Resident Evil 5

Fight or fright?

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As eagerly awaited as Metal Gear Solid 4 and Killzone 2 before it, the almost three-year development process is now at an end and the gaming world has finally welcomed the fifth full instalment of Capcom's Resident Evil series. But, with survival horror frontrunner and direct predecessor Resident Evil 4 representing something of a sizeable videogame elephant in this particular genre room will Resident Evil 5 attempt betterment through emulation or by striving for originality?

In actuality, Capcom has opted for the safe option by injecting its latest single-player adventure with a little of both. The familiar manifests itself through the return of stalwart muscle-bound hero Chris Redfield, the resolution of pivotal story points from a prior series entrant, and a basic gameplay blueprint that is every inch Resident Evil 4. The originality stems from geographical placement in Africa, a more generous inventory platform, and the introduction of AI-controlled partner Sheva Alomar.

Set many years after events at Racoon City, the game's story sees Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance (BSAA) agent Chris Redfield braving the African sun to investigate rumours of Umbrella's nefarious presence on the continent. Needless to say, the oppressive heat soon becomes a secondary concern for Redfield and new partner Alomar when it becomes clear the company's deadly virus has already taken hold and hordes of infected natives hide a much bigger threat to the entire world.

Told through text documents and computer messages scattered across the game, and leant further momentum thanks to 52 superbly directed explanatory cut-scenes, Resident Evil 5's story moves along at a fair clip through around a dozen hours of over-the-shoulder action and always manages to keep the player focused on gameplay matters. Also, a selection of easy-to-follow flashback sequences help prevent narrative misting and, more importantly, shouldn't tax the grey matter of those players who haven't already experienced the existing series title that Resident Evil 5 actively builds upon (embargo be-damned, it's Resident Evil 2).

The game's solid pacing is accented by a rich African game world thanks to stunning aesthetics that squeeze the potential of current-gen capabilities in order to provide a range of varied open plan exteriors and closely-confined interiors (hopelessly cliched final boss encounter notwithstanding) for the player to enjoy. And, adding to the immediate impact of its environmental canvas, Resident Evil 5 also boasts impressive character models, weighty animation, truly emotive facial capture, subtle light sourcing and particle effects, and a selection of grandiose beasties that more than earn their place within the Resident Evil canon - at least in a design sense.

Musically, the game's well-constructed orchestrations thankfully lean away from the shrieking guitar rock that Capcom occasionally embraces in its action games. Specifically, the core musical score, while always avoiding the realms of cheese and dancing on the right side of dramatic, takes a willing backseat to a mood-setting feature that results in the swelling of intensity and an increase in pacing whenever Redfield and Alomar are approaching or embroiled in dangerous situations.

Lovers of lead flinging and explosive firepower are suitably catered for in Resident Evil 5 (an improvement over Resident Evil 4) with a vast array of upgrade-friendly weaponry including revolvers, pistols, submachine guns, assault rifles, sniper rifles and rocket launchers along with devastating proximity mines, and various flavours of grenade. While the trusty shotgun is (again) likely to become the weapon of choice for most players, not least because of its worth when obliterating crowds of onrushing infected, Resident Evil 5 is notable for offering ammo hoarders a fresh avenue of opportunity. This comes courtesy of an inexhaustible electric power rod that's capable of mercilessly frying brains if the player is willing to get up-close and personal with the game's agile, weapon-toting rank and file - thus leaving plenty of ammunition stockpiling in Redfield and Alomar's shared inventory.

Following the old adage of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it', gameplay structure in Resident Evil 5 faithfully follows the metronome beat laid down by the GameCube and Wii's superb Resident Evil 4. However, while hordes of relentless infected are in attendance and the spilling of Redfield's blood is their singular aim, Capcom has embellished trademark zombie dispatching and the frantic button presses of intermittent contextual events by hanging its hopes for success on the AI (or real-world co-op) assistance of female sidekick Sheva.