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Resident Evil 5 December '08 Mega-Post

New hands-on impressions, video, and box art from Capcom's upcoming survival horror opus.

Oh yeah, there are dudes with chainsaws and bags over their heads in this. Totally Resident Evil.
Oh yeah, there are dudes with chainsaws and bags over their heads in this. Totally Resident Evil.
Hey, are you looking forward to Resident Evil 5? If you clicked on this, the answer is probably "yes." I hear that last one was pretty sweet. Anyway, Capcom's on an RE5 publicity tear all of a sudden. Not surprising, since we're now inside 90 days till the game drops on both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

For one, I grabbed a quick demo of the PS3 version at a press event the other night. After blowing away a bunch of parasite-infested zombies on a dusty ridge, I got to fight a nasty gigantic flying boss which emerged from the back of a truck. It seemed to be part bat and part worm with armor plating down its front and a nasty goo-spitting problem. The tactic here was to wait for the boss to charge and hit the square button when prompted to "dodge," then spin around and blast it in its fleshy backside with the AK-47, shotgun, or submachine gun I was carrying. Pretty typical of RE4's boss fights, which may or may not tickle your fancy. (It does mine.) The thing was downright hideous, I'll give it that.

I used dual analog stick controls in the demo that were virtually unchanged from the newish scheme Capcom rolled out back at Tokyo Game Show. Maybe I've been playing too much Gears 2 lately, but I was a little less impressed this time around with the revised controls. They're a definite improvement on the old RE4 style (which is still available), but not entirely in line with modern third-person conventions. I'm not sure I'm buying the RE apologists' line that being rooted to one spot while shooting is critical to preserving tension. Maybe it's just antiquated. Is it time to standardize third-person shooter controls once and for all? To be fair, I'm not passing final judgement on the update till we get retail copies in here.

You'll be able to try out the game and its controls for yourself--legitimately, without angering Capcom Japan--in "early 2009," MTV Multiplayer reports.

Kotaku's AJ Glasser played another never-before-seen level that I missed; head over there for a way more detailed report on that.

Lastly, media blitz! This new trailer shows off some action from both of those areas.

  


And here's the final box art for the game, as well as a handful of new screenshots from those same new areas.


Where's your interest level at for Resident Evil 5 these days? Higher or lower given these developments?
Brad Shoemaker on Google+

91 Comments

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comradecrash

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Edited By comradecrash

Sweet! I loved the demo.

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ep_driver

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Edited By ep_driver

Not too into this. I hate having to shoot things 48 times for it to die, I got enough of that in Far Cry 2.

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shadows_kill

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Edited By shadows_kill

didnt like re4... more than likely wont like this

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blazingwookie

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Edited By blazingwookie

holy shit

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chebba

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Edited By chebba

sweet

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Media_Master

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Edited By Media_Master

This game will be great!

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I_am_Lono

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Edited By I_am_Lono

I hate the new direction Resident Evil has taken since 4. I've played the demo of 5 and it's just nothing new, it doesn't feel tense or scary at all. RE2 was, and always will be, the best in the series.

I'm not interested in RE5 one little bit.

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FuzzYLemoN

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Edited By FuzzYLemoN

I went to great lengths to burn a ghetto demo disk with the Japanese 360 demo... totally worth it. It has restored my faith in gaming, just like RE4 did.

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vigorousjammer

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Edited By vigorousjammer

how hyped up am I for Resident Evil 5, you ask, Brad?
Well, It's only my number 1 most anticipated game of 2009 so far!!!

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StickyMicky

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Edited By StickyMicky

i have the 360 demo on CDR and i am hoping that the uk/usa release has slightly different controls, hopefully this is why the demo was supposed to be jap only, but i doubt it :(

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Gregomasta

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Edited By Gregomasta

I don't see a watermark.

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AutomaticSnake

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Edited By AutomaticSnake

this game will be ok and nothing more. what they should do is change the name cuz resident evil is dead, this aint the resident evil i used to know. RIP RE

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artofwar420

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Edited By artofwar420

I think I'm gonna freaking love this game, having played RE4 to completion makes me thirsty for more. It's like giving a lion man meat (sounds wrong), this lion is now hungry for this delicious man meat.

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bwooduhs

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Edited By bwooduhs

Good this comes out on my B-day.

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The_Icon

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Edited By The_Icon

Cant wait for the demo!

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kardon16

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Edited By kardon16

I hate the sound of the bullets penetrating the flesh, it sounds like they are stepping on fruits or some kind of food

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Metamorphic

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Edited By Metamorphic

I played the RE5 demo... somehow ;) and I really don't like the controls, specially after beating and playing Dead Space for a while. Though I played Resident Evil, 2, 3, zero, etc. but never 4.

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ManMadeGod

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Edited By ManMadeGod

Me likes the cover art.

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DECA555

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Edited By DECA555

its nearly here! 

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Sniffulls

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Edited By Sniffulls

I still wish that the controls were more refined... =O

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Everyones_A_Critic

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I've been waiting for years for this thing. RE4 was my favorite game of the last generation.

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Foxillusion

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Edited By Foxillusion

That is the most disgusting watermark I have ever seen. It's like a massive cube of ugly.

Come on, guys. Or, Vinny, probably, this is all your fault. Clean that act up son. Christ. That video was utterly painful to watch.

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Thrawn1

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Edited By Thrawn1
giantbombislame said:
"Ok, I have come to the conclusion that you guys are just copying everything that gamespot has on their site. Every day I go to your site and gamespot's and I always see the exact same thing on your site shortly after I see it on theirs. You even word things exactly the same, like this article. Check out gamespot, do you really expect us to believe it's a coincidence that your site says "resident evil 5:new hands-on impressions and video from capcom's looming horror opus," which is exactly what gamespot's article says which was put up shortly before yours? Whats gives? Are you still working for them or are you getting info from your ex employees or something? If anything, you would think you would get your own material jeff, since they canned you. Even if this is material that everyone in the gaming world has knowledge about and it is your duty to put it out, you would think you would word things differently and put different things up in a different manner than gamespot. It's like the two sites are exactly the same. Dude, cut the cord guys!"

I can't find anything on gamespot that sounds like: "resident evil 5:new hands-on impressions and video from capcom's looming horror opus."

Is it too much trouble to back up your claims with a link?

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giantbombislame

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Edited By giantbombislame

Ok, I have come to the conclusion that you guys are just copying everything that gamespot has on their site. Every day I go to your site and gamespot's and I always see the exact same thing on your site shortly after I see it on theirs. You even word things exactly the same, like this article. Check out gamespot, do you really expect us to believe it's a coincidence that your site says "resident evil 5:new hands-on impressions and video from capcom's looming horror opus," which is exactly what gamespot's article says which was put up shortly before yours? Whats gives? Are you still working for them or are you getting info from your ex employees or something? If anything, you would think you would get your own material jeff, since they canned you. Even if this is material that everyone in the gaming world has knowledge about and it is your duty to put it out, you would think you would word things differently and put different things up in a different manner than gamespot. It's like the two sites are exactly the same. Dude, cut the cord guys!

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BoG

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Edited By BoG

So, that's RE4 with better graphics.

Count me in.
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jakob187

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Edited By jakob187

I love me some RE games, and I absolutely adored RE4.  However...and I don't want to sound like a pessimist about it...but this looked boring as hell.  It just looked like RE4 with a few more enemies, some recoil jiggle, and better graphics.  That's not necessarily a bad thing, but I'm missing the "survival" part of it at the moment.

Nonetheless, I'm still going to play the shit out of the game, so I don't know why I'm even bothering with the bitching.  =  /

Tearhead said:
"Sound effects when you shoot guys sounds amazingly disgusting.  What's up with the giant white watermark Giant Bomb??  It's really obstructive."
I thought the same exact thing!!!
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Hughes

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Edited By Hughes

Hmm... is there a merchant again?

/What are ya buyin?

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AutoBarn

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Edited By AutoBarn

Jesus guys... what's with the super-ugly watermark? Alpha channels Vinny... ALPHA CHANNELS! 

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kornholio360

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Edited By kornholio360

Give it Dead Space controls and I'm sold day one. Otherwise, the Japanese demo completely turned me away from this game. :(

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Brad

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Edited By Brad

@get2sammyb

I was surprised by that in the Kotaku report too (AJ is a she, by the way) -- I didn't notice the two platforms looking markedly different when I tried the PS3 demo. I didn't scrutinize them side by side, though.

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Stevokenevo

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Edited By Stevokenevo

I think it could do with movement during shooting.  Seems like holding the flow of your character back for no good reason.

That logo is way too big in the vid.

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ocdog45

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Edited By ocdog45

game looks sick. i cant wait.

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deactivated-5d8d1874be961

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RE5 is looking like an amped up version of RE4. I just wished that the infected in this game would keep running at you and not stop like 5 feet away from you and walk up slowly. Maybe this is just normal difficulty they are showing us, and it will be a lot more challenging when the difficulty is bumped up.

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Edited By President_Evil

I don't think it's either fair or right to compare this to games such as Left 4 Dead/Gears of War.  It's all in the pacing, and Resident Evil is more about that feeling of dread you get when you're outnumbered and slowly being herded into a corner by the mob.  The truth is, you don't want to move while aiming.  Such an "innovation" would break the flow of the game.  It's not about run 'n gun, it's about plotting out your moves in advance, navigating the masses, and carefully [skillfully] picking off fools when you're in a favorable situation to do so.

It's also about peeing your pants.
tl;dr- Play RE5, love it, pee pants.

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Lev_Arris

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Edited By Lev_Arris

Is it just me or am I not seeing much gore?

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super_machine

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Edited By super_machine

This is the game Ive been waiting for. Hope its as much fun as RE4.

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thebobster10

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Edited By thebobster10

Looks really fricken awesome.

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Clockswork

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Edited By Clockswork

That is one good looking trailer and one ugly watermark you have there! Seariously, a transparent white box :P? You used to impress me Vinny..

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bcfish

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Edited By bcfish

holy shit, i can't wait!!!!

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elko84

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Edited By elko84

what's with the watermark?

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John

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Edited By John

Thats one nice boxart, too.

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get2sammyb

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Edited By get2sammyb

Brad I can't wait for this game but I just wondered if you could clear something up for me. In AJ Glasser's Kotaku report he suggested that the demo level on the Playstation 3 versions was "lousy" and didn't clarify until right at the end when he said the others levels he'd seen looked "almost identical" between systems.

I'm just concerned as to why he saved it right until the end before he clarified that they actually both looked great and the demo level must have been old code or something.

Do you have an opinion on this Brad? Sounds like you were playing on the PS3.

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TwoOneFive

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Edited By TwoOneFive

the game looks outstanding. although, i absolutely hated that survival level in the demo, but the part where you provide sniper cover was excellent. 

is that video from the PS3 version you played??
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Will

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Edited By Will

Ive played the demo from XBL marketplace by myself and with a friend HEAPS!!!! Going to love this game when it comes out, will be getting it for sure.

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Duckbutter

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Edited By Duckbutter

know this: i've been playin some Dead Space, some freakin Left 4, and some muthafuckin Fallout lately.

i didn't find the RE5 demo to be fun. i've played all the Resident Evil games before it so i was kinda shocked that the tank controls were such a bother to me this time. the whole experience was frustrating and awkward like trying to carry a desk by myself.
Dead Space has a different way of doing things with controls but i grew accustomed to it quick and the game is still fun-tastic and challenging. Motorstorm 2 has a pretty standard control scheme but i still find it challenging and what us gangsters call "rewarding".
but no fun-ness connection with RE5 yet.

and then:
some zombies just stand next to you and do nothin like they wanna whisper rumors or sweet nothings in your ear. compensation for tank controls? dudes be wearin white T-shirts but no bullet holes show up on them. how odd. gun shots are at a low volume. why? the urge to run and shoot is just too strong to ignore.

luckily for us we have reviewers to speed through the whole game and tell us whether we'll get used to these controls or not. and these reviewers do it for free like they're our bitches. ain't life grand? so i'll wait for one of my bitches to give me the skinny but until then i've lost enthusiam for this game. sexy graphics though.

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makari

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Edited By makari

I can't see why you'd want something so iconic as the RE tank controls to go away after what they did to MGS4, where 'tactical espionage action' turned into straight 'half-baked action', since no tactics or espionage were really needed to complete the game. You take away the tank controls from RE and you have make the enemies more numerous, carry guns, and move faster to compensate, but none of these things are in any way in the spirit of Resident Evil. The bottom line is, if you had great mobility in a resident evil game, you wouldn't be playing resident evil. You'd be playing a 3rd person single player Left4Dead.

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Rio

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Edited By Rio

Im not all that excited for RE5 mainly because I have not been in the mood for a survival horror game in quite a while.  The better controls and coop gameplay are definitely helping its appeal so I may be ready for it in feb.  One thing I hope they change is the sound of the bullets hitting the zombies / infected / things.  That sound is driving me nuts just from this small demo....... its a fairly terrible sound effect that could be a number of quieter more appealing sounds.  Anyway thats my only gripe really.

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Rayfield

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Edited By Rayfield

Ahem, yes. I too am excited.

I first thought, gee it looks a hell of a lot like RE4.

But then I thought, hang on RE4 was fantastic.

So yes, to reaffirm - looking forward to this one. Always curious as to what wacky old Wesker is up to.

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AlucardaLaCarte

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Edited By AlucardaLaCarte

I declare my interest: About the same! Which is to say: rather excited!!

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DrRandle

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Edited By DrRandle

I'm hoping for local co-op. Anybody know if it's in there? Split screen.... it shouldn't be dead.