Quick thoughts: Resident Evil 3 for Dreamcast

So yeah, I talk about Resident Evil a lot, I know. As if my four-part essay of general thoughts on the franchise didn’t make that obvious enough. Anyway, because of that and the fact that I already talked about RE3 in there as well, this will be pretty quick- it’s more or less because I just played through it, it’s fresh on my mind and I have a few lingering thoughts I’d like to get out.

Anyway, so a few days ago I picked up Resident Evil 3: Nemesis for the Sega Dreamcast for no real reason other than I saw it for a decent price at my local retro gaming store. Since, you know, I already own it on two other mediums (PS1 and Gamecube). Nonetheless, since I had some rare downtime this weekend to relax in front of the TV, I gave it a quick playthrough. Now as I mentioned in my massive article on the series, since RE3 was one of the few games in the franchise that I didn’t play when it was brand new, I don’t quite have the sentimental connection to it that I do with the other early games in the series. That said, I do like it a lot and still consider it one of the greats in the series.

The Sega Dreamcast port of both this game and RE2 are kind of oddities of the Resident Evil universe. It made sense at the time to start bringing the franchise to the console, as the release of the console-exclusive Code: Veronica a few months earlier was met with great success. They both offer up some unique features, one of which is the utilization of the Dreamcast VMU, a sort of memory card unit that plugs right into the controller.

This is really cool for RE2, as it displays status features such as amount of remaining health and bullets, which is awesome to be able to check without bringing up the status menu as you’d have to do in any other version of the game. However, for reasons that totally elude and mystify me, they left out the remaining bullet count from the RE3 version, leaving only the health status. The health status is a nifty little novelty, but it’s kind of totally pointless due to the fact that you can tell what health status your character has at all times just by looking at them- in caution they’ll clutch their side, and in danger they’ll limp slowly. By contrast, the ammo counter is extremely helpful, especially when carrying a weapon that reloads very slowly and is much easier to reload in the menu, making it imperative to know how many shots you’ve fired. Why they’d have that in the RE2 port but then do away with it for RE3 is beyond me. The RE3 port was actually released a few months earlier than the RE2 one, which I guess might explain it, but it still doesn’t make much sense to me why they wouldn’t have that feature for the both of them.

Left: RE3, Right: RE2

Having already owned RE2 for Dreamcast and expecting that feature to be there when I bought RE3 was a bit of a downer right off the bat. Another thing that made this game a little less than enjoyable as I played through was the difficulty. I don’t know if I’ve just gotten worse with games over the years, and this game has always been the hardest of the original ones I think, but I really didn’t remember it being as hard as it was for me this time around. Granted, I was playing on hard mode, but that’s only because easy mode is too easy. I mean, they give you a huge arsenal of weapons right as you begin. I do want some challenge from a game, but not so much that I want to smash the disc with a hammer. If there were a medium difficulty I feel like I would’ve had a better time, but there’s just no in between. Though this isn’t unique to the Dreamcast version, what is unique is the fact that I also have a hard time with the Dreamcast controllers. I have pretty small hands, so those big things do not work all that well for me. They’re not impossible to play with or anything, it’s just that when the game is already giving me enough of a problem by kicking my ass with the difficulty, having even the slightest control disadvantage becomes a noticeable problem. I ended up repeatedly dying at certain points of the game I never had a problem with before on the PS1 or Gamecube versions.

One interesting, albeit strange aspect is that alternate costumes and the mercenaries mini-game are both available right from the start of the game, as opposed to being unlockable features that become available upon beating the game for the first time. It is cool to see all those extra costumes I could never unlock because, like I said before, I’ve never been all that great at this game. It’s also nice to be able to play the addicting mercenaries game right away, even if it is just as frustratingly difficult as the main game and no matter what I do I still can’t get a damn A ranking in it.

Other than that, there are not many other distinguishing features from the other two versions. The graphics are definitely better than the choppy-looking PS1 graphics, but the Gamecube version has the best of the three. In fact, I think the Gamecube version is the best overall out of the three as well. If the Dreamcast version had the bullet counter that the RE2 port had, I might be able to make a case for it, but without that feature it doesn’t stand out too much on its own. So if you’re looking to pick this game up, I’d say go for the Gamecube one for the optimal experience.

And on one final note, I finally solved that damnable water quality puzzle at the end of the game without using a strategy guide. Even though the game kicked my ass up and down, at least I can take pride in that.

The Sega 32X & Knuckles’ Chaotix

Ah, the Sega 32X, what a strange specimen of a gaming console. It was a colossal failure on the part of Sega and one of the contributing factors to the company’s eventual downfall with regard to hardware. However, this little mushroom-shaped oddity has always fascinated me. I think it’s because when I was younger, I had a friend whose father worked for Sega, and as such he would always have the latest Sega consoles as they were released. Because of this, I got to play the Sega CD, Saturn, Game Gear and 32X when they first arrived while most kids my age had only ever played the Genesis. He had the whole Genesis/CD/32X combo, which we lovingly referred to as “the megazord” (ala Power Rangers).

My friend didn’t have many games for it, but one of them was the quintessential 32X game, one of the only noteworthy games in the very small library and most likely the first game that comes to mind when the 32X is mentioned- Knuckles’ Chaotix. But before I get into that, let’s discuss a brief history of the 32X itself.

In 1994, the 16-bit era of video games was coming to an end. Bigger and better consoles were on the horizon, and many companies (i.e. Nintendo, Sony) were beginning to focus their efforts on developing the consoles of the next generation. Sega was also among these companies, yet their approach was a bit different. In what would eventually prove to be a terrible marketing decision, Sega of America produced a 32-bit add on for the Sega Genesis while Sega of Japan began work on what would later become the Sega Saturn. With the company being pulled in two different directions, there’s simply no way things could have ended well. The 32X was designed with the goal in mind of extending the lifespan of the Sega Genesis, but it was merely prolonging the inevitable.

Software developers knew that better consoles were coming and that the older technology was quickly becoming obsolete. As such, third party support for the 32X was virtually non-existent, which greatly hindered the amount of available titles for it. Only 31 cartridge games were released, as well as 5 “CD-32X” games, which utilized both the 32X and the Sega CD add-on, for a total of 36 titles in North America (Europe had two exclusive titles and Japan had one). Not only that, but a majority of 32X games (23 out of the 36, to be specific) were merely slightly graphically upgraded versions of games that were already available on the Genesis, Sega CD, Super Nintendo, etc. In all, that left the 32X with only 13 original titles of its own, a pathetically small amount rivaled only by other failed consoles such as the Nintendo Virtual Boy.

By 1996, only a little over a year after it was released, the 32X was dead in the water. By then the Saturn, Nintendo 64, and Playstation were already out, and the plug was officially pulled after the release of the final game, The Amazing Spiderman: Web Of Fire, in early ‘96.

At some point in the future, I expect fewer and fewer people will ever even know that Sega once produced consoles in competition with the likes of Nintendo and Sony. And even if memories of consoles like the Genesis survive with generations of gamers to come, the memory of the 32X is very likely to fade into video game obscurity forever. But if those future video game enthusiasts delve deep enough and happen to dig up the long forgotten grave of Sega's failed experiment in 32-bit technology, there is likely one artifact they'd find that just may be worth their time: Knuckles' Chaotix. 

To those of us who remember the 90's well, this is probably the first (and maybe only) 32X game that comes to mind when we do think back to Sega's extremely ill-advised disaster of a console add-on. I certainly do; as an avid fan of the Sonic The Hedgehog series since 1991, I have fond memories of playing through all of the series' early entries. However, Chaotix always stuck out in my mind. Maybe it was because the 32X came and went so fast, but both the game and the short-lived console have always had this mythical aura to me. Maybe that’s part of the reason why I’ve collected nearly the entire library of games for the weird little thing.

Anyway, I’m actually quite surprised that these days, Chaotix isn’t looked at very favorably as far as the Sonic franchise is concerned, and some people even downright hate it. I wouldn’t call it a perfect game by any means, but I really believe a lot of this hate is unwarranted. Also, I think a lot of the criticism stems more from how hard the 32X itself flopped instead of taking an actual critical look at the game on its own. As such, I’m here to make a case as to why I think Chaotix is one of the best in the series, right up there with the original Genesis classics. Before I look at the game itself though, let me put a little context behind the release of the game and the era it was brought into.

The mid-90’s were just about the absolute height of the Sonic The Hedgehog franchise’s popularity. Sonic was everywhere- video games, cartoons, toys, comic books; you couldn’t go five minutes without seeing him somewhere. At the time, there were five Sonic games out in the primary series- Sonic 1, 2, 3, Sonic & Knuckles, and Sonic CD. Not counting Sonic Spinball (which wasn’t much of a genuine Sonic game at all as much as it was a Sonic-themed pinball game) and a handful of Sonic-related Game Gear games, the formula was pretty consistent across the games of the main series. You collect rings, jump on bad guys, and move from left to right through stages while dodging hazards and going real fast. It’s a rudimentary formula, but such is the nature of 2-D platformers.

But each successive game brought something new to the table, as any good sequel should. Sonic 2 introduced a new character in Tails, a new move in the spin-dash, and a new secret power-up in Super Sonic. Sonic CD presented another new character (Amy Rose), another new move (the Figure-8 Dash) and massively complex levels and bonus stages. Sonic 3 saw yet another new character, Knuckles, as well as new sprites for the whole gang and new power-ups. And finally, Sonic & Knuckles made Knuckles a playable character and had two different scenarios to play through (not to mention the ability to play as Knuckles in Sonic 2 as well).

So with the debut of the 32X in late 1994 (not long after the release of Sonic & Knuckles), the time was right for another shake-up of the series. Originally, this was to take place on the Genesis with the release of a game titled Sonic Crackers, in which Sonic and Tails would be tethered together with a ring that would allow the both of them to be launched like a sling-shot through side-scrolling levels. However, for unknown reasons Sonic was jettisoned from the project, it was moved to the 32X, and none other than Knuckles the echidna stepped in to take his place.

The concept of Chaotix arose from a cancelled Genesis game called "Sonic Crackers," in which Sonic and Tails were connected through two magic rings and moved in tandem with one another.

Perhaps this was because Sonic was being saved for the Saturn, which was in the works at the time, as well as another Sonic game for it titled “Sonic X-treme” (which also was cancelled). Or maybe a genuine Sonic game for the 32X had been planned before the 32X crashed and burned. Whatever the reason, Sonic was out and Knuckles was in. In an era where gaming mascots were EVERYTHING to the industry (Re: Bubsy), I think this was a pretty bold move. I mean, imagine if Nintendo had done the same for Luigi of the Super Mario Bros. franchise. All they gave him at the time was a pretty lame educational game, which only furthered his unpopularity.

Not only that, but Knuckles was quickly garnering a strong following of his own. The timing was just right- with the previous entry of Sonic & Knuckles being the first time Knuckles was a playable character, gamers were flocking to him in droves. In fact, I knew many people who thought he was a lot cooler than Sonic (who was supposed to be the epitome of 'cool,' mind you). I mean, he could fly, climb walls, bust through rocks with his fists- what's not to like about that? Kids thought he was awesome. Also, in the popular Archie Sonic The Hedgehog comic book series, Knuckles was a mainstay of the central plot who frequently clashed with Sonic, his so-called “friendly nemesis.” When Chaotix was released, Archie also produced a comic book tie-in which boosted Knuckles into the spotlight even further and introduced each of the new characters that would appear in the game.

Knuckles' presence in the Sonic The Hedgehog comic book series by Archie only served to boost the character (and by extension, the Chaotix) further into popularity.

So, I believe that choosing Knuckles was actually a great decision to draw in fans of the series, as well as potentially kickstart a new spinoff series should things go well enough (which of course they didn’t, but there was the possibility at the time). Anyway, now we come to the game itself. Aside from the titular character, the game introduces the “Chaotix,” each of which are playable and have their own unique attributes which I’ll discuss in a bit. There’s Espio the chameleon, Vector the crocodile, Charmy the bee, and Mighty the armadillo. With the exception of Mighty, who appeared in the Japanese-exclusive Sonic The Hedgehog arcade game, each of them were new characters. There were also two extra characters, heavy and bomb, who were playable as well (though you’d more or less want to avoid playing as them, as they are pretty much useless). The story involves Sonic’s primary antagonist, Dr. Robotnik (yes, back when he was still called "Dr. Robotnik" and not "Eggman"), who has taken over the island that Knuckles protects. The evil doctor is aided by a robotic version of Sonic, also known as Metal Sonic. So, with the help of his new gang of comrades, Knuckles must take back the island by defeating the nefarious Robotnik.

As I mentioned previously, the biggest aspect that sets the gameplay apart from previous entries in the series is the ring-tether system. Upon completing a brief training/introduction stage at the beginning of the game, you’ll get to choose any of the characters (minus heavy and bomb) as your first-player character. Next up, before you go to the stage selection, you’ll have to do a sort of crane mini-game in order to pick your AI-controlled second-player character (if you’re playing with a second person, they will take control of this character). It’s a bit randomized, but with some skill you can often get the character you want. Here’s where the ring-tether system comes into play- controlling the first-player character, you’ll be “tethered” to another character via a power ring that each character is holding. By holding down the B button on the controller, the AI character will stop in their tracks, allowing you to run forward and build up tension. Upon releasing B, the AI character will be launched forward like a slingshot. This also added in some new puzzle solving elements not present in other games; in order to open certain doors and access parts of a level, one character will need to stand on a pad and hold their position until the other character steps on another pad somewhere else. When standing next to the other character, you can also pick them up and throw them, which is useful in destroying airborne enemies and reaching high ledges. Another helpful feature is that if you find that your partner is stuck somewhere beneath or above you, you can press the A button while standing still to automatically bring them back to your side (however, it costs you 10 rings to do so, which is a bit odd).

The ring tether system was the largest departure from prior games in the series and made for some innovative and interesting gameplay.

The stage selection screen is also randomized, and after hitting a button you’ll be dropped into one of five levels. Each of the five levels has five acts, the fifth of which is a boss battle, and after the boss is defeated that stage will disappear from the selection screen. This adds up to 25 levels total (plus the intro stage and a final boss battle), making the game the biggest the franchise had at the time. Putting it in perspective- Sonic 1 has 18 levels, Sonic 2 has 20, Sonic CD has 21, and Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles have 12 apiece. And yes, I’m aware that Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles were intended to be one game (and honestly, really are one game as far as I’m concerned), but even so there are 24 levels between the two, still one shy of Chaotix. The levels are all massive, non-linear mazes you’ll have to traverse in order to reach the goal. Each level can be played through several times without ever using the same path to get to the end- that’s how big they are.

The stage select system is kind of weird. By jumping up into the ball in the middle, one of the five stages will be selected at random. However, you can pick up items in bonus stages hidden within levels that allow you to slow down the randomizer, which essentially lets you choose the level of your liking. Upon clearing a stage entirely, it is removed.

 The non-linear system was another departure from previous games, save for Sonic CD which also had massively complex levels. There are mini-bosses, secret rooms to be found, and a myriad of different power-ups scattered through the stages. Speaking of power-ups, the classic shield, invincibility, speed-boost and 10-ring boxes from previous games are back, and the game also offered up some really awesome new ones not seen in previous games. Among these are the grow/shrink boxes, which will increase or decrease the size of your character, making it easier to slingshot or throw a character, respectively. But perhaps the coolest of all of the new innovations is the combine ring, which is a silver ring that combines all of the previous gold rings you’ve collected. Normally upon being hit by an enemy, you’d lose all the rings you’ve collected and have to start from 0, as was the case of every previous game as well. However, if you’ve found a combine ring, you’ll only lose the one ring and it will bounce along the floor for a few seconds, allowing you to pick it back up every time you are hit and retain all of your rings.

Advancing through stages can be different depending on the character you’ve chosen. As I mentioned before, each character has their own unique attributes. Knuckles, of course, has his signature gliding and wall climbing moves. Vector can do a brief air-dash in six different directions, as well as climb walls just like Knuckles. Charmy is smaller and can’t get as much leverage on the tether as other characters, but can fly around at will and also do air-dashes. Mighty can grip walls and has a bit more tether strength than the other characters. And lastly and perhaps the coolest of all, Espio can run up walls and even on ceilings as well. This makes him the most useful of all and even though I have to resist playing as Knuckles, since, well, it is his game, I find myself choosing Espio the most. Also, as I mentioned before there are two extra characters, heavy and bomb, who can also be chosen (only as side characters). However, these two are basically useless- heavy is, well, exactly what his name alludes to, weighing you down like a giant anchor. Bomb isn’t quite as bad but explodes upon getting hit by an enemy, leaving you stuck by yourself. Aside from their unique quirks, the character sprites are all pretty unique as well. Knuckles has been redesigned nicely since his Genesis days (though I have to say, his gliding sprite is a bit weird-looking). Each of the new characters are uniquely colored and easily identifiable, and all have their own individual idle animations (Espio changes colors and glances around cautiously, Vector pulls out a Walkman and starts jamming away to music, etc.), giving them each a little bit more character of their own.

I love the sprites of this game and how much they make each individual character stand out from one another. Even their idle animations are unique.

The graphics in the game are just wonderful. Everything is vibrantly colored, from the aforementioned sprites to each of the five levels. The foreground is very busy with objects whizzing by as you speed through, but slowing down a bit is quite recommended if you want to take in just how artfully designed each level is. Backgrounds are also quite nicely detailed if you pay close enough attention. Also, each world seems to have its own unique color schema, which is omnipresent in each of its five levels. I was a bit disturbed to read a negative review not too long ago claiming that the game was dull and dreary, lacking in color and originality between stages. Sorry to say, but I wholeheartedly disagree; the lovely colors of this game are honestly the first thing I notice when playing through.

Each stage has it’s own distinctive look and feel, from the color schemes in the foreground and background to the general layout.

In addition, I just love the music and sound effects as well. The Genesis had a reputation for its tinny, grainy-sounding musical compositions for some games, and the 32X was not entirely different in this regard. I’m not all that hip on technical aspects of consoles, but from what I understand, the 32X did not really add anything to the audio capabilities of games. However, I barely even notice the grainy Genesis style in Chaotix, simply because of how catchy the upbeat tunes are. I especially love the “Door Into Summer” theme, which plays during the introductory stage. The rest of the sound effects are on par with all of the previous Sonic games, which I have no problem with.

One very unique and fun twist to this game is playing with a second human player. It’s certainly not a straightforward co-op venture like you might have imagined from playing Sonic 2’s co-op, which simply had you both running from one side of the stage to the other independently. Because of the ring tether system, the game really forces you to work together with your teammate instead of doing your own thing. Think of all those old cartoons where two characters would get stuck together in some way and have to begrudgingly start doing everything in tandem- that’s a bit of what the co-op adventure is like. At first, you’ll be a mess- your partner will pull in one direction while you head in another, your jumps will be out of sync, and clearing a small obstacle might become a major task. However, as you play on, you slowly begin adapting to each other and getting the hang of working together, and that is just an awesome aspect of playing with a partner, I think. It makes for a really fun two-player experience you wouldn’t necessarily expect out of a game like this.

The cooperative experience is a really great way to play the game and makes for an interesting gaming session with a friend. If you've got a 32X, Chaotix, and a friend to play it with, I would highly recommend giving it a try.

As great as this game is, it does have a few flaws. If you complete a level with 50 rings or more, you’ll have a chance to enter a bonus level, in which you can collect a special ring upon completing it. You’ll need to complete all six of the bonus levels if you want to get the true ending of the game, so these are a bit important (albeit optional) for completing the game. The bonus stages consist of traversing a sort of poorly rendered 3D stage (I’ll give it a break, since this was 1995 after all) in order to collect a certain amount of blue orbs to complete it. However, due to the limitations of 3D rendering at the time, sometimes you’ll fall straight through a stage without warning, ending the bonus chance instantly. This can be especially annoying if it keeps happening on the same bonus stage, which I recall happened to me several times. Also, the tethering system doesn’t quite work as smoothly as I’d like it to. For one thing, going up ramps can be a bit of a challenge if you don’t generate enough speed and your partner ends up weighing you down. This can be remedied pretty quickly though by either using the slingshot method or using a spin-dash. Another issue stems from getting lost in the levels; as I’ve mentioned, the levels are huge. In certain levels, you’ll sometimes find yourself trekking back and forth through the same areas just looking for a way to progress. Also, without any major landmarks to tell you if you’ve passed a certain area or not, it can sometimes get a bit confusing if many areas look the same and you aren’t sure if you’ve been there already or not. But none of these issues severely detract from the experience, and at least for me, the enjoyment I got pretty much overrides them.

The 3D-rendered bonus stages at the end of the levels are...well, not all that good, but I can't be too critical since 3D gaming was still in its infancy.

In conclusion, I think this is a very solid, very fun game. Considering where the Sonic franchise has ended up as of late (don't even get me started on Sonic Boom), I think it definitely deserves a spot among the best known Sonic classics on the Genesis. Is it good enough to solely justify the purchase of a 32X? Eh, maybe so, maybe not. I suppose it depends on how much you like the Sonic the Hedgehog games, if there’s any other 32X games you think you might enjoy (if that’s the case, I’d recommend Tempo, Shadow Squadron, and Kolibri- hey, they’re not all terrible), and if you can find one on the cheap (you most likely can these days). If you do decide to pick one up, Chaotix is a must, especially since the game currently isn’t available in any of the omnipotent virtual markets for the newest consoles, which is a real shame I think. Perhaps Sega is still trying their hardest to bury the mistakes of the past. Well, if you ask me, this game is truly a gem that got buried with the garbage. I’m sorry to disagree with the critics, but I think it’s entertaining, it’s unique, it looks and plays wonderfully, and it shouldn’t be forgotten. So if you’re a Sonic fan and you never got a chance to check out this title, I would highly recommend it. Maybe you could go for an emulator instead of going through the trouble of procuring a 32X, but if you are in the very least interested, give it a chance. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Gaming Memories- Resident Evil: Part IV

Hello dear readers, welcome once again to game room. Today I'll finally be concluding something I started months ago and have been desperately meaning to finish- my wonderful retrospective of the Resident Evil franchise.

These will probably contain spoilers, so if you’ve never played any of the Resident Evil games, go play them right now. And then come back.

Part 4

Next up was the legendary Resident Evil 4, which turned the entire series on its head and altered the core concept of what a Resident Evil game could be. It proceeded to throw out the window many elements of the survival horror genre in favor of more action-oriented sequences and flashy gameplay; gone was the subtle, creeping and atmospheric experience of its predecessors and in its place was something that felt a little more like Rambo mixed with Dawn of the Dead. There are certainly some horror elements sprinkled in which I’ll discuss shortly, but for the most part it is a flat out action game.

The story follows fan-favorite Leon Kennedy in his first starring role since the second game (if you don’t count Gaiden, at least). Now working for the U.S. government, he is dispatched on a top secret mission to locate and rescue the president’s daughter, who has been kidnapped by a mysterious group somewhere in Europe. However, it turns out this group is actually a highly dangerous cult bent on releasing an ancient parasite called “Las Plagas” that turns people into mindless slaves and also happens to create horrific monsters as well. Also thrown into the mix are some old and not quite dead friends named Albert Wesker and Ada Wong, who are after a sample of the Plagas in order to revive the now-defunct Umbrella Corporation.  

RE4 definitely did something right in bringing back Leon, one of the most popular characters of the entire series. 

The graphics are well enough, though not quite as on point as those for the remake or 0, which were on the same console. The biggest changes RE4 brought to the table however were not so much in the stylistic changes, but in the alterations made to the gameplay. The fixed-camera, tank-control schema of the all the previous games (save Survivor, Dead Aim and Gaiden) was abandoned entirely and in its place was a new over-the-shoulder 3^rd person POV. There’s also a good deal of diversity in the gameplay, from the various boss battles to certain action sequences in which you’ll have to input the correct button combination that flashes quickly on the screen before you die in some horrible way. It does quite well for the game, but it was most definitely a departure from what we expected out of a game with the title “Resident Evil”. And I think that sums up my general feelings toward RE4- don’t get me wrong, it’s still a great, fun game that I’d play over many, many other games any day, but it just represents the point (in my mind, anyway) where Resident Evil slowly started sliding away from its survival horror roots and changing into something different.

Again, none of this is to say that I don’t get any enjoyment out of playing it, or that it even doesn’t have some pretty tense moments reminiscent of the good old survival horror days. For example, one part that sticks out in my mind the most is the part where you find yourself in the bottom of a dungeon area, playing as the defenseless Ashley in order to solve a puzzle. Upon doing so, you’ll be immediately ambushed by giant, axe-wielding suits of armor that had previously been standing still as you fiddled with the puzzle- a pretty scary moment. Another moment is when you must go up against the regenerators, which are big, gangly B.O.W.s that can actually stretch their arms out to grab you from far away…AND can regenerate their limbs unless you destroy specific parasites embedded in their bodies by using an infrared scope on the sniper rifle. The buildup to the first encounter with one of these nasty guys is done very well, once again evoking the survival horror spirit of the original games.

The regenerator encounters definitely injected some much needed horror into the game, which was much appreciated by me.

In sum, I do really enjoy RE4 for what it is, though I have to raise an eyebrow when people claim that it’s the best of the entire franchise. To each their own I suppose, but in my humble opinion, it doesn’t even come close to original classics.

As I mentioned previously, RE4 represents the point at which the series started really changing into something different. And if RE4 were the link somewhere between with elements of both survival horror and straight up action, then Resident Evil 5 didn’t even really try to be anything more than a purely action-driven shooter.

The first Resident Evil game on the next-gen Xbox 360/Playstation 3 consoles, RE5 follows in the footsteps of its predecessor not only in being largely driven by action, but in bringing back fan-favorite characters for a 3^rd-person POV adventure. The story follows Chris Redfield, now working for an anti-bioterrorism group called the BSAA (hell if I know what it stands for and I’m too lazy to look it up). He’s received intel on a possible bio-terrorist organization in Africa, and travels there to meet another agent named Sheva Alomar in investigating. And here is where RE5 once again changed things up, and to my knowledge, all games in the series have followed suit since then: there’s a huge emphasis placed on co-op play in this game. There’s literally no option for single player- you’ll either be playing with someone else or an AI partner. And that’s fine, I understand that this is the direction all games are pretty much heading in, but it still didn’t really sit well with a Luddite like me. 

Not to mention, there just wasn’t that much of a reason to make it an essential feature of the gameplay. Nonetheless, the game is very similar to RE4 gameplay-wise, as well as with the various action sequences and weapon upgrade system and whatnot. In that sense, it is a fun game. But then you have the more ridiculous moments like Jill, who has suddenly (and obviously, I might add) been shoe-horned into the plot, being mind-controlled by some kind of gizmo attached to her chest. Oh, and she also has super powers too for no reason. Also, the new virus (now called Ouroboros or something) can turn anything into a gigantic, pulsating mound of flesh with spikes and tentacles. And Chris punches a boulder into lava.

Yup, this is part where RE5 jumped the shark.

Look, I know the series has never really been grounded in realism since the start, and even the concept of Mr. X in 2 was kind of pushing the limits to what I might feasibly accept, but RE5 just took it to a completely different level. I liken it the recent string of Fast & Furious sequels- it’s basically like a big, flashy cartoon and you just have to take it for what it is. And for the record, that doesn’t really make either of them any more artistically credible.

Anyway, I do enjoy RE5, much the same way that I enjoy RE4. However, I feel like I would’ve enjoyed it a lot more if it was called something else other than Resident Evil. When I think “Resident Evil,” I think of the classics. I think of zombies, T-Virus mutant monsters, and most of all, horror. It’s like comparing the original Night of the Living Dead to a movie like World War Z.

RE6, however, I think can wholeheartedly say that I just did not enjoy whatsoever. 6 arrived far past the point of me having hope that the series would go back to what made it so great in the good old days, but despite that I still decided to pick it up out of sheer curiosity, and also because I had just bought a PS3 and the only game I had for it was Metal Gear Solid 4 and I wanted to feel more like I was justified in buying it.

Anyway, this will honestly be a bit of a half-assed review because I don't really remember much of it, but that's just it- I really didn't think any of it was all that memorable whatsoever. So the story is split into three different acts, each of which following a different set of protagonists: Leon and uh…a girl I don’t remember and once again am too lazy to look up, Chris and his military partner Piers, and, get ready for this one, Wesker’s son Jake and Sherry Birkin. Yes, that annoying little girl from the second game that we all forgot about now all grown up . Now, it may just be me, but I really felt like they were scraping the bottom of the barrel when they started rolling out long forgotten characters and long lost son clichés like that. I mean, hell, why don’t we bring back Ark Thompson from Survivor while we’re at it?

The plot for all of the characters converges around Ada Wong, the mysterious spy woman who should’ve just stayed dead in 2 but keeps getting caught up in the plot of every game, and a new virus that has been developed called the…C-Virus. Yep, just oozes creativity. The previous two games at least got a little original with it, what with the introduction of Las Plagas and Ouroboros, but again, I felt like they were getting pretty desperate at this point. 

The primary thing that made me hate this game much more than 5 was not the action-driven gameplay, not the absurd plot, but the controls- unlike the previous games to this point, I thought the controls were dreadfully bad. It’s one thing to have a mediocre game, but when the basic playability of it is compromised by poor controls, that really leaves a bad taste in your mouth from the get-go.

Another thing I remember hating was the fact that every boss is basically Godzilla now. Leon’s act concludes with him and Helena (is that her name? I think so…) fighting what basically amounts to a virus-infected tyrannosaurus. And during the entire fight, all I could think about was how intimidating the tyrant seemed in the very first game and how much I felt like this really cheapened everything about the earlier games in the series.

Where's the goat? Wait..I'm thinking of something else...

Remember facing off against the tyrant for the first time? Or Mr. X, or Nemesis, or any of the big bad intimidating monsters from the first few games? Those were truly tense and terrifying moments, but when you are going up against something that’s the size of the entire building while it throws jeeps at you…ugh. It all just seemed so uninspired. The same goes for much of the other scenarios, where you’ll also have to do battle with other huge, ridiculous monsters.

If the remake represented the top of the mountain when the series reached its pinnacle, then RE6 would be the dirt at the bottom, as far as I’m concerned. Up until this point, I still actually enjoyed the games I was playing- I can’t say the same for this one, though. Anyway, so that about leaves me where I am now as far as Resident Evil is concerned. I haven’t played the newest ones in the series, namely Operation: Raccoon City and Revelations 1 and 2, and I don’t have a whole lot of interest in them.

As I’ve mentioned previously, a remake of 2 is apparently in the works right now, but I think it’s one of those things where I will believe it when I see it. However, with the recent release of the remake in HD for the newest generation of consoles, I’m remaining hopeful for it and I would most definitely be one of the first people standing in line to pick it up. And if they start bringing the series back to its humble roots, maybe then my interest will be rekindled a bit too. 

Until then, I know I’ll continue to enjoy the original games for many years to come. Resident Evil will always be one of my favorite video game franchises of all time and one that I will have fond memories of forever, if this four-part retrospective didn’t attest to that fact enough already.

Anyway, thanks for reading, and long live Resident Evil!

My Top 10 WTF Moments in Video Games

Welcome back to the game room dear readers, and prepare to travel to the weird side today as I discuss some of the strangest, outrageous, and most ridiculous moments I've experienced while playing video games over the years. Also, I should warn that this will contain spoilers for a lot of games.

10. Doom II (PC)- John Romero’s head

So the year was 1994 and I was just having a blast slaying demons from hell in this game. In fact, much of my childhood was spent exactly this way with the granddaddy of all first-person shooters. I hadn’t even really learned the term “Easter egg” yet, but probably the first time I ever experienced one was when I was having fun playing with the no clip feature of Dooms’ cheat codes that just about everyone on the planet knew. In the last level of the game, Map 30 (the Icon of Sin, as you Doom fans should know already), upon clipping into the hole fixed to the wall that is supposed to be the final boss monster’s head, you’ll be treated to the surprise of a small hidden chamber with a bloody, impaled head on a stick. It wasn’t until much later in my life that I discovered that this was the head of John Romero, one of the head programmers of the game who had craftily snuck his own image into the level, but at the time, I had no idea as a 7 year-old playing this game. I just remember being utterly shocked and disturbed not only to find it there after a bit of random futzing around, but also that the head actually screams if you shoot at it! Might not seem like such a big deal by today’s standards, but this may have been the very first time I ever really felt taken aback by something I saw in a video game.

9. Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (Sega Genesis)- Metropolis Zone has three acts

 

Sonic 2 is one of the all time great video game sequels and probably the most well known and beloved entry in the series (I personally like Sonic & Knuckles the best, but I’m an asshole). This game is always worth a playthrough if you’re bored with other games, but unless you’re a video game wizard (which I am certainly not), be prepared to die at least a few times once you get to the later levels- especially the freakin’ Metropolis Zone. Even if you’ve gathered the 7 chaos emeralds and blasted through the previous levels as Super Sonic, this zone simply has no mercy. You’ll find yourself lost in a maze of machinery, plagued by those goddamn mantis and crab robots, and begging for just one spare ring as you traverse the level. But the worst part about this wretched level? Unlike all of the previous levels you’ve been through so far, this relentless level has THREE ACTS! In the previous seven zones, you’ve already grown accustomed to navigating two levels and facing a boss at the end of the second, but not this time! As a kid, I remember wanting to break my Genesis in half over the shock that I had barely made it through the first two levels, yet it still wasn’t over upon entering that third act for the first time.

8. Resident Evil 3 (Sony Playstation)- Nemesis follows you through rooms

 

If you’re an adamant fan of the Resident Evil series, you’ve probably played through the first three games of the franchise at least once in your life. And what was one precedent that was set in the first two games that we could always fall back on when the situation got dire? That’s right- exiting a room will allow you to escape danger. I know I certainly exploited the hell out of this in the first two games when I found myself overwhelmed with zombies and other bio-organic monstrosities. But then RE3 came along and shattered that precedent before your very eyes as you encounter the Nemesis, a horrifically powerful monster that relentlessly stalks you throughout the game. If you’re low on ammo and health, running into this guy can be the worst thing ever- but hey, no big deal, right? Just use that newly implemented 360 degree spin on the controller and hop on outta that room, he can’t get to you that way. Right? Uh….right? Wrong. As soon as the door is off screen, you’ll hear it slam open and Nemmy will be right on top of you once again. This completely threw out the previously established rules of the first two games that monsters can’t follow you through different rooms. Well, as was in my case when I first tried this…it’s time to think again about that strategy.

7. Pikmin 2 (Nintendo Gamecube) –The Water Wraith

 

What’s worse than an enemy that relentlessly stalks you from room to room? Why, an enemy that relentlessly stalks you from room to room that you can’t even fight back against! Such is the case of the horrific Water Wraith enemy in Pikmin 2, which thankfully you will only encounter once in the game in the Submerged Castle dungeon of the Perplexing Pool level. The creature, which looks like the Pillsbury doughboy if he were made out of Jell-O and riding on a concrete steamroller, unexpectedly drops in on you in the second floor of the dungeon. Try attacking it like any other enemy you’ve encountered to this point and you’ll find that it’s utterly useless- the thing can’t be hurt at all. At the final floor of the dungeon, you’ll discover that only Purple Pikmin can destroy the beast- however, since the entrance to the dungeon is underwater, you’ll only be able to enter with blue Pikmin, meaning that until you get to that last floor, you’re at this monstrosity’s mercy. Not only that, but it can instantly flatten and decimate your entire Pikmin squad in seconds and it’ll actively hunt you throughout the dungeon while emitting horrible otherworldly grunts. It even has it's own horrific theme song. The first time encountering this thing, I had no idea how to handle it. All I could do was run around in circles scrambling to figure out what the hell to do and how to escape the wrath of this monster.

6. Halo (Microsoft Xbox)- The special legendary ending

 

Admittedly, it’s not too terribly difficult to beat the original Halo on legendary anymore, after playing it and it’s sequels for over a decade now. But back in the day, some of us first-time Xbox players had quite an ordeal escaping the clutches of the legendary difficulty in one piece. I distinctly remember my friend Dave telling me he’d heard a rumor that upon beating the game on legendary, a spectacular secret awaited those who managed to make it through. Nearly every day that summer, I’d get up in the morning and race over to his house, where we’d take on the horrible legendary mode playing cooperatively, dying over and over and over again through each level (The Library, anyone?) until one by one, we eventually conquered them. Finally, when at last the final level of the game was beaten, we eagerly awaited our prize. But for all of our hard work and dedication, what did we get? A 20 second clip of Sergeant Johnson fighting over an assault rifle with an elite, only to reconcile their differences with a big ‘ol hug as the Pillar of Autumn explodes behind them. And that’s it. Our jaws were on the floor as the credits began rolling afterward. Nowadays we joke about this and always have a good laugh, so I guess it did its job at being memorable- but back then, we felt anything but rewarded after going through that hell and back.

5. Bomberman 64 (Nintendo 64)- Sirius’ betrayal and Rainbow Palace

 

I have a lot of truly fond memories of playing this game, and unless I’m mistaken and this game is more popular than I know, I feel like it’s a criminally underrated N64 classic. Back in the day I played the shit out of this game, whether it was in the story mode or doing battle with friends in the insanely fun multiplayer. However, I had quite difficulty obtaining all 100 of the golden cards that are scattered throughout the levels and are awarded by beating bosses in certain ways. In particular, I couldn’t figure out how the hell to get one of them in particular in the 2^nd stage boss of Black Fortress, the final world of the game. I stuck with it though and one day was finally rewarded by obtaining it, at which point I promptly headed to the final boss to see if there was any extra reward. However, what I completely didn’t expect was that upon beating the game with all 100 golden cards, you’ll be betrayed by Sirius, a character who’d been previously helping you throughout the game. And not only that, but to my utter shock, the game wasn’t over yet and a secret 6^th world awaited! By this point I’d been playing the game for a very long time and was so completely stunned to find that there was more to it than I knew. And not just more, but a very surreal and dream-like world with extremely difficult puzzles to solve (and a very creepy 2^nd level boss, I might add).

4. Earthworm Jim 2 (Sega Genesis/SNES)- Jim Is Now A Blind Cave Salamander!

Earthworm Jim and its equally wacky sequel are easily some of most outlandishly creative and fantastically weird games ever conceived. I mean, as if the premise of an earthworm running around inside of an alien suit chasing an intergalactic alien crow across the galaxy wasn’t crazy enough, the second game will have you fighting a giant unicycle-riding maggot, bouncing puppies off of a giant marshmallow, and being attacked by a salt shaker through a level made entirely of food. But the most bizarre level of the game has to be the aptly-titled “Jim Is Now a Blind Cave Salamander!”, also known as “Villi People.” After 3 levels of playing as Jim, you’re now transformed into a salamander carrying a gun, swimming through what appears to be intestines (intestinal villi are tiny buds that line the walls of the small intestine and aid in digestion) while shooting at sheep, dodging bumpers and pencils sticking out of the wall, and collecting worms (more on that in a moment). Oh, and Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata is playing as the level music. There’s also what appears to be a tiled floor and windows looking out on the world. What drugs were they on when they made this? This level actually disturbed the hell out of me when I was kid. These days I love how spectacularly nonsensical it all is, but something about the surreal and strange nature just really weirded me out when I was younger. Oh, and remember those worms I mentioned before? At the end of the level you’ll suddenly find yourself in a gameshow out of nowhere, where you can exchange the worms for chances to answer questions and win prizes. And by the way, the questions make no sense whatsoever and it’s fantastic.

3. Silent Hill 2 (Sony Playstation 2)- Two Pyramid Heads

I’ve been talking a lot about relentlessly stalking enemies, haven’t I? Well good old Pyramid Head from Silent Hill 2 pretty well fits the bill in that category. The hulking, knife-wielding monster periodically materializes from the darkness and attacks you, and I was certainly one of those gamers terrified at the mere mention of his name. However, nothing on Earth could prepare me for the penultimate confrontation of the game, in which you’ll do battle with not one, but two Pyramid Heads. Admittedly, the first time I played this game I wasn’t too well-versed in subtext (or psychopathology for that matter, which I am now) and at that point in the game, I had no idea what the hell was even happening in the story anymore. I understand the reasoning now and it certainly makes sense within the lore of the game, but at the time I just couldn’t wrap my mind around it, so walking into that room and seeing two of those evil bastards just completely blew my mind. As if one of them chasing me around wasn’t bad enough, here was a second one out of nowhere. And worst of all, I had to fight them both at the same time.

2. Pokémon Red & Blue (Nintendo Gameboy)- Encountering MissingNo for the first time

MissingNo is probably the most well-publicized video game glitch of all time and probably the one that spawned the most schoolyard urban legends and myths of any video game I ever played. I remember constantly hearing about it and the subsequent infinite item glitch that can be triggered by spawning the strange mess of pixels, so I certainly knew what to expect after hearing all of the rumors and fantastic stories. However, I was still totally blown away the first time I ever encountered the garbled mess of a sprite for myself on the side of Cinnabar Island. Even stranger was what happened if you decided to catch and use the glitched-out mess in a battle, where it could spawn even further glitches and devolve your game into a complete mess. 

1. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons Of Liberty (Sony Playstation 2)– Colonel Campbell was actually GW

Was I just talking about how the plot of Silent Hill 2 confused me? Weh-heh-hell…let me tell you about the utter insanity that is Metal Gear Solid 2. The game begins just the way you’d expect it to be as you take control of Solid Snake and resume the usual tactical stealth antics. However, as the Tanker chapter ends, the game pulls a complete 180 and drops you in control of a new character named Raiden, who’s pretty much the antithesis of Snake. Nonetheless, you progress from this point forward as Raiden, who’s being aided by a familiar face: Colonel Campbell, who assisted Snake all throughout the first game. As you move forward through the game completing objectives, something seems oddly familiar about everything you’re doing. And then they hit you with a bombshell: the entire mission you’ve been a part of is a complete fabrication, designed to exactly emulate the events of the first game. And if that weren’t enough, when you find yourself inside of a massive war machine called Arsenal Gear, it’s discovered that Colonel Campbell was actually just an AI program, a complete façade designed to fool you the entire time. And not only that, but after a virus is uploaded to destroy the system core, the AI starts going haywire and Campbell starts repeatedly calling and babbling on about utter nonsense. As if everything in the game hadn’t been outrageous enough up to this point, I was really ready to just put my controller down and quit video games forever once the Colonel started calling and talking about purple stuffed worms in flap-jaw space.