Written by: PlayDevil.com Staff

 

 

 

The Capcom booth also presented me with the chance to get some hands on time with "Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles", the upcoming sequel to 'Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles', the Wii exclusive on-rails shooter.

 

Like the first game Darkside Chronicles raids classic Resident Evil lore, retelling the stories of RE2 and RE: Code Veronica with a slightly more action based slant. As such the ‘Chronicle’ games exist as fan service, providing a trip down memory lane for old fans, and a crash course in series plot to new comers.

 

Sitting down at the Wii I was first presented a choice of which of three scenarios I wanted to play through.

 

The first two options were based on the earlier two games (RE2 and Code Veronica) and while seeing these earlier games recreated for Wii was tempting it was the third choice that caught my attention. This final option tells a new chapter in the series and is set to fill the gap between the original games and Resident Evil 4, telling the story of Leon Kennedy and Jack Krauser and their involvement in Operation Javier.  

 

Taking place somewhere in Africa the level evidently borrows heavily from Resident Evil 5’s art assets. This gives it a significantly brighter color palette than any of the other levels on offer in the demo. Set in broad daylight the level feels significantly less tense by virtue of they’re being no shadows for anything to hide in.

 

The guided nature of the title may not appeal to all, but it does allow the game to look better than the majority of its competition on Wii. Capcom have even managed to make it look better than the previous Umbrella Chronicles game.

 

The enemies (comprised of the standard zombies and oversized wildlife) may lack the fidelity of their 360 and PS3 cousins but still look good even in the brighter environments.

 

Also by adding more movement to the camera, the game is able to add a sense franticness to proceeding, a nice effect in a game based around tension and fear, even if it does make head shots more tricky.

 

Other than the change of source material little has changed in Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles. Capcom appear to have been looking to do little more than add extra polish to its predecessor.

 

It delivers the same, guided experience as a way to dispense RE lore and ‘B’ movie dialogue to fans of the series. The chances are you already know your opinion of the title, and being a fan myself I can confirm I will be getting it. It is looking as good as the previous game with graphical and interface improvements.

 

In fact my only complaint is that the game will not focus on the series’ primary antagonist Albert Wesker as Umbrella Chronicles did.