3DS owners: I know the thing has been somewhat of a dud since its release. Sure there’s a couple of decent games, but Zelda, Starfaox, Super Street Fighter 4, and Dead Or Alive, they’ve all been releases and revamps of older games, some you’ve played eons ago. Where are the original games? Actually, they’re coming very soon, in the form of Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7, I know that too. But what about serious third party support?
That’s where Resident Evil: Revelations comes in. Unlike the previous release, which was fun and all, but ultimately just a means to keep people occupied until the real deal was ready (and spinning off one of the best parts of RE5 was definitely not a bad move), which will be this upcoming February.
Despite being a shrunk down, fits in your pocket experience, it’s a fully featured, real deal Resident Evil. In fact, it could easily be considered Resident Evil 6 proper, but the powers that be decided to abstain from giving it a number. In a move that, quite honestly, perpetuates the stigma of the handheld edition not really meaning anything in the grand scheme of things (Konami did the same by having Metal Gear Solid 5 renamed Peace Walker, for the PSP).
Though the official explanation was really screwy: the events of Revelation take place between parts 4 and 5. So the jumping back in time, Capcom felt, would be confusing to fans. That’s kind of strange, and really selling their fans short in my humble opinion, but whatever. Anyhow, the story of the game details the formation of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, or BSAA, that was founded by Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine.
The game primarily takes place on a cruise ship that’s adrift in the sea, no doubt a vacation destination that got overrun by the T virus, and which is where the playable demo they had at the NYCC took place. In the game, both Chris and Jill have different partners; one of the main plot devices is how they each react to their new partners in various situations. It’s basically seasons 9 of the X-Files, in which everyone has different partners all of a sudden (a reference that, sadly, Capcom was not hip to).
As those who have seen the footage online know already, there’s footage of some tall blonde with gigantic breasts that will put the system’s 3D capabilities to good use. Though as I would discover, that’s NOT one of the new partners (I had assumed Chris’s, naturally). Not, Chris’s new gal pal is Jessica Sherawat, who’s quite the looker herself. Though maybe she’s not all that and is the reason why both go missing, hence why Jill and her new dude pal, Parker Luciani, have to come in and save the day.
Now, there’s been much talk about zombies in video games have become seriously played out. They’re just not scary after-all, and the producers of Revelations know this, hence why there’s a greater emphasis on mood this time around. “More zombies, less bullets” was what I was told. And having the action taking place out in the middle of nowhere, with no land in sight, just rain thrashing your senses, is a good call. Apparently, the game will heavily rely upon the hardware, to bring to life the message that you’re on this cast away, out of control sea vessel, so expect the environment to shift in all sorts of manner. Those with motion sickness should seriously take note.
It really does sound like a return to the series’ roots, with a greater emphasis on story and the like. Sorry, there will be no multiplayer, that’s just one of the things that the franchise has picked up over the years, it’s fun and all, but not the heart of the matter. Yet, there will be changes for the better even still; you can finally move and shoot at the same time – about damn time.
The fact that it’s being handled by the main RE team in Japan is another good sign. As crazy as it may sound, but if all goes well, RE’s new proper home might be on the 3DS (or other handhelds), since the console is going to be where all the wacky experiments take place, aka Operation Raccoon City. As for Revelation, that’s due February 7, 2012 in North America.