If you ask any Resident Evil fan their opinion on the latest installment of their beloved franchise, they will likely tell you how far it has fallen from its roots. Some would consider the first Resident Evil game a pioneer of the survival horror genre. With scarce resources and a daunting atmosphere, the game made every encounter felt tense and nerve wracking. Resident Evil 5, released in 2009 and a good 13 years after the first game, took this formula and turned it upside down. Maybe the creators felt that the series needed to evolve. Perhaps they wanted to cater to a wider audience. Regardless of intent, this significant change was poorly received. But contrary to what the most hardcore “fans” have to say, Resident Evil 5 is far from a bad game.
The thing that struck me immediately as most impressive about Resident Evil 5 was its game engine, one internally developed by Capcom themselves. It is extremely optimized and capable of rendering impressive visuals at playable frame rates even on low-end systems. Unfortunately, Capcom never capitalizes on its engine’s abilities. Instead, players are treated with boring brown scenery after brown scenery. It would have been a pleasant surprise to see the engine render something other than foliage and sand so that the audience may witness its potential in full.
If you came into Resident Evil 5 expecting a thought-provoking plot driven by ethical dilemmas and life-changing lessons, you really should first reevaluate what you think narrative focused games are before looking elsewhere. Resident Evil 5 doesn’t aim to be a social commentary (and if it is, it probably does so unintentionally). It doesn’t aim to make its players question their morality. It just tells a simple story of two agents trying to stop the outbreak of a virus and honestly, that’s all it really needs, since the main driving force behind this game is its solid gameplay.
Resident Evil 5 can be played solo or with a friend. Prior to release, this was a very controversial inclusion as the community argued that co-op would diminish any sense of horror. While this argument is valid even today, having a partner to play with actually enhances the game’s enjoyment by allowing two players to share the experience of being overwhelmed by zombies. Even if you do prefer to play alone, the game forcefully pairs you with an unresponsive A.I. partner, so ultimately co-op is still the lesser of two evils.
The aforementioned major addition aside, Resident Evil 5 feels and plays very much like its predecessor bar the horror aspect. The controls are extremely responsive and every bullet fired or punch thrown has an “umph” to it. If you’ve never played the previous installments, you might be disappointed to find that the characters cannot shoot and move simultaneously. While unrealistic (and occasionally frustrating), this limitation does make a rather laid back game slightly more intense during fights against overwhelming odds. Staying true to its heritage, Resident Evil 5 also retains an inventory system that encourages players to be strategic with their supplies. With only nine available slots, players must give careful thought to how diverse of an arsenal, how much ammo, and how many herbs (essentially potions) he or she should carry.
Resident Evil 5 gets a lot of things right and had it not carried the burden of following its predecessors, I suspect it would have been wholeheartedly accepted by the gaming community. As long as you keep your expectations at bay, I can guarantee you that there is much fun to be had, especially when playing with a friend.
Grade: 4/5
Dances With Pixels 