Two levels of demo on Xbox 360 aren't usually sufficient to help one express an exhaustive opinion about a highly anticipated title such as Resident Evil 5, but in this case it's just enough to convince the gamer that another gem is about to be uncovered. This latest addition to the acclaimed franchise stays true to the survival-horror genre, retaining that sinister atmosphere from the previous titles and further increasing it, by carrying the creepiness into broad daylight.
The plot is pretty much the same, as a bioterrorism threat is transforming the inhabitants of a small village in Africa into mindless zombies, so Resident Evil hero Chris Redfield is sent in to deal with it. He's not going to take on this dangerous mission alone but will be assisted each step of the road by an equally skilled teammate, Sheva Alomar, whose help will prove invaluable. You can play both characters, each with its distinctive features and can even issue simple commands to the AI controlled teammate, instructing it to stay put and provide cover or assault the enemies.

The novelty resides in the fact that the infected people are not that dumb as we'd like to think, but instead can launch coordinated attacks and take advantage of obstacles of any sort. Add to this the fact that they are more agile then ever and can easily jump over obstacles, always determined to surround you or your companion. Furthermore they can take on a couple of rounds in the chest, so severing their limbs of going straight for the headshot is the right thing to do when being confronted with these bloodthirsty zombies.

While the opponents are very dangerous and always outnumber you, Sheva is one of the best teammate one could wish for, always trying to cover you and ready to heal you when the zombies manage to inflict serious damage. Injuries will affect your movement speed and when being critically wounded it's most likely that you'll bleed to death unless healed fast, so it always pays off to make sure that you've got your inventory filled with herbs. Browsing through it can prove quite a challenge, because you can no longer pause the game to use the appropriate item, and in the mayhem that usually follows after a full scale attack, panic can play a major part.

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KoolKidd - February 17, 2009

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