Resident Evil Operation Raccoon City Review

Game Reviewed: Resident Evil Operation Raccoon City

Release Date: March 20th, 2012

Developer: Slant Six Games

Publisher: Capcom

Platform: [Reviewed: Xbox 360], PlayStation 3

Genre: Action Adventure

Rated: M for Mature

No one can say that they don’t still get those goose bumps every time you hear that voice that speaks in the deepest tone ever, “Reeeeesident Eeeeeeeeeviiiiil!” Go ahead, do it! It’s that R.E. “it” factor that always pulls the survival horror diehards into the zombie realm. Slowly following behind is Silent Hill, Left 4 Dead and the show of the hour, the Walking Dead along with many others.

In Resident Evil 5, co-op made a big impression on gamers as you and a friend could both stroll all around Africa in search of a friend and an enemy. If you haven’t played it, it’s well worth the pick up.  This story takes us back down memory lane, directly in-between Resident Evil 2 and 3.

Slant Six Games first go at the Resident Evil series brings a whole new play style to the table. If you’re unfamiliar with the company, they’re known for their earlier SOCOM work (Tactical Strike and Fireteam Bravo on PSP and Confrontation on PS3), which particularly shines in the squadron field. Operation Raccoon City is the spirit of co-op as you and a few others, whether online friends or random join-ins can pick up in lay waste to  the infected or against each other. But the question is, can they keep the horror alive?

ORC kicks off with William Birkin, a man with the mentality of having everything to gain, plans to sell the G-Virus to the American Government. This is where 4 of 6 playable Umbrella’s Security Service members, codename Wolfpack steps in. William is captured but doesn’t give up so easily as he injects himself with his own virus. HUNK, team leader stays behind as the samples were lost. HUNK hasn’t been heard from since. Now, it’s up to you and your team to clean up the mess left at the hands of Umbrella.

In single campaign, you choose one player and 3 others to be controlled by A.I.  Your player’s layout and unlock weapons and abilities by working up your experience points.  Collectables, data and your overall ranking will support your XP, so try not to die as many times.

While some may think first on recoil, others will quickly catch on to the number of bullets it takes to kill anyone, anywhere. This is because you’re taking on heavily armed Spec Ops, ready for combat just as much as you are. Precision needs to be well focused when using grenades as well or they’ll feel to be completely ineffective. They’re easy to find all around the map, including herbs, which also drop from a few zombies and soldiers after getting a kill. The inventory selections are much more convenient with the directional pad displayed in the bottom left of your screen for quick usage.

Operation Raccoon City impresses with the team A.I. system actually helping you and following through. Anyone who played Resident Evil 5 can take that deep sigh of relief. Your partner doesn’t preserve her bullets and look cute, maybe deciding to shoot every now and then. More importantly, the game supports close quarters combat which is initiated anytime by your teammates or the opposing side. Though it’s effective, it seems a bit sluggish and gives an uncontrollable camera angle. I additionally noticed that at times both the teammates or infected would lock up, or a dog would run in place. Trust that a few enemies becoming target practice didn’t hurt my feelings one bit. However, when you are running towards a checkpoint and someone on your team falls behind, you can’t proceed.

It’s an enjoyable twist as you not only strive against zombies, but also against soldiers in the city. When you get shot one too many times and begin a bleeding frenzy, a horde immediately smells your scent and heads your way.

Graphics weren’t as polished as some would expect from the Resident Evil lineup. Instead, it’s at times pixilated around character models along with a “Minecraft” shadow of yourself beaming against the floor. When cutscenes took place, the game true graphics appeared and the details were added into the characters and infected such as Nemesis, Jill Valentine and Leon S. Kennedy.

Surprisingly Operation Raccoon City provides an addicting co-op story (more fun with friends than memorable) and multiplayer games likes Heroes Mode, Biohazard and the upcoming Nemesis Mode, possibly making this one of the better entertaining titles for the 1^st Quarter. You’ll definitely keep this in your console for quite some time!

The Scores

Gameplay: 4/5

Visuals: 4/5

Audio: 4.5/5

Controls: 4.5/5

Value: 4.75/5

Overall Rating: 4.25/5