The second part to my overview of the Resident Evil video game franchise
Resident Evil 0: (Nintendo Gamecube)
Orginally intended to be released for the Nintendo 64, as the title says it is a prequel to the first Resident Evil. You explore learn more about the history of Umbrella, what happened to Bravo team before Alpha team arrived, and how the T Virus infection spread to the mansion. The introduction of co-operative play between the two main protagonists Rebecca and Billy adds a new dynamic to the game play. Despite being the best graphically in the series at the time of release, it was by this stage that the mechanics of the series was beginning to feel a little samey.
Pros:
* The story- you learn what happened to Bravo team before Alpha team arrived, and before the mansion incident.
* The co-op- allowing you to control and switch characters is different to anything else previously in the series. At certain stages the character's split up, in terms of the direction of the story and puzzle solving
* The train level is one of the best in the entire series, even if it is a little short
* Auto aim, may make the game a little easier but less frustrating
* A lengthy game, two disc
* Infected monkey's- a new enemy that is faster than the hunter's but less powerful
* Fantastic final boss
* Different tones of music- the calming music in the typewriter rooms is always welcome
Cons:
* No item box- most likely introduced to make the game more challenging, and because there are two playable characters at once for most of the game. But it adds nothing, and only frustrates the gamer with pojntless backtracking (only a certain amount of items can be left in one room)
* Aside from the Train, the locations are very generic and rather dull
* Aside from the monkeys, the enemies are generic and unimaginative, seem to be more realistic compared with previous Resident Evil games
Resident Evil 4: (Gamecube, PS2, WII).
The game that changed it all. Gone were the fixed camera angles and the zombies, now replaced with the over the shoulder camera and Los illuminados. Taking place seven years after Resident Evil 2 and with Umbrella bust, Leon now has to go in search of the President's stolen daughter, where he encounters a cult infected with the Las Plagas. Even eight years after its release this game still holds up well today, it is plenty of fun, the length of the game is huge, there is plenty of replay value. It defines what a video game should be.
Pros:
* Non stop action, there is never a dull moment. The action works because it is enjoyable and diverse, helped by the weapons upgrade system.
* Wide variety of locations, all of which are explorable, and all different to one another
* Vast array of Arsenal- machine guns, sniper rifles, different hand guns, different shotguns
* Weapon ugrade system- you collect treasure to sell as you go along, and you can use this to upgrade the weapons you have. You can upgrade the power, capacity, reload speed, and firing speed in all weapons. Each have up to six levels to upgrade to.
* Variety of interesting enemies- Garrador is one of my faves, as well as the relentless chainsaw guy, and the Las Plagas run at you and attack, rather than slow like the zomibies in previous games
* Very good boss fights and character villains- Krauser and the psychotic midget Ramon Salazar are the best, all provide the player with different tactics to kill them
* The mercenaries mode is very good and enjoyable
* The replay value is better than any of the previous games
Cons:
* Aside from playing as Leon, the game intentionally has very little in common with the previous Resident Evil games, in nearly every single way. From the story to the gameplay
* You have to practically pause the game to get into your item select menu to change weapon
* If you complete the game you can't pass your items over to a new difficulty. Complete it on Normal you can't roll your items onto Professional mode (which is very very difficult)
Resident Evil 5: (PS3, XBOX 360)
A game met with much less praise than 4, in part because it doesn't do anything better, other than the graphics of course. But it is still very enjoyable nevertheless. You play as series veteran Chris Redfield, now a member of the
Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance (BSAA), who is sent to Africa to apprehend Ricardo Irving, who is selling bio-organic weapons on the black market
Pros:
* Set in Africa, which is very different compared with the other Resident Evil games
* The best mercenaries in the entire series, plenty of characters and maps
* Online play
* You can change your weapon without stopping the game
* Non stop action, not a dull moment
* Improved graphics, make for a more detailed environments and atmosphere
* Along with the inclusion of Albert Wesker as the main villain, the story is related to the previous Resident Evil games far more than what number 4 was
* The return of the lickers
* Plenty of replay value
Cons:
* Sheva- uninteresting character, who also has a very annoying AI
* The boss fights and main villains vary in quality, some are poor, some are okay. None have the impact of those in 4
* Jill Valentine as a villain, when she should have been Chris's partner (as she was in the gold edition)
* After all these years Ozwald Spencer turns up...for less than a minute (fans of the game will know who he is)
Resident Evil 6: (PS3, XBOX 360)
Overblown and over ambitious. A game that tries to be the jack of all trades and ends up the master of nothing. The game sees the inclusion of old character's Chris and Leon, as they try and stop a bio terrorism attack, older characters such as Sherry Birkin and Ada Wong also return. Split into three campaigns, all of which cross over at some point, the game feels disjointed. If it was trimmed down, and with a clearer focus it could have been more than just the average game it turned out to be.
Pros:
* Three campaigns make for a long game- Sherry and Jake's is the best overall in my opinion
* The beginning of Leon's campaign in Tall Oaks resembles the atmosphere of the old Resident Evil's, it also brings back the old slow zombies
* Plenty of action- if you like that sort of thing
* Although overused, some of the QTE (quick time events) moments are pretty special
* Some very good boss battles
* Return of Hunnigan from Resident Evil 4
Cons:
* Too many QTEs, and for no real reason sometimes.
* Too many cutscenes, disrupt the flow of the game
* Locations in the game are not there to be explored but to just look at
* Too many campaigns, developers clearly tried to do too much. Should have just made one, would have gave it greater scope for story
* Essentially an action game and nothing more, which even 4 and 5 most certainly weren't. The lack of variety in the gameplay is a big let down
* Central villain is weak, and only shows up for minimal time
* Replay value is poor, Mercenaries is limited unless you buy it online. And ocne you have completed all three campaigns, you'll be reluctant to return to all of them
