Written by: PlayDevil.com Staff

 

 

 

I am a huge Resident Evil fan, but I have been repeatedly burned by its spin-off and portable installments that have consistently failed to impress. Luckily my chance to get hands-on at Gamescom with the new 3DS installment, Resident Evil: Revelations, did a lot to combat my past concerns and has me excited of some small-sized big scares.

 

Waking as series veteran, Jill Valentine, it is quickly clear that she is as confused as me about the situation. In a room that looks for all intents and purposes like it was taken from the first game’s mansion even Jill finds it hard to let her surrounding pass without comment (though as other preview coverage has revealed she is actually on a ship, how she doesn't feel the motion of the water is beyond me). Locked in a bedroom I set about plotting my escape. Moving into the en-suite bathroom I see the bath is filled with dark water. In another cry back to the original I drain it to reveal a key, holding my breath as I do so thanks to a highly developed zombie-sense that had me anticipating undead horrors just bellow the water line. Thankfully none appeared, as the close quarters of the room would have made a confrontation difficult.

 

Escaping my captivity I moved forward through ornate halls. Memories of the original game were all around as I moved through a library, encountering the typical puzzles, along the strangely linear path.

 

Meeting my first zombie I was happy to see how easy the touch screen made selecting my weapon. Drawing my gun the view swamped from over he shoulder to first person, I shot. The shambling beast took bullet after bullet, the smooth controls ensured each landed on target, but it was still coming. More resilient than expected I repositioned myself, with Resident Evil's (often maligned) tank controls fit perfectly with the 3DS's single analog nub and dodging past the zombies grasp was easy at I put distance between us.

 

Watching as my ammo ticked down it became clear that Revelations probably was not to focus the same balls out action title of Resident Evil 5, with ammo a limited commodity. Taking down just the few zombies the demo threw at me was a significantly more nerve-racking affair than other recent installment, and the constant rationing of ammo only built on this.

 

In most ways, bar the first person shooting, Revelations felt like a strong installment in the Resident Evil series. Most changes, such as the touch screen menus, serving only to improve the pre-established. There was one change I do question however, the inclusion of a scanner. This device allows the player to scan the screen in first person to reveal hidden items. Given the hours I have spent hunting Resident Evil environments for vital pick-ups to continue I do see the logic as an aid, but this doesn't function as an aid to detection, instead if finds otherwise invisible trinkets. Its inclusion feels like an artificial way to extend gameplay and show off a graphical effect rather than to facilitate fun.

 

Voice acting and sound remained as wonderfully B-movie as ever, but what really shocked me were the graphics. 3D worked incredibly well with both the first person and over the shoulder perspectives doing a lot to draw me it to the experience far more than the small screens had any business doing. Revelations also manages to show off a great deal of the 3DS’s graphical effects with shadow, mist and looking fantastic and setting a real mood.

 

Resident Evil Resurrection is one of the reasons I was so gung-ho about purchasing my 3DS, and my short time with the demo went along way to reconfirming my faith. Now my fears are squarely focused on story and an overly linear path letting the game down. It certainly looks the part, now all I can do is wait for its release early next year.