Ending B

As the title of this article suggests, I've been playing Resident Evil 5 for the Xbox 360. I'm roughly half-way through the game (chapter 3 of 6, so that sounds halfway to me). This is what I think so far. I'll make sure to not reveal any spoilers that I've discovered in game and out.

Hey there, baby.

RE5 seems to be taking several steps forward as far as game mechanics goes. While I've only played the co-op mode once, I enjoyed myself. A friend of mine, Mike, and I played through the first chapter (I was Sheva and he was Chris). It was just a lot of fun, though I'm having a hard time articulating why.

Ah, Chris in a wonderful moment of chivalry.

But I'm sure most of you know the old saying, "One step forward, two step backwards," right? Well, I have the feeling this is how RE5 is playing out. Item management is a nightmare in this game (they only give you nine slots per character!). RE5 divides the game up into chapters (just like RE4), but you can go back to previous chapters to stock up on ammo health items. Call me crazy, but having a surplus of supplies kinda takes away from the "survival horror" aspect. I also discovered that while there are two main characters, I can only play is Chris until I beat the game, a move that the series has never done, and quite frankly, I don't like. They also took out save-points, so the only way you can save your progress is to complete the chapter (you can quit anytime and retain any items you collect). This also means this is the first Resident Evil game ever to NOT HAVE TYPEWRITERS!

The story almost seems haphazardly put together and I also have a problem with the major "plot twist." It relies on information that they make up at the beginning of this game instead of relying on events in past games. For those of us who played Resident Evil: Code Veronica, there was a perfectly good character they could have used for the mysterious agent. All they would've had to have done is include Claire in some way shape or form (possibly as a playable character) to make it work. I know I'm being vague, but I don't want to reveal spoilers in two games.

Uh... this isn't what it looks like...

Yes, I know this sounds mostly negative, but you have to keep in mind that I am not done with the game. By the end, I could really love this game, you never know. So far, I'm giving it a tentative recommendation. If you're a fan of RE, chances are you've already bought it. If your interested, I suggest you get together with a friend who owns it and give it a try (you defiantly have to play then co-op mode).