Review
Played on: Xbox 360
Released: 2013
Originally released: 2012 (3DS)
Released: 2013
Originally released: 2012 (3DS)
There's always been a hope inside of me for the Resident Evil franchise to return to the original formula of the original PlayStation trilogy, including Code Veronica, REmake and Zero. Before Resident Evil 4 changed the series to a far more action orientated affair without the scares, horror and atmosphere the series used to have.
Revelations meets us halfway, and sort of takes the best from both worlds. It combines them into a fairly short, yet intense and in my opinion, successful Resident Evil game.
Revelations takes place in the rather confusing RE storyline between RE4 and 5. The setting is on a cruise liner, reminding me of the RE lightgun game, Resident Evil Dead Aim, on the PS2. On board the cruiser the crew have been infected by a bio-terror virus. The main character, and RE favourite Jill Valentine and her partner Parker must explore what happened on the ship.
It's a neat setting which builds atmosphere at a nice pace and relies on a creepy and vintage look of the environments. Combined with the scares of a claustrophobic fight in indoor locations. You're up against fewer enemies than we are used to in the more recent RE games, but it's a nice break from the full-on action and hoards of zombies in RE 4, 5 and 6. It's even a break from the hectic and fast paced games in general these days. The game is totally free of Albert Wesker's cheesiness too, which is a overused and almost comedic RE villain by now.
Revelations allows you aiming while walking, just like RE6. It feels great to finally play a RE which controls like a modern title. In no way does it hinder the intensity of battles, or give you an unfair advantage. You'll be having a struggle and indeed a true "survival horror" experience, rather than Capcom's cheap "survival action" term from RE4 and onward.
To me, this is how every RE game since the ones with fixed camera angles should have been played. The movement hindrance done by the "walk OR shoot" mechanics of the series has always been a game breaker for the fully 3D RE titles and it ruins the flow of gameplay. Thankfully Revelations controls and plays incredibly well. Although I think this is a lot due to the fact of an added analogue stick, compared to the 3DS version, allowing for character and camera movement combined.
I love the environments in RE:Rev, the cruise liner is an atmospheric setting with it's vintage interiors, looking like something from the Titanic. The way the rooms look and are lit with various lighting, from dimmed to flickering, really set the mood for a horror experience. The colour palette is varied too.
I like the fact that you are awarded for searching the rooms with a scanner you are equipped with. Doing so lets you find ammo, weapon upgrades and other secrets. It helps slow the pace down and actually makes the exploring of your surroundings worthwhile, without constantly rushing forward to the next goal. The enemy design lends itself a lot to the Silent Hill games, and look different from the standard zombie design in other RE games. I like the change, it adds originality and the enemies' design suits the aquatic theme very well.
There are some let-downs though, the game looks nice, but the conversion from a small handheld console doesn't make the game look stunning in any way. The snow environments look especially bad. You'd think they would get a game like this running in 60 fps with far less loading screens too. I also wonder why they didn't keep a 3D option in the game considering it was released on the 3DS, for those of us which have 3D TVs. The character models look really nice though!
The side missions, which tell the story of the others characters, also vary in quality. They kick in perhaps a little too often and distracts the build in atmosphere, breaking you away from the main story on the cruise liner. Some of the characters in these side missions are a somewhat annoying and really show some cheesy Japanese humour which I would have preferred to be without. The gun sounds are of a really bad quality, especially considering they are all licensed real-life guns.
I really enjoyed my playthrough of the game, and unlocking the brand new "Raid Mode" was a pleasant surprise. Here you can play through short missions, using the levels from the game, with the main task of killing all the enemies and finding the exit. Completing missions lets you earn XP, which again is used for levelling your character.
Money you earn is used for buying new weapons and upgrades to these. These upgrades, which you can also find in the main game by exploring the environments with the scanner, help make the weapons more unique and powerful. I found this mode addictive and there is a ton of replay value thanks to it, there's even coop online for this mode!
This game has been a nice welcome back to a more traditional Resident Evil style, without quite getting there all the way. I recommend this game for all the veterans RE fans who would like a more atmospheric and slower paced horror experience again, combined with modern shooting mechanics.
This game has been a nice welcome back to a more traditional Resident Evil style, without quite getting there all the way. I recommend this game for all the veterans RE fans who would like a more atmospheric and slower paced horror experience again, combined with modern shooting mechanics.
It takes great ideas from both ends of the RE franchise and ends up being a very solid entry to the franchise, even though it's a spin-off series. Hopefully a full budget RE7 could explore Revelations' way of doing things.
