Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles review

If there was one complaint that we could level at Resident Evil 4, it's that it didn't bother to tie up all the loose ends of the series up to that point before starting a whole new chapter. Granted, the series' storyline has never been particularly deep, but some closure would have been nice. Well, Capcom have come to the rescue with another shot at making a successful Resident Evil light-gun game, intended to fill in all the gaps in the story, and finally get the series ready to move on to the next real chapter... a goal it only partially achieves.A large amount of material has been excised from the main featured games, with many plot points skimmed over or else absent (our favourite meathead Barry doesn't even get a cameo in the Resident Evil chapter). Resident Evil 3 is the worst-hit by this, as it has been almost completely re-written. Worse still, two of the main games - Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil Code: Veronica - are missing entirely. These sections can best be thought of as a 'Best of Resident Evil' compilation; a compilation which is sadly incomplete. However, the new chapter about the fall of Umbrella, and the various hidden side-missions focusing on side-characters and events only alluded to in the games, prove to be more interesting and set the stage nicely for the state of affairs in Resident Evil 4.This wouldn't mean anything if the game didn't play well, of course. We've tried to forget the last few times Capcom tried to make Resident Evil into a light-gun series. Thankfully, this time they've got it right by taking away the awkward movement controls that hampered the Gun Survivor series, and leaving a much tighter gameplay experience. It also makes things very tense, as the camera spins around during apparently calm moments to reveal an army of monsters who have sneaked up behind you. Such moments of mobs of enemies evoke the best moments from RE4, making us wish the whole series had been like this. There's a good variety of creatures to face from the games, and some good boss battles against classics such as the Tyrant and Nemesis. There's also a nice selection of extra weapons you can find and upgrade to help you in your monster-slaying business.The Wii remote has always struck us as being a perfect tool for gun games, and here it gets put to good use. As well as being able to shoot bad guys accurately, you can also swing it to take a swipe with your knife. It also evokes themes from the older RE games as ammo for your bog-standard pistol is unlimited, but ammo for every other gun you find must be rationed and saved for the myriad boss fights. However, the (perhaps-too-large) reticule has a tendency freeze on-screen if you hold the Wiimote too close. It can get aggravating if this happens and you end up shooting at thin air while a monster claws your face off, but provided you don't get over-enthusiastic, it can be avoided.Each enemy also has a weak spot, which causes massive damage if you manage to hit it; in the case of zombies, you can score one-hit-kill headshots. Often (particularly in the case of the zombies) this weak spot is only a few pixels large, and it's hard to stay calm and take aim when legions of zombies and other assorted beasties are in front of you wanting to sink their teeth into your delicate flesh. Also, blasting the zombies in different parts of their anatomy doesn't cause much in the way of specific reactions, unlike in the House of the Dead games where it was possible to reduce enemies to nothing but a bloody stump. Next to that, Resident Evil gun games have always seemed a bit tame and poker-faced, and Umbrella Chronicles is no different.Often, the graphics don't impress either. It's cool to see all the old RE haunts recreated in 3D, but there are moments where the textures appear very bland, and sometimes don't even look as good as RE4. The voice-overs and script are as pleasingly cheesy as ever, but the music is a let-down, most of it not sounding very appropriate.For a gun game, however, there's an incredible amount of replay value. As well as the various levels, there are tons of files, side-levels and hidden goodies to find and unlock. It builds up to a very rich and impressive compilation of RE tidbits and info, and they're good incentive to play through the levels again and improve your ranking. Two-player co-op is also supported, which proves to be great fun, but the only problem is that both players share the same life bar so both need to be equally skilled or you won't get far.Ultimately, Umbrella Chronicles proves to be great fan-service, and will no doubt keep fans of the Resident Evil series very happy until Resident Evil 5 arrives. On its own, while there are niggles, it still proves to be a solid, entertaining gun game that's worthy of carrying the 'Resident Evil' title.