Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City – Review
It has been a while since a console-based Resident Evil has been released and after the long wait we’ll have to do it with a spin-off game which takes place between Resident Evil 1 and Resident Evil 2. When a game bears the title of Resident Evil we tend to expect a lot after getting used to the quality of the previous games of the series. Will our long wait be rewarded? Or is this just another quickly made spin-off game like many of the sort?
Story
As with many Resident Evil games, the game basically throws you in without that much information about what is going on, but by actually playing through the game the story unfolds itself into a great one. Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City still has the story elements like other Resident Evil games but tends to put a lot less focus on it like the others of the franchise do. Sometimes you have the feeling you’re just playing a game without that much extra around it…
About the story itself: It’s a great idea to actually play as the members of Umbrella instead of fighting them. The nostalgic feel of situating the game between Resident Evil 1 and 2 also makes you see the game more as a real Resident Evil game instead of merely a spin-off game. The game also presents you with an ‘important’ choice at the end but the choice itself doesn’t have any meaning at all when it comes to the other games and will probably just dissapoint the players who actually played Resident Evil 1 and 2. All in all the game makes you feel like the story isn’t that important. Don’t get me wrong, the story isn’t bad but just a lot less important than their other games.
Graphics:
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City looks great but not that amazing ‘WOW- factor’ we are used to. The game presents you with a variety of detailed sceneries which surely fit in to the genre. Your enemies (living and undead) look detailed and scary. The only regrettable part about your foes is that the same model of zombie or special ops tends to be used over and over again. Honestly, Raccoon City must have been the most peaceful town on the planet seeing you have to kill around 500 police zombies to finish the game. All in all there isn’t really that much to talk about when it comes to the graphics, unfortunately.
Sound:
As with most Resident Evil games the music and sfx are what set the mood right and make the game scary. The music in this game certainly sets the mood right and the zombies are their usual scary self. There really isnt much to say, they did a good job, period.
Gameplay:
Gameplay is and has always been an important factor in the Resident Evil games (Yes, I know, I’m comparing a lot). Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City presents you with an entire new way of playing a Resident Evil game. The game is a lot more fast-paced than other games in the series. It’s basically a faster third-person shooter than the old puzzle survival games we’ve come to love. This new formula has been directed for encouraging multiplayer play and in that aspect it does work. However the downside is they removed the puzzle aspects in the game to make way for this new gameplay.
The new gameplay opens the door not only for new and great attributions to the series but also to several aspects which are a step back from the previous games.
Operation Raccoon City puts us in the shoes of an elite team working for Umbrella namely Wolfpack. At the start of each mission we get to choose between several classes, each with their own passive and active abilities, to clear a chapter with. By playing the game you earn experience points to upgrade your characters or unlock new starting weapons to clear your missions with. This creates a great replay value in the sense of upgrading every class and unlocking all the starting weapons in the game. (Honestly the game needs this kind of replay value because the campain itself will only take around 6 hours to finish.) The downside again is that we only get to carry 2 weapons in every mission: a pistol and another weapon of choice. Your character has no inventory except for being able to carry a few grenades, an anti-viral spray and a health spray. This means we are no longer able to combine items.
The game introduces a new way of hiding behind walls and other objects, which is great for a fast-paced third-person shooter. Again the downside is that you hide automatically when walking against walls or cars or whatever. They forgot to implement the ability of being able to jump over small pieces of cover which can be extremely annoying when running away from your enemies. While running away you tend to hide against a lot of objects which slow you down immensely and make you regret the entry of the cover system because you can’t jump over small obstacles.
We get treated to several multiplayer modes like versus, a twist of capture the flag and a fun survival mode. These modes can provide some fun but you will probably spend most of your gaming experience playing the campaign mode on your own or with friends.(note: there is NO split screen option, which is a big flaw)
Conclusion
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City shows us a new way to play and enjoy a game with the title ‘Resident Evil’. However it’s good they mentioned this is a game that’s loose from the main series because the style of gameplay would have been a change not appreciated by the fans. Don’t get me wrong – this game is still a decent TPS but lacks the real components to make a great Resident Evil game.
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City - Review,
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