a whimper. But those expecting a nuclear blast are going to be disappointed.


8/10

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Cal
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PostRe: Resident Evil 5.
by Cal » Fri Apr 03, 2009 5:20 pm

Nice review. I agree the game is probably a different beast in true co-op with a 'real' partner, but I have enjoyed the SP game immensely - surprisingly for me as I've always been p*sspoor at RE games and tended to admire them from a safe distance rather than actively participate. RE5 is a wonderful action game. You're also right to hint that this game is in some ways just as much about Sheva as the series regulars - in the end Capcom played a blinder with her introduction and effectively set the stage for an interesting new game with a fascinating new character should they wish to explore the possibilities. And maybe RE needed some new blood, after all.

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Agent47
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PostRe: Resident Evil 5.
by Agent47 » Fri Apr 03, 2009 7:33 pm

Nice review, a few niggles aside it was well written and reads very well. I agree with most of your sentiments, but I really do think the AI issues are very subjective as I also had no trouble with Sheva, but obviously this is your experience you're writing about, not a multitude of gamers!

Again, nice review, well written. 'Nuff said.

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