Resident Evil 4 was heralded as one of the greatest games ever released, garnering near-perfect scores from reviewers worldwide. The latest installment in the long-running franchise, Resident Evil 5, looks to build on the strong formula of its predecessor and places a greater focus on action. But does it succeed?

The new game takes place in Africa, where protagonist Chris Redfield, of the first Resident Evil, teams up with BSAA member Sheva Alomar to stop a supercharged Albert Wesker from unleashing a new horror upon the world. When the game begins, Chris and Sheva are less than aware of Wesker’s involvement but after the focus shifts from preventing a simple bio-terrorist transaction to locating the whereabouts of Chris’s lost partner, Jill Valentine, Wesker’s involvement becomes apparent and the characters of the game that started it all are united once more in a struggle of global significance.

It must be said that the plot is disappointingly shallow when compared with older games in the franchise. Cutscenes are kept to minimum, with the focus often on Matrix-inspired action sequences. Throughout the course of the campaign, there is seemingly little incentive driving Chris and Sheva from A to B, just the inevitable drive towards the final confrontation with Wesker. For die-hard fans though, the meager story can be deepened by reading discarded journals and reports, scattered throughout the campaign.

Only a small segment of the game is devoted to the African shanty town setting of the trailers. The environments are surpringly varied: caves, laboratories, enormous swamps and an oil refinery are just some of the game’s impressive locales, which take Chris and Sheva both above and below ground, on land and on sea. An on-rails segment near the game’s opening is brilliantly handled, as you get behind a minigun to eliminate pursuers on motorcycles. The game’s second half also contains some impressive set pieces and the boss battles are on a large scale throughout, if a little easy.

At points in the game, Chris and Sheva are granted the opportunity to speak more intimately with one another, which breaks up the action slightly but feels a little forced. Chris’s voice actor Reuben Langdon squeezes what little emotion there is to be found from the script, though ultimately his direct character is somewhat inaccessible. Sheva, voiced by Karen Dyer, is often utilised to voice the thoughts of the player and her dialogue is well delivered and expressive.

The story is truly a return-to-roots affair, with old faces settling old scores, and the origins of Wesker and the progenitor virus that led to Umbrella’s creation at last explained. New fans can easily grasp the enmity, while long-time series fans will no doubt be pleased to see where the story arc takes their beloved characters – just don’t expect too many astounding revelations along the way.

At its simplest level, Resident Evil 5 is third-person shooter which forces players to stop while aiming to take shots at enemies. The inability to move can feel like paralysis at first but this feeling soon dissipates and actually factors into the game’s design. Resident Evil 5 is all about panic. You’re constantly given the sensation that you’re under-equipped to deal with your attackers. As with previous entries, ammo is scarce and inventory management is essential to success in Africa. Items and weapons must be combined, discarded or shuffled within the nine item slots available to each character to conserve space for new pick-ups. You are forced to stand still while doing this also and the purposely implemented immobility deepens the sense of panic. Contrary to the game’s daylit settings, it is scary when the lights are off.

Aiming for the head is the name of the game here. Enemies will soak up bullet damage unless you target specific areas on their body. Shooting an enemy’s head or knees will stun or drop them to the floor, where Chris or Sheva can perform a devastating melee attack or even successively combo for increased damage. Exploding barrels provide extra support, as do an assortment of grenades in addition to ever expanding arsenal of weaponry. A gameplay addition which feels like an afterthought is the dreadful cover system, which is more of a hindrance than a help, a reluctant implementation of a modern industry-standard, which feels a little out of place.

With very few of the series’ trademark puzzles during the campaign, the gameplay now boils down to little more than triggering a scene, clearing an area of enemies and progressing to the next set piece. That said, it’s still a roller coaster ride of action-packed intensity which you’ll want to return to – and not just for the large assortment of bonus unlockables, which include fiendishly hidden BSAA emblems scattered throughout the chapters, which must be shot to unlock extras like costumes and figurines. The obligatory infinte ammo upgrade is also available for every weapon but comes at a price, either of your time or your wallet, which is filled by collecting items for sale, or performing well in each of the game’s missions.

Weapons are upgraded between chapters using this monetary system. Accuracy, ammo-capacity and power are all available for improvement and the added firepower will certainly help you in your bid to stop Wesker. Should you die in one of the many gruesome fashions available, the game offers you the chance to upgrade your weapons once more before tackling the situation again. This will unfortunately happen frequently due to completely unexpected quick-time events, which catch you off guard. There are so few in the game that it’s hard to see them coming, resulting in many untimely deaths.

The game can be played either solo, or with another player controlling Sheva, who otherwise is handled by adequate AI. This experience obviously extends the life of the game greatly and is a lot of fun (provided you have friends willing to play). With just a single player, Sheva’s AI copes reasonably well – especially when equipped with machine guns. Avoid giving away your more precious ammunition however, as she can be somewhat trigger-happy.

Rounding out the features is mercenary mode, which sees players eliminating enemies for points in a set area under a time limit. It offers a more hectic experience than the main campaign and is just another example of Capcom’s commitment to longevity and replay value.

In terms of visuals, Resident Evil 5 sets a new benchmark for multi-platform titles. Character models are detailed and well animated; textures are gorgeous throughout and explosions are some of the best we’ve ever seen. The sprawling shanty town from the game’s opening looks incredible, with dust-swirl particle effects and a great lighting model ornamenting an authentic African habitat. This level of quality is maintained throughout other expansive areas, which provide a beautiful backdrop for the game’s events, especially the quarry segment, played under a setting sun, with a gorgeous evening hue saturating the landscape and character models with bloom effects. With awful, sometimes gravity-defying enemy animations reused from Resident Evil 4 however, the game keeps one foot in the last generation, which is disappointing considering the overall incredible level of quality as far as visuals are concerned.

Sound design is good, with dialogue and sounds fading as you move from their source or direction. Enemies can be strangely silent-footed, which can lead to attacks from behind but by far our biggest complaint is that weapons sound severely under-powered. In cut scenes, the firearms have a real weight and punch but this is oddly and inconsistently lacking from the main game.

Capcom, with its MT Framework engine, has created one of the finest looking games ever to be simultaneously released on multiple platforms. Most importantly perhaps for this game, it has managed to succesfully integrate co-op into a traditionally single-player experience, which is no mean feat. Resident Evil 5’s high production values make it stand out from the crowd and at its core it can still call itself a rightful inheritor of the Resident Evil monicker. It’s just that this is a game caught in a transitional phase; new gameplay mechanics meet old, vie for control and trouble the identity of this traditionally formulaic franchise. While not everything works perfectly, its a good sign that Capcom is seriously contemplating the future direction of Resident Evil. As to where it goes from here is anyone’s guess. But with a game this good in our hands, we’re excited to find out.