Resident Evil 5

[Parsifal]

Announced for "sometime late 2008/2009" comes the much anticipated sequel to the uber-awesome and highly regarded (voted Screwattack's Top Gamecube Game of All Time) Resident Evil 4.

Not too much is known about the story at this point other than the fact that we see the return of one of the protagonists from the original game Chris Redfield, that it takes place the cradle of zombie myth - Haiti (and not Africa as previously thought/lamented), and that the "zombies" run very, very fast.

A major component of "Resident Evil 4" was the fact that the zombies weren't created the same way as the ones in the previous games (the genetic meddling of a pharmaceutical corporation known as "Umbrella") but a whole new reason (which for the sake of not impacting enjoyment of RE4 I will not repeat). The result? No slow, mindless, lumbering corpses here. They could think/gang up on you, wield all manner of sharp pointy things (chainsaws!) and when they weren't sprouting parasites and tentacles out of orifices would run after you with surprising speed. According to the works of Capcom representatives this is a similar case. What this brings to bear is that not only is the reason for the RE4 outbreak /not/ a isolated/localized phenomenon, but your opponents will be a much harder to deal with than mere shuffling target practice.

This would be all well and good, but one of the major reasons to be happy about RE5 is the return of the previous games control scheme which saw things go from a general 3rd person camera with controls that required you to pivot like a tank every time you wanted to turn (like when trying to run away from something) to a much slicker semi-fixed 3rd person camera that zoomed in over the shoulder when you took aim at something and gave you the ability to quick turn.

Admittedly the quick turn has been in the series for a few games (with the ability to time dodge thrown in briefly for RE2) but your character has always operated on "planes". You stuck to the ground with no ability to jump, and if you wanted to get around the foot high concrete barrier you'd have to either find a way around or find some overly contrived possibly puzzle based way to move it/blow it the hell up. What RE4 added to the mix was the ability to simple /HOP OVER IT/. Thats right, thats what counts as a massive leap in game play advancement. Thats how hackneyed the old controls were. Besides stepping over things/ you can also climb, hop off, go through windows and tunnels, and generally take your feet off the ground for more than it takes to get the next step in.

Did I mention the ability to aim at specific body parts to inflict varying amounts of damage/effects and the fact that the combat knife was no longer useless (and more of a machete.)

For a glance at the teaser trailer to Resident Evil 5, please proceed here
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