RESIDENT EVIL : REVELATIONS GAME REVIEW

 

Now I know this isn't my review of Man of Steel {that comes out this Friday} however i decided to review this game as I am a huge Resident Evil fan and after deciding whether to review this game or the god awful film The Last Exorcism Part 2, this game won hands down. Now for those who don't know, I have played near enough every Resident Evil game that has been on PlayStation and PS2, and also Xbox 360, with my personal two favourites being RE4 and RE5. I adored the older classic games don't get me wrong but when the series took the controversial step to produce a more action based game instead of the survival horror genre, I was pleased and felt the series needed something new injected into it to stop it from becoming stale.

 

Set between RE4 and RE5, old favourites Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine return to fend off waves of mutated creatures and attempt to foil a terrorist group from global domination, heard this plot before? If you're a RE fan you will have seen this done many times before. You first start off with Jill and her partner Parker, who are both sent to investigate a strange ship named SS Queen Zenobia and set about looking for Chris. However as you expect, the duo are not alone on the eerie ship as they are quickly "welcomed" by Oozes, a zombified, mutated species that inhabit the Queen Zenobia.

 

Old school fans of the series will be pleased with this release, as it is mainly survival horror based and has some very good creepy moments. The old fixed style camera is back like from previous older titles and this adds genuine tension as you never know what is lurking around the next corner. This game was originally released on the Nintendo 3DS, however its popularity spawned demand for its console release, and this is a direct port from the 3DS. While there is some action packed scenes in this game, like I said its roots are survival horror, the creatures while not mind blowing in terms of design and originality, are difficult to beat at times especially when low on health and low ammo, which can be rife in this game. Some creatures have instant death attacks, so dodging is required however very difficult to time just right as the controls can be a bit jarring at times. As this is a direct port, the game does sometimes suffer from low texture popping from time to time and in particular in the middle part of the game where you are dashing around the ships main hall, you will fins doors with anchors on them, pressing the right button to open the door triggers a quite long wait for the next stage to load and that can destroy any tension building at times. That being said, this RE title is a very solid addition to the series and one that many craved after some felt RE6 was very disappointing.

 

The game is also made to look like a T.V show, upon completion of a specific chapter, the next chapter will begin with a recap of what you have just accomplished with a "...previously on Resident Evil Revelations..". I myself enjoyed that element to the game however if its not your kind of thing, you can skip it completely by pressing the start button. So, with the great tension building moments, creepy creatures and overall solid game design, what are the negatives? Well, as fans of the RE series have come to expect, and can look past, the main story itself is completely unbelievable, almost slapstick at points, but still very enjoyable if you don't think too much about it! Also the voice acting isn't very good, at all. The partners that accompany Chris & Jill on their respective missions are different in likability, Jill's partner Parker is a wise cracking, good guy and is very likeable and helpful in combat, however Chris' partner Jessica is very obnoxious and whiny throughout and you don't feel they have the chemistry that Jill & Parker have. That being said, there isn't a lot wrong with this game, I found myself beating the campaign in 8 hours and i am an average player so you could probably do it even quicker.

 

One other addition to this game is the popular Raid Mode, a stage based points scoring game where you basically go wild and kill as many creatures as possible and get the highest score. You have multiple characters to chose from too and of course many different stages to complete so that will add a few more hours of gameplay for you. Also in campaign, similar to RE6 you will get the opportunity to upgrade your weapons with custom parts found throughout the game and by completing certain criteria in Raid Mode.

 

So, would I recommend this game? Yes. Don't expect RE6 type action this is back to its original horror roots and is a very solid game with a very entertaining yet convoluted story.  I thoroughly enjoyed playing this game and will attempt to complete it again on a harder difficulty.

 

My Rating 7/10

 

Positives - Good tension, never got boring story wise, survival horror roots return, good cut scenes and final boss battle

 

Negatives - Awful voice acting, Jessica, Creature design not very original, long loading portions in middle part of game.

 

Thanks again guys for reading my review and my first game review! If you enjoyed this review please be sure to +1 this, add and share this on Google+, share this blog with our friends, follow me on Twitter @MARRAMD leave a comment below what did you think of the game? How do u feel about the RE series going in a more action based style or do you want Capcom to go back to just survival horror? Whatever you want to comment about, let me know!

 

Take care and my Man of Steel review will be on this page on Saturday :}