Chris Redfield is back in Resident Evil 5. Sure he was in RE1 and RE Code: Veronica, but he shared his adventures with Jill Valentine and Claire Redfield. In this game, you control him throughout the whole game with Sheva as your AI-controlled partner.
Story
The plot for the game is pretty straightforward. Something is going down in an African desert called Kijuju, and Chris is sent in to investigate. Near the beginning of the game, Chris has a flashback of Jill Valentine’s funeral. Oh wait, did I miss something? Anyway, the only clue Chris has is a guy named Irving, a rather goofy-looking character with a Jersey accent. It seems like there’s another epidemic like in Resident Evil 4. The infected locals are called Majini and they can use weapons and drive. The scariest Majinis are the ones wielding the minigun.
Wesker is back again and stronger than ever with bullet-dodging powers, black clothing, and dark shades. Neo, move over. My new favorite character though is Excella simply because she’s hot, rich, and I love her accent.
Graphics
The visuals in the game are really good. The facial animation in the cut scenes show a lot of emotions and the lips are synched with the dialogue. I’m always impressed when games are made in another country and they’re able to adapt the lip movement to English dialogue, such as the case with Metal Gear Solid 4. The character models look nice as you can see the veins on Chris’ forearm and the many details of various creatures. Even Wesker’s outfit is very detailed with tiny checker imprints.
Gameplay
The gameplay is similar to previous RE games. The camera is 3rd person over-the-shoulder just like RE4. You still can’t move and shoot at the same time, which is one of my biggest gripes in the game. But after awhile, I got the hang of it. The thing I liked most about this game is the ability to buy and organize your weapons before starting a chapter or restarting from a checkpoint. No longer do you have to look for the mysterious merchant who asks you “What are you buying?” every time.
Many games have made AI-controlled partners frustrating. Prince of Persia and Ico are an example of AI partners that are fun. For the most part, Sheva does her job and you can make her go for cover or attack. She helps you when you’re losing health and gives you ammo just like a good partner does. But you have to stick close to Sheva because if she dies, it’s Game Over man!
Audio
The audio takes a more fast action approach and less on the creepy sounds. In previous games, the mood of the music and sound would make you NOT want to go through doors and walk upstairs.
Final Thoughts
The setting in Africa is a nice change of pace, but because daylight exists in this game, it reminds me more of Black Hawk Down and less of Resident Evil. Gone are the days of flesh-eating zombies. But have no fear; there’s a lot to enjoy about the game. Having an AI-controlled partner who can fight back and help is always good. The graphics are up there and proves that the Japanese can still hang with the big boys. And it’s good to see Chris Redfield and Wesker back to finish what they started in Resident Evil 1.
Grade: B-
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