Bigger than ever, but not better.
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October 1, 2012 Undone by its ambitious attempt to pack four game experiences into one,
Resident Evil 6
suffers from a bit of an identity crisis. At times it very much
embraces its old school heritage, pitting its heroes against horrific
creatures in the darkest, filthiest locales imaginable. Tension is
palpable thanks to production values that reach new heights for the
franchise. Yet it simultaneously attempts to be the largest, most
action-packed entry in its history, betraying the aforementioned
strengths. Lengthy firefights, driving sequences and other ill-conceived
ideas grind the game's incredible moments to a halt. The result is
something erratic and never sure of itself, delivering brilliance one
moment and something far less interesting the next.
At the heart of
Resident Evil 6
are the game’s four campaigns and seven lead characters. Rather than
weaving these characters and stories along a singular campaign, Capcom
diffuses them across four individual threads, each with its own
beginning and end. This singular choice defines everything about this
game, highlighting both its greatest accomplishments and remarkable
shortcomings.
Resident Evil 6’s over-the-top world is built piece-by-piece through
its four storylines, which cleverly integrate with each other. Questions
aren’t necessarily answered until the entire plot emerges through
different perspectives,
Capcom's premier survival horror
franchise spills loose again with this globe-spanning sixth entry in
the Resident Evil series.
and the realization that the game’s
designers deliberately held something back to unleash it during a later
campaign makes the effort of pushing through four individual campaigns
worth it. It’s remarkable to enter a scene, realize its place in the
larger timeline, and get a payoff for something that was merely hinted
at during an entirely different character arc. There’s a cumulative
narrative effect that occurs here, one that wouldn’t be possible if
Capcom chose a different path.
“
Resident Evil 6’s over-the-top world is fundamentally built through
its many storylines, which cleverly integrate with each other.
Every storyline in this game, through a combination of great
environments, great enemies and a carefully cultivated sense of
wide-eyed, B-movie horror, has situations so memorable that they’ll be
seared into your brain. It’s hard to forget the first time you’re
crushed by the relentless, beastly Ustanak, or watch a creature spew out
C-virus gas in a crowded area, turning dozens of trapped human
survivors into flesh-eating zombies. These moments come frequently,
often serving as vivid, gory reminders of the game’s tense storytelling
prowess.
Yet the layered narrative sometimes works against the gameplay. As
the campaigns cross paths, the game forces players to replay sequences -
including some lengthy encounters that really ought to be played once
and only once. There is nothing gained from this repetition, as the only
story revelations come from cutscenes and dialogue - not in-game
action. A game that thrives on the stacked benefit of multiple
perspectives manages to forget how that negatively impacts the actual
experience of playing through encounters repeatedly.
