I hated playing anything Resident Evil on my PS1. Oh sure, I was a dedicated fan of the narrative and the emerging survival horror genre, but the actual gameplay wasn’t as accessible to my needs. Though I played all the way through RE2 (twice), I allowed my neighbor Kyle to trudge through the original, RE3, and Code Veronica while I sat on the sidelines and took in the narrative. And, like most of the gaming public, that all changed when Resident Evil 4 came out. In one of the most widely successful videogame reinventions of all time, 4 turned the series completely on its heels and reinvented nearly every control and level design concept in the process. In was genuinely fun to play whilst still retaining the series trademark unnerving narrative and relentless sense of dread. I loved playing RE4 and would have declared it my game of the year had it not been trumped by a Colossus. This is cliché, I know, but it’s only marginal problem in my eyes was that it unfortunately (and with a wealth of bonus content) had to end.
Why am I treading back through a game that came out four years ago? Because Resident Evil 5, from more than one standpoint, is nearly identical to its predecessor. While I would ordinarily cringe at such a gross lack of innovation, I was basically lost my damn mind after the uncanny likeness was revealed five seconds into the level. They essentially had given me everything that I wanted; the perfection and refinement of last gen’s gameplay all glossed over with a next gen visuals. I mean, usually there is a period of adjustment when one plays a new game at E3. Everyone sucks at everything because you’ve never played it before (Killzone 2 was remarkably efficient at making everyone look foolish), but I felt right at home with Resident Evil 5 in front of my eyes.
Not so conspicuously placed barrels were shredded by my knife in search of items and zombies (or whatever) were popped a few times in the knee before I could get closer and ChrisRedfieldSuperPunch™ them in the face as they stumbled around. Red barrels were there for exploding and chainsaw wielding sub bosses were present to absorb half your cache of ammo. As usual there was nowhere to corner yourself or hide, as zombies were always attacking from every angle. A recurring theme in Resident Evil, one at which the developers are extraordinarily adept, is that you’re never safe no matter where you are – and RE5 is outstandingly faithful to this mantra.
That’s not to say there aren’t a handful of new elements thrown in the mix. The most obvious of which (and the most frequently bitched about on gaming forums) is the addition of your new permanent team mate, Sheva Alomar. Contrary to what one may think, especially to those who hate escort missions,Sheva is quite proficient in the ways of zombie eradication. Far from a helpless suboid, she’s entirely capable of causing just as much chaos as Chris. In fact, I’m pretty sure she saved my ass way more than I saved hers, as she was always providing me with green herbs/aid spray (then again, this may have been dialed up to make the demo considerably more accessible).
Yes, there were a few Army of Two like segments of tandem jumping and remote door unlocking, but they felt more like a natural expansion of the Resident Evil gameplay than a cheap ripoff of an established mechanic. The most noteworthy thing I did with was swing her over to another structure and defend her from zombies with sniper fire, which was hardly an annoyance. As an added feature, her weapons and items are completely interchangeable with yours. While this meant I could freely swipe Sheva’s awesome machine gun, doing so would have left her relatively helpless (though I did it anyway – I had to fire that thing!)
Speaking of which, the means of accessing the menu system have been totally revamped. Gone are the times when you could delay the impending terror by going to your menu and to trade out weapons or use a healing item. In its place is a real time overlay of your menu during gameplay. As one might expect, this created an incredible sense of panic as I tried to reload my weapon, heal myself, and flee from the bloodthirsty undead all at the same time. There’s no question this is a relatively simple adjustment, but it’s implications resonate throughout the rest of the gameplay; now there is even less of a place to hide.
And as if the videos and screens don’t make it entirely clear, the game is a visual masterpiece. Far Cry 2 did a respectable job replicating the atmosphere of the African savanna, but Resident Evil 5 somehow manages to kick it up another notch. You’ve read about how fast and fluid everything is, but I haven’t seen too much info on the supreme atmosphere created throughout the sultry African wasteland. While I was cool and collected in my chair, everything around Chris felt a hundred degrees hotter. The relentless sunlight creates a high contrast effect with the environment and really nails the harshness of the African landscape. If they were going for Black Hawk Down, they certainly succeeded in their pursuit.
I actually had the time to play through both of the levels, so here’s a quick rundown for interested parties. The first level was more of a survival match than typical Resident Evil explore-and-kill. A chopper was coming to pick us up, and it was our job to endure (read: kill enough zombies) until it landed. The level design was rather clever, with numerous connected paths and even a rooftop that I turned into a mini-fort. Eventually a rather soaring foe in a hooded coat spawned and, in effect, made my life a living hell. Once I took him out the chopper flag was raised and I had to slay my way to the end.
The other level was composed of more traditional Resident Evil exploration elements, but ultimately boiled down to a “kill all these guys” session. In the end I had to defeat a chainsaw wielding foe through rather amusing means; I allowed him to chase me down an alley that was intermittently populated with red barrels, which I casually detonated with my pistol every time he passed by. This culminated with his ridiculous demise, and I was rewarded with a key that allowed me to escape the level.
I can easily see why a vast amount of gamers and media would be upset over RE5’s considerable lack of innovation, especially in the wake of something as fundamentally reawakened as RE4. You know what? It sucks to be them. I had a wildly entertaining and extraordinarily engaging time with Resident Evil 5. It wasn’t the most original thing on the floor, but it was exactly what I wanted out of the series; RE4’s damn near perfect accessibility with a few new bells and whistles to boot. My only problem is that I’ll have to wait until next March to play it.
