Many years ago, sixteen if we're counting, I stumbled upon Resident Evil for the original PlayStation. It was quite possibly the scariest game ever created. Brave souls would play Resident Evil alone, in the dark, & with the sound turned all the way up. Having a friend over did not dampen this fright, instead it left both of you shaking in your seats.
What made Resident Evil so scary was the slow pace, limited resources, & intermittent bouts of panic & sheer terror. Being too cheap to buy a memory card didn’t help either; of course this all changed when I got mauled by giant anaconda. You probably know where I am going with this; Resident Evil has changed. Now that’s not to say Resident Evil 6 isn’t fun to play; it is. It just seems the series continues to stray further & further from its roots & it may be too much for some diehard fans to handle.
Resident Evil 6 plays like a cross between Army of Two, Gears of War, and WrestleMania; which is a far cry from how I would describe the original Resident Evil. Resident Evil 5 played very much the same way; I just don’t seem to remember suplexing “zombies” quite as much. What’s more, Resident Evil 6 also has the same arcade shooter feel to it; where your enemies drop experience points & ammo, & then evaporate when dead.
The latter of which bugs the heck out of me, but I am just being nitpicky. Resident Evil 6 keeps the over the shoulder camera angle we’ve seen in the previous two installment & updates the HUD. Capcom also adds a flair of John Woo to the game allowing players to slide on the ground while shooting, run & shoot, duel-wield pistols, etc. The cover system has been improved & a new “down but not out” system has been implemented where you can pull out your pistol to down a few foes while you wait to be revived.
The Resident Evil 6 Co-op demo is a beefy one. The demo allows players to try three separate campaigns: Leon, Chris, or Jake. Each campaign plays a little different than the other. Leon’s campaign is the closest you diehard Resident Evil fans will get to the original Resident Evil.
True slow-moving zombies are back, they carry the occasional axe or two, but they are back! Capcom has also included the ability to shoot off chunks of flesh, which is particularly gross when you shoot off the top quarter of a zombies head. Without delving into any spoilers I will just say that Leon’s campaign is more realistic & slightly slower than the other campaigns. It takes place in very close quarters & was by far my favorite of the three. Chris & Jake’s campaigns on the other hand have a more over-the-top action hero status with big guns, giant bosses, & what appear to be dinosaurs? Not sure.
Graphically, Resident Evil 6 looks fantastic. Even the aforementioned, & much hated, enemy evaporation looks nice. Realistic lighting, shadows, & detailed enemies help to immerse you in the Resident Evil world. The soundtrack does a good job of upping the intensity when appropriate. Controls will take some getting used to, but it is not a game breaker.
From the demo Resident Evil 6 seems like a mixed bag & will ultimately depend on what you expect from the title. If you’re looking for big scares go elsewhere. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a great story with a lot of action you’ve come to the right place. Resident Evil 6 launches on October 2, 2012 on XBOX & PS3, with a PC version set for November. This begs the question. Why hasn’t Capcom returned to the true survival horror genre? Are players too desensitized now & are big scares more of a letdown? Let us know what you think in the comment section below.
