Game: Resident Evil: Revelations
System: 3DS
Genre: Action-adventure, survival-horror
Developer: Capcom
Release date: February 7, 2012
Pros: Best graphics on 3DS, return to classic RE gameplay, several engaging storylines
Cons: Frame rate drops
It's been tough times for the Resident Evil franchise for the past few years. The last two console games, Resident Evil 6 and Operation Raccoon City, received less than stellar reviews. And many fans are turned off because the most recent installments play more like high-octane action games than horror games. That's the bad news. The good news is that last year Capcom released a RE game for 3DS that breathes new life into the series. It carefully merges the action elements that define this new generation of RE games with the series' roots -- survival-horror. It's called Resident Evil: Revelations, and it's the second-best RE game ever made.
Revelations takes place between Resident Evil 4 and 5. It revolves around the adventures of Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, the heroes of the first Resident Evil game. Jill acts as the main protagonist, but players will be able to control Chris and several other characters throughout the game. The development team at Capcom decided that Revelations would not be narrated chronologically, but rather told through flashbacks and parallel storylines. As a result, players jump all around the world and backwards and forwards through time as the story progresses. Luckily, it's never confusing and the story keeps just enough information secret so that the player stays mentally invested.
Revelations is truly a return to the roots of Resident Evil, but it's not a complete return. The game belongs as much to the new generation as the old. Sure, there is less ammo and supplies and the scares come early and often. But there is a lot of shooting to be done in Revelations. Yet it works. Capcom seemed to borrow a line of philosophy from Epic Games' Gears of War: players alternate between feeling helpless, alone, and overwhelmed and feeling like a "bad-ass." This is certainly the case with Revelations. Episodes on a derelict cruise ship are creepy and claustrophobic, but episodes in other parts of the world are more thrilling than terrifying. So it's a healthy balance of action and horror. And Revelations is all the better because of it.
One of the most alluring features of Revelations is its MT framework graphics engine, which was designed specifically for 3DS. The graphics in the game look as good or better than any eighth generation portable software. Lighting effects, water effects, textures, and character models are all excellent. However, sometimes the high-powered graphics come at a cost: frame rate slowdown. It happens rarely, usually during transitions from one large area to another, but it's still an annoyance.
So if the graphics are so good, they must look even better in 3D, right? Not exactly. When the 3D slider is turned to high, the 3D effect is maximized but the graphics engine actually shuts down some features, most notably anti-aliasing, which smooths rough edges. It points to something about Resident Evil Revelations that's worth nothing: it doesn't tap the full potential of the 3DS hardware. Now, this is not a negative per se, only an observation. The 3D effect is nice but inessential, and the touchscreen is used conservatively. Perhaps this is what will allow Capcom to port the game to consoles in May, as was announced last week.
In the end, it doesn't matter that Revelations doesn't unlock the potential of the 3DS -- perhaps if it had, it wouldn't achieve this level of greatness. Fans of the old Resident Evil will appreciate Revelations' commitment to horror, and fans of the new Resident Evil will be pleasantly surprised by the game's shooting mechanics. It features something for everyone, so everyone should try it, either on 3DS or on Wii U, PS3, Xbox, and PC in May.
System: 3DS
Genre: Action-adventure, survival-horror
Developer: Capcom
Release date: February 7, 2012
Pros: Best graphics on 3DS, return to classic RE gameplay, several engaging storylines
Cons: Frame rate drops
It's been tough times for the Resident Evil franchise for the past few years. The last two console games, Resident Evil 6 and Operation Raccoon City, received less than stellar reviews. And many fans are turned off because the most recent installments play more like high-octane action games than horror games. That's the bad news. The good news is that last year Capcom released a RE game for 3DS that breathes new life into the series. It carefully merges the action elements that define this new generation of RE games with the series' roots -- survival-horror. It's called Resident Evil: Revelations, and it's the second-best RE game ever made.
Revelations takes place between Resident Evil 4 and 5. It revolves around the adventures of Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, the heroes of the first Resident Evil game. Jill acts as the main protagonist, but players will be able to control Chris and several other characters throughout the game. The development team at Capcom decided that Revelations would not be narrated chronologically, but rather told through flashbacks and parallel storylines. As a result, players jump all around the world and backwards and forwards through time as the story progresses. Luckily, it's never confusing and the story keeps just enough information secret so that the player stays mentally invested.
Revelations is truly a return to the roots of Resident Evil, but it's not a complete return. The game belongs as much to the new generation as the old. Sure, there is less ammo and supplies and the scares come early and often. But there is a lot of shooting to be done in Revelations. Yet it works. Capcom seemed to borrow a line of philosophy from Epic Games' Gears of War: players alternate between feeling helpless, alone, and overwhelmed and feeling like a "bad-ass." This is certainly the case with Revelations. Episodes on a derelict cruise ship are creepy and claustrophobic, but episodes in other parts of the world are more thrilling than terrifying. So it's a healthy balance of action and horror. And Revelations is all the better because of it.
One of the most alluring features of Revelations is its MT framework graphics engine, which was designed specifically for 3DS. The graphics in the game look as good or better than any eighth generation portable software. Lighting effects, water effects, textures, and character models are all excellent. However, sometimes the high-powered graphics come at a cost: frame rate slowdown. It happens rarely, usually during transitions from one large area to another, but it's still an annoyance.
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| Jill Valentine fires at a monster. |
So if the graphics are so good, they must look even better in 3D, right? Not exactly. When the 3D slider is turned to high, the 3D effect is maximized but the graphics engine actually shuts down some features, most notably anti-aliasing, which smooths rough edges. It points to something about Resident Evil Revelations that's worth nothing: it doesn't tap the full potential of the 3DS hardware. Now, this is not a negative per se, only an observation. The 3D effect is nice but inessential, and the touchscreen is used conservatively. Perhaps this is what will allow Capcom to port the game to consoles in May, as was announced last week.
In the end, it doesn't matter that Revelations doesn't unlock the potential of the 3DS -- perhaps if it had, it wouldn't achieve this level of greatness. Fans of the old Resident Evil will appreciate Revelations' commitment to horror, and fans of the new Resident Evil will be pleasantly surprised by the game's shooting mechanics. It features something for everyone, so everyone should try it, either on 3DS or on Wii U, PS3, Xbox, and PC in May.
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