Capcom’s Resident Evil Revelations proved a cracking stab at getting the troubled zombie franchise back on track after the distinctly non-survival horror helpings served up by Resident Evil’s 5 and 6. With more of a focus on exploration and puzzle solving, not to mention fewer emphasis on muscle-bound heroes and adrenaline-pumping set pieces, Revelations was for many one of the best Resi adventures in years. Unsurprisingly, when Capcom announced Revelations 2 was in the works—and it was bringing back fan-favorites Claire Redfield and Barry Burton in the process—fans finally had more reason to put faith back into the Japanese developer and publisher in reinstating this venerable series back to the top of the decomposing horror pack.
PSU was lucky enough to get our mitts on about 40 minute’s worth of Barry Burton’s campaign during a recent hands-on event this week, as well as getting to grips with the Raid Mode, which is essentially Revelations’ own take on The Mercenaries mini-game of old. From our time with the game, it’s abundantly clear that Capcom wants folk to start taking Resi seriously again as a permanent contender in the survival horror market.
First up, we slipped into Burton’s shoes as he teams up with a mysterious girl, Natalia, as the ex-S.T.A.R.S. Alpha Team member investigates a spooky island while searching for his daughter, Moira. Ol’ Bazza’s been out of the limelight for a while, but for this 30-something fan, the chance to play as the bloke who gave us the immortal ‘Master of Unlocking’ line was an absolute blast. Having played the original Revelations, the controls felt instantly familiar, and pretty intuitive to boot. Whacking the D-pad selects your weapons (Barry’s armed with a Samurai Edge 9mm, Assault Rifle, and his trusty Colt Python revolver), L2 and R2 to aim and fire, respectively, while running, interacting and dodging are mapped to the face buttons. New this time is the ability to enter stealth mode by hitting the left analogue stick, while clicking the right stick activates your flashlight.
And you’ll need that light too, as the claustrophobic, gloomy interior of the detention facility we entered is certainly not easy to navigate without one. After slicing up a couple of spider-like nasties, the real meat of the mission begins when Barry and Natalia scout out the facility, which is when we’re introduced to the zombie-like Afflicted. To be honest, these shambling horrors are pretty much the regular undead foes in all but name, as they exhibit all the traits you remember: rotting skin, slow, and a penchant for feasting on human flesh. Still, they’re tenacious buggers, and I was only able to dispatch them efficiently by aiming for the head; not an easy task when there’s multiple targets in a tight corridor.
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The biggest change to Revelations 2 came in the form of character swapping. I was able to switch to Natalia by hitting Triangle, which gave me access to her unique sight ability. By crouching down, the young lass is able to sense foes at a distance, giving Bazza the heads-up on impending confrontations, allowing you to circumvent them entirely or eliminate them via a stealthy stab attack. Natalia’s also able to point out items of interest and access areas that Barry can’t, such as crawling through a pint-sized ventilation shaft. At first I wasn’t sure how much of an impact this would have on gameplay, although it became apparent that it was a valuable tool, and provides an interesting dynamic; using Barry’s brute force and Natalia’s more stealthy powers proves highly complementary, and injects a fair bit of strategy into the mix.
While brief, it seems Capcom has managed to nail that quintessential Resi atmosphere, and in many ways, Revelations 2 harkens back to the old-school horror vibe of its predecessors. Creeping around the halls of the detention facility, hearing the distant moans of nearby foes, conjured up a suitably tense experience. And, while the puzzles felt more like a quick distraction than something to really test the old grey matter, there’s no denying that my hands-on with Revelations 2’s campaign proved that Capcom has managed to create a worthy follow-up to the original, while still maintaining the nuanced scare work laid down by PlayStation granddaddy.
Raid mode, on the other hand, is another kettle of fish altogether. This is an out-and-out action fest, where players rack up the kills across various stages while reaping the rewards. While our demo was made up of only two characters—Claire Redfield and Barry Burton—Capcom’s confirmed that 15 different characters will be playable in the final version. The objective is simple: pick a character, equip yourself with two weapons (only a pistol and Uzi are selectable at the start) and go on a killing spree.
Like the original Revelations, enemies spawn with health bars above their rotting heads, and a level is displayed to alert you to their ferocity. Each area has a specific number of foes (38 at last count), and after dispatching enough of the virus-created fiends, you’ll be able to unlock a new area via a special key. Some stages have just one area before the final, while others have multiple areas before you reach your ultimate goal—a medallion that must be melee’d to end the stage. A lot of the locations I encountered (six in total) were lifted straight from Resident Evil 6, although there’s a couple of new ones dotted in there, too. The combat is as satisfying as ever, with well-placed headshots staggering foes allowing you to finish them off with a crunchy melee attack, even if it doesn’t rewrite the rule book.
You’re also encouraged to better your performance each time, as you can earn up to five medals upon completion of each stage. Aside from an award for actually beating the stage, you can grab others for not using herbs to heal yourself, sticking around to vanquish all foes, and other such parameters. Gun battles can get pretty hectic, and the stages are obviously designed to create as much tension as possible by stacking you up against overwhelming odds in claustrophobic environments—it’s all very reminiscent of classic Resi, and feels far more scarier than The Mercenaries ever did, which felt a little like your characters were overpowered. As you progress, you’ll earn new weapons and points, which can be spent on upgrading your weapons at the main hub. It’s obvious Capcom has planned Raid mode as a pretty comprehensive package, even if we didn’t get to delve deeper into its various intricacies. Colour us very impressed.
Resident Evil: Revelations 2 Episode 1 is due out for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, PC, Xbox One, and Xbox 360 in the U.S. on February 24 and in Europe on February 25.