Dead legs
It was Einstein who famously quipped that insanity is ‘doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results,' and it's an observation Capcom really should have heeded.
Paneful sight
In RE6 you will roundhouse kick zombies into oblivion, partake in needless QTEs (and how), collect green herbs and, as is seemingly par for the course now, most of us won't have a clue what's going on thanks to characters who seem incapable of finishing sentences.
And what a lot of characters there are too, because rather than focus on one or two protagonists RE6 throws returning leads Leon S. Kennedy, Chris Redfield and Ada Wong all into the mix, while introducing a host of newbies across its lengthy and interlinked episodes. All characters, with the exception of Ada, have co-op play partners and when campaigns do intertwine, there’s even the option to buddy-up for four-player action.
Bricking it
Presumably the idea of throwing all this content at us (and you’re looking at 40+ hours) is for Capcom to cater to all tastes but, to roll out an overused cliché, it ends up as something of a Jack-of-all-trades.
Despite the impressive engine – which can throw swarms of zombies at you while simultaneously setting off a cacophony of explosions – the experience is more akin to that of an old hat corridor shooter than anything progressive. Indeed, I've been playing Dishonored alongside RE6 and, though clearly very different games, the sheer gulf in ambition between each title is almost laughable.
Killer bites
The fact too that QTEs are sudden and of the kind that require lightning fast reflexes means you'll be unavoidably insta-deathed at times – surely by now a development no-no? Boss fights meanwhile will go on... and on... forever. That’s not to say that such encounters aren’t stunning, but with one such fight in Leon’s campaign lasting for something approaching three hours, they’re a bit much. Indeed, I'm still not convinced it's really dead.
Next page: Chomping at the bit
COMMENTS
QTEs
Worst part of modern gaming, don't let the player actually do any of the cool good looking bits, just make them follow an onscreen sequence.
It might seem cool the first time, the second time it becomes 'oh, that again', the third it's worse than a cutscene you can't skip. It stops being impressive because you're really not in control of the action.
Actually designing the games so the player has superior control and can pull off the things shown in many of the QTEs and feel a real sense of accomplishment for doing it would be preferable and more varied.
You can't move and shoot in RE4, it introduced being able to aim at what you shoot at but it kept you stationary. That's crucial to the game, you can run or you can stand and fight but no doing both. In the games before that you automatically pointed at the nearest enemy when you brought up your gun and could only aim up or down.
IMHO this makes RE4, it would be easier if you could move and shoot but not better.
Re: QTEs
its worse than that. becuase i am concentrating on which button pops up next, i miss some relaly cool action, as im not looking at it. they are a very curious beast
Scared
I can remember the first time I played RE on the Playstation. The bit where you walk down a corridor and the dogs jump through the window behind you - I genuinely shot out of my seat. Then it was new, and the fact it could scare you in little ways like that was fantastic. Silent Hill 2 also had that thread of fear running through it for me. Who would have thought that Morph would look so scary in a Nurse's uniform....?.
However, the best game with, I suppose, the genre of Horror attached to it for me was Eternal Darkness. That game was excellent in structure, puzzles etc,. i will never forget the time I walked into a room and the protagonist's head just fell off...
It seems that, like Hollywood, games seem to be more interested in effects, rather than substance.
More imagination in games, please! If you can't do imagination, then at least when you re-do older, excellent titles, (Syndicate, I am looking at you) then at least get them right!
