Resident Evil: Revelations 2

Why is it that all of the Resident Evil games since five have partners? I mean, yeah 4 had Ashley, but that hardly counts. She wasn't playable and she tended to be more of hassle than anything else. But now, ever since 5, Capcom seem to have a hard-on for coop play. I can’t imagine why. I mean, asides from the slightly clunky inventory system, Sheva had to be the worst part of that game, thanks in no small part to her AI, if only because she needed ammo and shit unlike future itterations. I mean, if there was one thing that 6 did well, for all of the flack it got for not being an actual survival horror game, your AI team-mates didn't rely on in-game ammo and health. Hell, even Resident Evil: Revelations, the one game that finally realized what, exactly, people go to play resident evil games for. Although, to be fair, at least in that game, one or two of the characters felt like something other than a hanger-on. I even liked that one french guy who hung out with Jill (at least I think it was Jill who he was with).

All of this being said, I think it kind of interesting that Revelations 2 tries its best to mix in survival horror with co-op. But I suppose I should probably to get on to the plot. This time around, we follow two seperate pairs of co-op parters, following storylines, one happening before the other. the first being Jill Valentine, I think, (to be honest, by now, keeping track of all of the various RE characters and factions probably requites a flow chart and much more time than should be spent on such matters), and Moira, the daughter of Barry Burton (yes, the "Jill Sandwich" guy, they even hang a lampshade on it so heavy that anyone who doesn't get the joke will be left feeling underwhelmed),as they each traverse the maze of traps and Evil Within rejects, all the while being taunted by the female version of the Director from Manhunt. The second follows Barry Burton and creepy girl du jour (her actual name is Natasha, but for the sake of my schlocky sense of humor, from here on out, I shall refer to her as various creepy children from whatever piece of fiction strikes me at the time), after the two disappear with at least, and I'm willing to bet cold hard cash that she ends up dead. This time around, it is only Jill (I think) and Barry who are allowed to use to guns. Barry Burton's daughter and our LIttle Sister wanna-be are relegated to using a flashlight and crowbar and infrared vision monster detection powers and a ready supply of bricks lying for the latter. It also helps that you can switch characters at will, allowing you blind a particular silent Hill resident one moment and shoot the crap out of another.

Now while I'd understand why we wouldn't allow Emily the Strange to use a weapon (let's face it, the Japanese aren't so crass as to feature child soldier allusions), but why the hell can't Barry's little girl? Supposedly it has something to do with guns being a trigger for her, but I'm pretty sure life and death situations should demand that you take up arms, as it were. I suppose it doesn’t do well to dwell on such matters. I might as well be wondering why the president’s daughter could only throw lamps at baddies at best. The resulting dynamic is that it does feel a little bit more like a proper survival horror game, at least the Jill sections do. While stealth is something of an option in both stories, it’s much more viable in the Barry/Carrie side of things, what with the help of a certain villager of the damned. There are also little things that make Jill/Moira feel a lot like the resident evils of old and the Barry/Mandy of Grim Adventures fame. The only weapons Jill has access to are a pistol and double barrel shotgun, making it feel all the more like you’re desperately scrounging for whatever ammo you can get your hands on. Barry, on the other hand, is armed to the teeth like every Resident Evil protagonist ever and even has his own flashlight, and the option to kill off the various “The Suffering” rejects Solid Snake style. In other words, we get a nice variance of gameplay styles, one harrowing and nerve-wracking and the other stealthy and/or full of badassery.

As you may have guessed by now, I haven’t exactly completed this game. The reason for this is, of course, that the damned game has been spliced into four episodes, a format that I don’t really think compliments any game style much less a Resident Evil game. Don’t get me wrong. There’s a place for episodic content in this world… just… not in video games. It’s especially misleading because I thought I was picking the game up for a steal when instead Capcom was stealing from me. All of this being said, I, for one, will indeed be waiting for this game to drop a little in price and then pick up the complete version, because I’ll be damnned if I pay fifteen dollars or what have you