Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles

"An Excellent Trip Down Memory Lane"

The Umbrella Chronicles is a mixture of some of the best Resident Evil games released, all rolled up into one great 1st person shooter. It time lines the events from Resident Evil 0 through Resident Evil 3 and adds some new content to play as well.

Gameplay: 8/10
The controls in this game are very simple and easy to just pick up and play. The gameplay is very innovative and really takes full advantage of the Wii's capabilities. I haven't had the chance to use Wii Zapper with this game yet, but I'm willing to bet it will make it even easier to play. I've docked a few points on the game in this category however because of a few minor camera angle flaws. Sometimes a zombie will be right on top of you after you counterattack one in a group. You may also find that some smaller enemies will be attacking you off camera if you don't adjust your aim with the nunchuck.

Story: 10/10
The story in this game is absolutely amazing and fills in a lot of gaps that were originally unfilled until now. The files you can obtain throughout the game give a LOT of background information as well, which just adds so much more to the story of this game.

Graphics: 8/10
While the graphics on this game are very impressive for a Wii title, I've only given it an eight out of ten because I've found some elements that could be improved. Watching the cinematics throughout the game however are near flawless and look amazing on the Wii system.

Sound: 9/10
The sound in this game is excellent and works perfectly with the Wiimote's built-in speaker. The character voices are done really well, and the different sounds you'll hear when breaking objects and shooting different guns is phenomenal.The ONLY reason I didn't give this category full points is because I don't like the way certain characters in the game sound compared to their original counterparts.

Play Time and Replayability: 10/10
I've sunk about fifteen hours into this game so far and still have yet to unlock everything. The replayability of this game is amazing since you can repeat stages and earn points to upgrade your guns or go after the files you missed. Half of my time playing the game was doing just that so I could beat stages easier. It also provides a level of challenge trying to improve your rank on each stage after you've already beaten it.

Final Recommendation:
I would definitely recommend buying this game, if not for the back story of Resident Evil games, then for the innovative and responsive control system. I've rated the game 9/10 for a few minor flaws with the camera angles, and the fact that you don't actually move the characters yourself. The flaws however, are very easy to look past and it's very easy to enjoy this great game! This is also the perfect game to test out that new Wii Zapper you've been hungering to use.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/27/07

Game Release: Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles (US, 11/13/07)