I've only played the demo of RE6, sadly it didn't inspire me to buy the full game. It wasn't bad, but it just didn't get it right as far as I'm concerned.I don't really want to repeat stuff that's already been said many times over, but I think the game is going through a serious identity crisis. The OP says that they are disappointed with the reception to the game, but by bearing the Resident Evil title, the game is obviously going to attract some veteran fans who have enjoyed the games since Resident Evil 1 on the PSX. I think this generation are justified in their gripes with the game.That atmosphere was unbeatable; the music, the suspense, the loneliness, the mystery - those first few games got a lot of things right. Now I know I'm seeing a lot of arguments pointing towards a game's evolution depending on current audiences, but let me say that there are plenty of action games (good ones at that, and featuring zombies) for those inclined to play. And the point about "modern tech" isn't really appropriate here, you can have a game such as Dead Space which features futuristic technology yet still gets the all important atmosphere of a horror game right. I think Resident Evil WOULD have stood out against the supposed abundance of zombie horror games around right now, firstly because it carries the name of one of the greatest games in the genre, and secondly because I actually think Resident Evil 6 got a few things right (which I'll cover later) and could have been what myself and a lot of other fans would have wanted. To those who say our expectations are high - so they should be, why would I pay money for something I'm not satisfied with?
Now on to some areas of RE6 I wasn't happy with or thought could use improvement:
Your co op partner needs to go. Sorry, I'm just not a co op person in games, least of all in a Resident Evil game. They don't seem to have a place... in RE5 they were a bullet absorbing mule who would help you open doors or push buttons occasionally. Now, they offer "help" in shooting the zombies (unloading one bullet every thirty seconds, or so it seems) and in some parts they'll hog the action while your character stands there waiting for them to return. No, get lost, they ruin the experience and spoil the atmosphere.
The controls and your character's movement could have been better. I don't know why they introduced moves like lying on your back to shoot the enemies, yet there isn't really a decent evade/dodge move like a sidestep or something. In real life, would I lie on my back to shoot zombies? No, of course I wouldn't. Also, why can't your character spin 180 degrees or at least pivot while running to go in a different direction? How come they instead only slightly lean into a turn, that doesn't reflect the mobility of a human being, that's what I'd expect of a car.
How come I can't shoot the zombies that I KNOW are about to spring to life? Why won't my hits even register? It just gets old, by the time I've seen the second and third zombies lying on the floor I know they're going to jump up and bite me, so why not let me stomp them or shoot them? Why do I have to wait for them to attack first?
Was it supposed to be funny to have the characters perform wrestling finishing moves on the enemies? The melee combat definitely isn't a strong point in this game, although the kill animations are pretty cool, if a little repetitive, having only a couple of variations.
Puzzles need to come back too, and so do the chilling diaries/reports. How cool was it to read a report on a BOW and to think "****, I'm going to have to fight it in a minute aren't I...". I know a lot of people are saying Ada's campaign has the puzzles, unfortunately I didn't get to play it but I hope they're up to standard and reminiscent of the previous efforts.
Now, onto some things that I think the game did well. The atmosphere (in Leon's campaign at least) is half there. Dimly lit rooms, echoing footsteps.. the settings were also appropriate, I'm definitely more a fan of tight indoor spaces in a RE game than the open air environment of something like RE5. Definitely wasted opportunities to make me jump while I was running through corridors and it was otherwise silent, but I can forgive that. A minor point, but I found the characters likable and believable. The supplies I suppose are proportionate to the enemies the game throws at you, but I'd prefer less of both. However the demo had me run out of ammo mid firefight so kudos for that.
To summarise, I suppose I wouldn't call it a bad game. I just don't think it deserves the Resident Evil title. As I've mentioned in other posts, for those of you who like action, and insist that it be present in Resident Evil, Capcom could always include that stuff in mercenaries modes where you could just go around shooting anything and everything with all the guns you could want. But for the true fans of the franchise, give us a knife, a beretta and a green herb and let us get back to one of the greatest survival horror games in history, best played with the lights off.
Now on to some areas of RE6 I wasn't happy with or thought could use improvement:
Your co op partner needs to go. Sorry, I'm just not a co op person in games, least of all in a Resident Evil game. They don't seem to have a place... in RE5 they were a bullet absorbing mule who would help you open doors or push buttons occasionally. Now, they offer "help" in shooting the zombies (unloading one bullet every thirty seconds, or so it seems) and in some parts they'll hog the action while your character stands there waiting for them to return. No, get lost, they ruin the experience and spoil the atmosphere.
The controls and your character's movement could have been better. I don't know why they introduced moves like lying on your back to shoot the enemies, yet there isn't really a decent evade/dodge move like a sidestep or something. In real life, would I lie on my back to shoot zombies? No, of course I wouldn't. Also, why can't your character spin 180 degrees or at least pivot while running to go in a different direction? How come they instead only slightly lean into a turn, that doesn't reflect the mobility of a human being, that's what I'd expect of a car.
How come I can't shoot the zombies that I KNOW are about to spring to life? Why won't my hits even register? It just gets old, by the time I've seen the second and third zombies lying on the floor I know they're going to jump up and bite me, so why not let me stomp them or shoot them? Why do I have to wait for them to attack first?
Was it supposed to be funny to have the characters perform wrestling finishing moves on the enemies? The melee combat definitely isn't a strong point in this game, although the kill animations are pretty cool, if a little repetitive, having only a couple of variations.
Puzzles need to come back too, and so do the chilling diaries/reports. How cool was it to read a report on a BOW and to think "****, I'm going to have to fight it in a minute aren't I...". I know a lot of people are saying Ada's campaign has the puzzles, unfortunately I didn't get to play it but I hope they're up to standard and reminiscent of the previous efforts.
Now, onto some things that I think the game did well. The atmosphere (in Leon's campaign at least) is half there. Dimly lit rooms, echoing footsteps.. the settings were also appropriate, I'm definitely more a fan of tight indoor spaces in a RE game than the open air environment of something like RE5. Definitely wasted opportunities to make me jump while I was running through corridors and it was otherwise silent, but I can forgive that. A minor point, but I found the characters likable and believable. The supplies I suppose are proportionate to the enemies the game throws at you, but I'd prefer less of both. However the demo had me run out of ammo mid firefight so kudos for that.
To summarise, I suppose I wouldn't call it a bad game. I just don't think it deserves the Resident Evil title. As I've mentioned in other posts, for those of you who like action, and insist that it be present in Resident Evil, Capcom could always include that stuff in mercenaries modes where you could just go around shooting anything and everything with all the guns you could want. But for the true fans of the franchise, give us a knife, a beretta and a green herb and let us get back to one of the greatest survival horror games in history, best played with the lights off.
