Is Resident Evil 5 a bad game?

[UndeadChicken]

I've been hearing a lot of hatred for this game from people who claim to be fans of the Resident Evil series, yet from the reviews I read about this game on gaming websites it seems like it's a decently successful game. Since I don't think I can get any straight answers from the raving fanboys on the Resident Evil forums, I thought maybe I'd ask the opinions of those who are probably just casual fans of the series and gaming in general. What do you guys think of Resident Evil 5? Not just as a Resident Evil game but as a game by itself? While I think it's true this game is not scary like the old games before Resident Evil 4 used to be, I think it's still a very enjoyable game. The graphics are amazing, the girls are all hot, and there's all kinds of fun extras to find like costumes, mini games, and secret weapons. If I had one thing to complain about it would be the fact that this game copies too much from Resident Evil 4. It may not be a totally bad thing because Resident Evil 4 was a highly successful game, but I just kind of wished they added more new features besides just the co-op. I was glad I waited to buy the Gold Edition because it had some really good extras. My favorite was probably the inclusion of Excella Gionne as a playable character in the new mini game The Mercenaries Reunion. Excella didn't seem like a very memoriable character in the actual game because she didn't really do anything besides dress like a slut and be a bitch, but as a playable character in The Mercenaries she is all kinds of awesome. There's just something about the idea of a voluptuous woman in a cocktail dress and high heels who runs around shooting up badguys with an automatic weapon, and then has the guts to actually "slap" parasite-controlled humans who come after her with sharp weapons. I don't think you can get any more badass than that.

[Danny]

its poorly paced. the plot is extremely contrived. the ability to not move whilst aiming when games like dead space have shown it can be done feels like the game is forcefully trying to make a run or gun choice imperative but it comes off as just handicapping you to make it seem harder than it actually is. Its not bad, its just not very good either. the soundtrack pales compared to almost every other game in the franchise, the voice acting is phoned in and mediocre and not once does the game try to generate any sort of emotional investment on a level deeper than characters in a arcade rail shooter. I will say one thing, they technology used to shoot the cutscenes was a hell of a step in the right direction. The game itself was disjointed and unwieldy. they tried to make it 3 games at once and it comes out as a creation not really as good as any of the sums of its parts.

[rongravy]

I didn't like the chick(Sheva) with you, she wastes ammo if you let her. I know that in 4 you had the President's kid, but you only had to protect her. I was always happy when they captured her again for awhile. As far as the voice acting: weren't they cheesed in all the games pretty much? "Ada, WAIT!!!" And that's from one of my faves, RE2. I guess after RE4, even though there weren't any zombies, I maybe expected too much and wanted a return to form... Shambling, that is.

[UndeadChicken]

Good call on the voice acting in the series. I guess when you get down to it Resident Evil 4 was the better game, and Resident Evil 5 basically tried to copy everything Resident Evil 4 had without adding a lot of originality. I guess the game should have been handled better, but sadly after the release of these three crappy Resident Evil titles like Operation Raccoon City I fear the series may be doomed soon. Also for the record I would like for Capcom to go back to the zombies and the horror. A friend told me a rumor about a Capcom considering doing a remake of Resident Evil 2, and I think it would be a great way to re-introduce the classic survival horror genre for the current generation of consoles. I quite enjoyed the Resident Evil 1 remake for the GameCube and if the Resident Evil 2 remake is anything like it then it could be a very good game.

[rongravy]

I know it's been talked over on another thread, but I'd cream my jockeys if they redid the first 3 and did it RE4 style. And I think that not only would it be doable, it'd sell like freaking hotcakes. I know there's alot of kiddies who play XBOX, but alot of doods my age play. They'd buy them, and it'd reintroduce the original trilogy to earlier said kiddies. It could be done, and I wish it to be so. In a perfect world, it would be. But, then again, I can't understand the attraction to redundant crapola like Halo and Call of Duty games. Who knows, I could be wrong, but I'm thinking not.

[Mr. Clean]

I know it's been talked over on another thread, but I'd cream my jockeys if they redid the first 3 and did it RE4 style. And I think that not only would it be doable, it'd sell like freaking hotcakes. I know there's alot of kiddies who play XBOX, but alot of doods my age play. They'd buy them, and it'd reintroduce the original trilogy to earlier said kiddies. It could be done, and I wish it to be so. In a perfect world, it would be. But, then again, I can't understand the attraction to redundant crapola like Halo and Call of Duty games. Who knows, I could be wrong, but I'm thinking not. Really? your a genuine jockey fudge packer?

[Rottedfreak]

Resident Evil 4 was a new lease of life on the series and appropriately a action horror, it was perfect for people bored with the series through REmake and Zero. Resident Evil 5 promised to be more of the same and it had all this hype about being a return to horror but after four years of replaying RE4 it was a severe kick in the teeth I don't think the developers accomplished their goals, daylight horror doesn't work and 'graphic' and 'gory' scenes don't work with the limitations of current consoles, the new devs seem to be clueless, wheras the RE4 crew worked with audio and set piece action to unsettle the player the RE5 team goes with visual. Revelations does seem more promising though check out the demo from Mercs

[CoinReturn]

Revelations is definitely looking like a return to good old survival horror: Very impressive graphics for 3DS.

[rongravy]

Really? your a genuine jockey fudge packer? Fudge 'em? No, but I'd blow a serious wad all over them... SPLOOT.

[Tricky]

As far as the voice acting: weren't they cheesed in all the games pretty much? "Ada, WAIT!!!" And that's from one of my faves, RE2. . The voice acting has always been abysmal, although when I was 15 it still just about convinced me as in game speech was still relatively new then. Revisit this & remind yourself how bad it is!

[ProfessorChaos]

Revelations is definitely looking like a return to good old survival horror: Very impressive graphics for 3DS. while i will agree that the graphics are impressive for a 3DS game, i couldn't disagree more about "old school survivor horror" from what's in that vid. being a police officer in an isolated mansion full of monsters in the country or trying to escape a town overrun with infected people, with little ammo and lots of fear/tension, to me, is what resident evil is all about. this new trend of being specialized globe-trotting, bioweapon-hunting special forces commandos with amazing weapons, vehicles, tons of explosions, etc is nothing like the resident evil series i grew up with. looks downright laughable to me, in fact. i hold the craptacular movies responsible. and wtf is up with chris the 'roid freak redfield wearing short sleeves in an icy, snow-covered environment? as for RE5, i can't provide a solid answer, as i was so disgusted and underwhelmed by the demo that i have not even bothered playing the actual game.

[Andy]

The voice acting has always been abysmal, although when I was 15 it still just about convinced me as in game speech was still relatively new then. Revisit this & remind yourself how bad it is! That was too close.. you where almost a jill sandwich!! One of the best lines spoke in a computer game ever!

[Tricky]

while i will agree that the graphics are impressive for a 3DS game, i couldn't disagree more about "old school survivor horror" from what's in that vid. being a police officer in an isolated mansion full of monsters in the country or trying to escape a town overrun with infected people, with little ammo and lots of fear/tension, to me, is what resident evil is all about. this new trend of being specialized globe-trotting, bioweapon-hunting special forces commandos with amazing weapons, vehicles, tons of explosions, etc is nothing like the resident evil series i grew up with. looks downright laughable to me, in fact. i hold the craptacular movies responsible. and wtf is up with chris the 'roid freak redfield wearing short sleeves in an icy, snow-covered environment? as for RE5, i can't provide a solid answer, as i was so disgusted and underwhelmed by the demo that i have not even bothered playing the actual game. Unfortunately we got older, and they're still aiming the games at teenagers who like cheap scares & can still take ridiculous plots & characters semi-seriously. Even the first 3 games which I loved 12 years ago, I probably couldnt play without cringing at the voice acting & daft story lines now. They had some great moments & atmosphere for sure, and I took them deadly serious when I was 17, but now I just have no interest in the franchise anymore

[Danny]

Unfortunately we got older, and they're still aiming the games at teenagers who like cheap scares & can still take ridiculous plots & characters semi-seriously. Even the first 3 games which I loved 12 years ago, I probably couldnt play without cringing at the voice acting & daft story lines now. They had some great moments & atmosphere for sure, and I took them deadly serious when I was 17, but now I just have no interest in the franchise anymore this isnt really a case of the old 'it didnt change, we did" schtik. The original games from biohazard to biohazard: last escape were all homages to the creators love of the american B movies of the 50s and 80's seen through a japanese lens. They weren't intentionally 'bad' they were intentionally cheesy. Its why they had the voice acting like that, theres no "better" japanese voice acting in the japanese version. In fact in most cases there is only the 'american' language version and its an intentional choice on the developers part. It was a teams swamsong to an era of entertainment they loved that was gone. Then it started to make money and priorities changed. you start making something because its a popular unit shifter and not because you really, really want to and its no surprise the content took a major change in direction. it was all business after the first 3, they had to 'take it seriously'. Hell look at resident evil 3.5 for a good example of how they were at that 'well what do we do now we have told our story?' point. Biohazard is a great series. it is, but it ended with them escaping raccoon city and the nightmare umbrella created, even the good that came after was just a good cash in on that which wasnt really needed.

[rongravy]

The voice acting has always been abysmal, although when I was 15 it still just about convinced me as in game speech was still relatively new then. Revisit this & remind yourself how bad it is! Bad, but love it. My kids and I would quote it in their badly acted voices. So much fun!!!