Capcom - Resident Evil 5 Review

This is a phenomenal game.  From the gorgeous graphics to the fantastic soundtrack to the high replay value, Capcom's Resident Evil 5 delivers in every way.

My husband has converted me twice over; I thought I was a die-hard Xbox 360 woman until he showed me the way to the Playstation 3.  Similarly, I stood by my Silent Hill series until I played Resident Evil 5 for the first time.  I know some people will probably shake their heads and say I'm just jumping on a bandwagon that they've been driving for nearly ten years, and my response is: so be it!  Let me stay!  Resident Evil IS better than Silent Hill [and might I also add that it came first?]!

There are so few quality co-op games on the market nowadays that my husband and I jump at the chance when a good one rolls out.  More and more people are playing with online friends rather than real-life friends, so anyone who wants to sit on the couch with a buddy and play through some levels is left rather high and dry...that is, until Resident Evil 5!  

The history of Resident Evil [known in Japan where it was developed as Biohazard] is surprisingly long and complicated.  For those of you non-gamers out there, I'll try to make it short and sweet: There is a terrible, mutating, zombie-creating virus that is threatening to wreak havoc on the world's population.  You are Chris [or Jill, depending on who you choose], a special memeber of a Biohazard-Butt-Kicking Team called S.T.A.R.S [later it will be a similar force called the BSAA - Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance] and you have to work together with various partners to contain the virus and kill the people causing the outbreaks. 

Basically, you run through different worlds killing zombies and fighting different "bosses" until you beat the game.  Clearly, beating the game has never really happened because there have been five installments [i.e. the bad guys keep coming back. Go figure!].  In the fifth installment, Chris is in Kijuju, Africa looking for his missing partner Jill and fighting a new strain of the virus called Uroboros. He teams up with another BSAA member named Sheva and together they work to save both Jill and the world from nasty bioweapon-induced deaths.

The first level of the game involves being trapped in an African village with hundreds of zombies [Majini] and one giant axe-wielding executioner out to kill you.  Sounds exciting, right?  The rest of game takes you through oil refineries, ancient African ruins, giant ocean tankers and erupting volcanoes.  You can work to find all the different emblems hidden in each level [they are bluish-green BSAA symbols that you shoot to retrieve] as well as gather points and treasures to upgrade your weapons.  My favorite weapon ended up being the Smith and Wesson revolver with infinite ammo - one shot kills!  The rocket launcher with infinite ammo also came in handy on those tougher enemies, too [especially the Lickers!  You just have to play it to find out what I mean, it's too hard to describe!].  I do have a single complaint: One level did not conform to normal Resident Evil standards; shooting Majini and El Gigante off the back of the hummvee was the WORST level I have ever played in a videogame.  I know the designers intend it to be difficult, but between the ever-changing button presses and the Majini with the Molotov crossbows, it became an infuriating "Why Can't We Just BEAT This" level which is a black mark on any videogame.  To get the full value and experience, we played on every difficulty level, so when we got to "Professional," El Gigante was even more impossible to beat.  It required no skill - just timing!  Extremely frustrating.

It is also fun to play in the different game arenas online.  If you have access to the internet, you can join teams of two to four players to battle against Majini [and sometimes each other!] for points.  You can use these points to unlock better characters and weapons and climb up the Playstation or Xbox leaderboards!  Unfortunately, my husband and I have to take turns with this because there is no way for us to play online together.  Hopefully Playstation fixes that one day!

Important Disclaimer: Resident Evil 5 is NOT for the faint of heart or for children.  It involves a lot of blood, guts and gore and from time to time, a little foul language.  People are understandably opposed to videogames with such content; even I struggled with shooting the rabid, infected dogs because the sounds they made when they died were so real.  My response to videogame haters is: don't play it.  Don't let your kids play it.  My philosophy has always been "live and let live" - I can't convince you Resident Evil 5 [or any videogame] is worthwhile and you'll have trouble telling me it's not!  This review has been written by a video game lover, so just keep that in mind.  

For more information on the Resident Evil franchise, this website is a great resource: 

http://residentevil.wikia.com/wiki/Resident_Evil_Wiki