E3 2008: Resident Evil 5 Hands-On
We tear through two levels of Capcom's latest survival horror game.
We've been anxious to try our hand at Resident Evil 5 since we first got a look at the promising game earlier this year. The long-running series clearly found a cool new groove with the last entry for the GameCube and PlayStation 2 in 2005, and hopes have skyrocketed for this highly anticipated sequel. We got a chance to play a couple of levels of this survival horror game and lived to tell the tale.
The first level that we tried was a short, tutorial-style run called "Assembly Place." Main characters Chris Redfield and Sheva Alomar are in the back alleys of a shantytown when it starts. The first order of business is guiding the pair down a short path, at the end of which they drop down and enter a house. There were a few items to collect--ammo and health--on a dumpster by the door. The game's new co-op angle was front and center; the minute the option to collect the items came up, it was possible to direct Sheva to pick them up.
Once we guided Chris into the house, a lengthy cutscene kicked off. From the look of it, a fair chunk of the in-game cinematic has been shown in the previous trailers for the game. The action revolves around a dictator type speaking to a mob before an execution courtesy of a massive, hooded behemoth wielding a big axe. Shortly after the execution, the dictator spots Chris and Sheva; in retrospect, it probably wasn't the smartest thing for the pair to be watching everything go on while standing in the window. As you'd expect, the dictator and the mob aren't thrilled about the intruders, and the cutscene closes with him directing the mob to house.
We took control of Chris as the house came under siege by the masses, who could be seen through the windows. We had a few options as they started rushing, which were pretty interesting. We were able to push bookcases in front of the main door and one of the windows. We liked that; much like having the option to direct Sheva to collect items, we were able to get her to assist with the bookcase. Before we started pushing on our own bookshelf, we set her on the other, which was handy because time is of the essence when you're being set on by an angry mob. In the few seconds that we had left, we also collected loot from around the small house. As with previous games, the loot was laying in plain sight, and also hidden in drawers or left behind when smashing crates.
The level's pacing started with a slow burn, much like the first big rush of enemies in RE4, with the mob getting more and more aggressive in their attempts to enter. As we were getting our bearings, Sheva helpfully started shooting at anyone who showed their face in windows. We were actually able to take out quite a few by shooting them through the windows, but eventually the mob kicked in the main door and started streaming in. As if that wasn't bad enough, another highly motivated group started dropping down from a hole that they had made in the roof. The final kicker was when a massive, axe-wielding hulk smashed his way through the main wall...clearly a sign that it was time to get out.
We snaked past Mr. Axe and the enemies streaming into the house and took to the streets. Besides affording us more room to maneuver, the streets were littered with a number of useful items. There were crates to break that yielded assorted ammo, grenades, health canisters, and gold. More importantly, there were a few houses that we could loot, one of which contained an AK-47. Flammable barrels were the other useful element in the outdoors. Although they didn't explode, the fire that they kicked up took out most enemies, with the exception of the axe wielder who, we discovered, could kill us with just two hits.
Thankfully, one of the best perks of having Sheva around was that, when Chris' health was low or when he was about to get killed by a second axe blow, she could restore some of his health. This doesn't mean that you won't die, because we did; Sheva needs to be near you when you're on the brink of death. Regardless, it's certainly a handy mechanic. Once we survived long enough, we triggered another cutscene that featured a military helicopter coming in and tearing things up with an aerial salvo that cleared out most of the enemies in the town center.
We explored the cleared town a bit and made our way farther up, coming across a few more enemies, including some Molotov cocktail-pitching ones. We were able to shoot the bottles out of their hands as they were getting ready to throw, which had the added bonus of setting the enemy on fire. This short segment also introduced a new flying enemy that was all about clinging to our face and murdering us. Thankfully, they didn't stand up to a volley of bullets. The level ended when we reached a large gate.
Related Game
Resident Evil 5
- Publisher:
- Capcom
- Category:
- Horror Action Adventure
- Release:
- Mar 13, 2009
- ESRB:
- Mature
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