Resident Evil 5

"Resident Evil 5 at last brings the series into the modern gaming era."

There are few videogame franchises that can proclaim to have withstood three generations of consoles while maintaining their status at the pinnacle of the trade as the Resident Evil series has. Despite having been introduced a near-ancient thirteen years ago, this franchise has thrived on every platform it has touched in the years since its initial arrival on the PlayStation. In doing so, it has managed to reinvent itself in myriad ways to meet the mercurial winds of game consumers' tastes, each time emerging from its metamorphosis as a renewed juggernaut. The most recent of these evolutions, which occurred with Resident Evil 4, was the most drastic yet. It saw the series' traditional clunky controls, static camera angles, and zombified foes tossed to the curb in favor of a more modern gameplay setup – and the new scheme worked, with the game garnering numerous accolades and stellar sales as a result.

Resident Evil 5 represents the next step in the series' long process of transformation. Fans of Resident Evil 4 will be pleased to know that much of the gameplay style from the latter has found its way into the former, and the results are as engrossing as ever. Of course, a new iteration must come with its own identifying factors, and RE5 manages an impressive suite of additions to the franchise, not least of which being a full-fledged (and, for those with experience with Resident Evil: Outbreak, fully functional) cooperative play mode. In building a number of modern amenities on its predecessors' rock-solid foundation, the game's developers at Capcom have once again managed to capture the magic that has sustained the series over the years.

This latest adventure portrays the efforts of longtime series protagonist Chris Redfield and his newly introduced partner Sheva Alomar as they shoot their way through a small African nation in pursuit of a new bioweapon. Naturally, a fictional IP like Resident Evil cannot exist for more than a decade without building up an extensive catalog of plotlines, and so there are plenty of references to prior canonical events to be found in the game. Fans of the series likely won't have a problem recognizing some of the names as they're dropped, but for players new to the titles a helpful ‘History of Resident Evil' document is included in the game for browsing. Regardless, the game's narrative is largely self-contained and straightforward, and it actually ties off very well at the end, so everyone should find some satisfaction in it. Like always, it makes little sense upon closer examination, but you'll probably be too busy blasting bad guys to care.

The addition of a cooperative play mode is Resident Evil 5's big concession to today's gaming paradigm. Through split-screen, system link, or online play, players can bring in a human ally to control Sheva for the duration of the storyline campaign; players who choose to go solo will still have her around to lend a hand under the guise of the game's A.I. As you might expect, having a real, live partner playing the game alongside you significantly reshapes the experience. The mere presence of an intelligent being with which to coordinate efforts opens up a slew of tactical options during combat, and it ends up having a fantastic effect on the gameplay that really differentiates the overall product from many other games on the market.

Most of the gameplay sticks to typical Resident Evil design principles. You'll encounter plenty of bad-guy-filled rooms that need to be cleared, a handful of fetch quests to be completed, a few simple puzzles to be solved, and frequent boss fights to break up the pacing. As with most designed-from-the-ground-up cooperative games, the level design also frequently invokes scenarios in which Chris and Sheva must split up, forcing players to stay on their toes as they watch over their suddenly-vulnerable partner. Additionally, cutscenes have once again been adapted into a part of the gameplay, so players will need to keep their eyes open at all times to avoid a sudden, cheap death. All in all, the by-the-numbers setup may not sound particularly innovative on paper, but everything flows extremely well, and in action it heats up really quickly.

Gunplay in Resident Evil 5 almost exactly mirrors that of Resident Evil 4, in that guns must still be readied and shot from a rooted over-the-shoulder perspective. The included laser sighting system works just as smoothly as it did in the predecessor, making precise aiming intuitive and eminently fun. Item management has been revamped as well; Chris and Sheva each have only nine inventory slots in which to store items during missions, and so players will often need to weigh the merit of choosing either ammunition or a healing item to fill a spot. Gamers conditioned to hoarding every weapon, healing item and bullet available will face an even steeper learning curve, as sharing resources with your friend quickly becomes a paramount concern. Swapping items in the middle of a battle can be a bit of a chore, but four of the nine inventory slots can be mapped to quick-equip via the d-pad, which alleviates some of the clumsiness.

A major part of the fun in Resident Evil 5 is, somewhat obliquely, found in the collection and improvement of your weapon array. Many of the firearms included in the game can be found during the course of the campaign, and subsequently upgraded at the between-mission loadout screen (though the creepy, clawed merchant from RE4 sadly does not make a return). Pushing each of your preferred armaments to its utmost limit of capability adds a surprisingly involving pursuit to the gameplay, and since the guns perform better in firefights as they grow more potent, there's always incentive to keep your stuff up-to-date. There are over twenty upgradeable firearms in the game, and they carry over between playthroughs, so this mechanic even adds and element of replayability to what is otherwise a short campaign.

Of course, the tradeoff to that ever-improving arsenal is that most any pretense of the survival horror has seemingly faded from the Resident Evil series. Even with the stiff movement controls from Resident Evil 4 remaining in place (with the notable addition of the ability to strafe), Resident Evil 5 feels more like an action game than any other title in the franchise. The inclusion of a second, capable gun-toting ally at your side reduces the need to make every shot count, and concomitantly at times the combat can feel almost like a shooting gallery. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as the superb control and simple fun of fighting off a horde of not-zombies with a friend sustain the game for its approximately 8-10 hour duration; however, players looking for the scares found in earlier Resident Evil games aren't likely to find their fix here.

Additional issues pop up in the implementation of the cooperative play. Though it was advertised as drop in/drop out, in practice the game's host must either return to the pre-mission menu or progress to the next checkpoint if they wish to bring in a second human player after they've begun playing a mission. In addition to this, weapons cannot be swapped between players using different profiles (probably to prevent duplication of maxed-out gear), which forces players to carefully consider who will grab each new gun that they encounter lest they end up stuck with an inopportune weapon during a harrowing boss fight. These problems are minor, and can likely be attributed to Capcom's lack of familiarity with Western-style game design precepts, but they're an annoyance nonetheless.

Once the storyline has been completed, Resident Evil 5 proffers a good amount of content to extend the value of the package. Besides the compulsive pursuit of better weapons, the campaign can be completed on four difficulty modes, with the challenging Professional setting unlocked once the game has been finished on Veteran. As with most other Capcom titles this generation, RE5 also features an online leaderboard for gamers interested in running through the story missions at breakneck speed. Making a return appearance as well is the highly addictive Mercenaries mode, in which players are tasked with killing as many bad guys as possible in a short span of time to rack up points for yet another online leaderboard. This edition of Mercenaries thankfully includes co-op support, making it a destination that can easily suck up plenty of time for gamers interested in testing their skills.

No matter the mode, Resident Evil 5 upholds its antecedents' legacy for high graphical fidelity. The African setting really allowed the artists at Capcom to construct a sundry array of environments for Chris and Sheva to play in, and every last one is splendid to behold. Character models look spectacular as well, showing lots of subtle graphical touches like dangling jewelry and the particular weapons in the players' inventory. Of especially stunning note are the main characters' facial animations – facial motion capture seems to be the latest ‘en vogue' game design tool, and it's employed to incredibly lifelike effect in RE5. Little effects like shimmering heat and truly fearsome-looking fire round out the edges of an absolutely outstanding-looking title.

The audio production in Resident Evil 5 is similarly well done. In keeping with series tradition, conversational dialogue is absurdly straightforward (“Let's finish this for our fallen brothers!”), but in a hokey enough way that it maintains its charm. It helps that the actors put up pretty good performances, notwithstanding the occasional clunker of a line here and there. Most impressive aurally are the game's sound effects. The nature of the rooted-in-place control setup frequently leads to enemies approaching your character from behind, but these moments can often be prevented from feeling unfair by the fact that it is possible to recognize subtle audio cues to the presence of these foes. Beyond this, there's also a great deal of diversity in the overall soundscape of RE5, and everything from explosions to gun reports sounds pitch-perfect. Rounding out the presentation is a quality orchestral score that does a nice job of accentuating the gameplay without getting in the way.

Unlike its direct ancestor, Resident Evil 5's divergence from series precedent is not so stark as to feel like an entirely new franchise. True, the game shifts away from that predecessor in a number of areas, but at its core the game retains the character that made the last entry so brilliant. Capcom's refinements for this permutation finally bring the Resident Evil series fully into the 21st century, creating a fun and involving adventure that presents an excellent value in the game-release-deficient early months of the year. Players alienated from the prior entry in the series aren't going to see their opinions swayed, but gamers who have heretofore ignored everything Resident Evil should definitely give this latest game a shot.

Anyone who enjoyed Resident Evil 4 is sure to derive plenty of enjoyment from a purchase of Resident Evil 5. Additionally, fans of cooperative shooters in general would do well to give the game's take on co-op a try. Finally, players looking for a tightly produced, frequently tense and ultimately satisfying shooter experience should absolutely take the time to play the game.


Score: 8/10

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Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/10/09

Game Release: Resident Evil 5 (US, 03/13/09)