10 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, May17, 2004



ARTS-


Must ... buy ... Dave Matthews CD!
New 'Resident' plays too stiff

By Adam Rottenberg
Daily Arts Writer

The long and storied history of the
"Resident Evil"
franchise has R
recently been Resident
marred by unin- Evil:
spiring sequels, Outbreak
remakes, prequels PS2
and wretched spin- Capcom
offs. While the
Gamecube remake and prequel offered
gorgeous new visuals, both games pro-
vided little innovation to the tried and
true fornula of the series. As Capcom
refined 3-D action with "Devil May
Cry," "Resident Evil" retained its rudi-
mentary controls, limiting gameplay to
a slow and methodical pace. Now the
series steps boldly onto the Internet.
The concept seems innocuous
enough: take the puzzle-solving, zom-
bie-shooting game online. "Outbreak"
features both cooperative and competi-

tive modes, portraying gamers as peo-
ple working together to fight the
undead or as zombies once the player
succumbs to death. The latter aspect
breathes new life into "Outbreak,"
though it's frustrating to move the
plodding zombies. There are multiple
types of characters to choose from,
each with different attributes.
The scenarios in "Outbreak" are ini-
tially interesting; however, the story-
lines lack the depth and complexity of
its offline brethren. Considering that
horror often functions most effectively
because of tension in the plot, the sce-
narios hinder the chilling atmosphere.
Overall, though, the environments and
enemies do produce the creepy
ambiance expected from the series.
Gameplay is both the biggest flaw
and greatest attribute of "Outbreak."
The teamwork aspect and playing as a
zombie brings a freshness to the other-
wise stale and stagnant game. Players
are still inhibited from full 3-D move-
ment, an inexcusable offense at this
point in the series. While the clunky

controls sometimes heighten the sense
of fear, more often than not they prove
maddeningly difficult in close quarters
combat.
"Outbreak's" graphics are slightly
better than the Dreamcast's "Code
Veronica" but fall far short of the
Gamecube installments. Character
models are not nearly as refined as in
those games, featuring jagged edges
and lack of detail. Because there are so
many to choose from, these playable
characters suffer from a lack of real
identity. The environments, as always,
are strikingly rendered but lack much
interaction.
It's time to revamp the "Resident
Evil" franchise. The core of the game
is essentially the same as the PSI orig-
inal. While the online components
offer enough to lure in diehard fans of
the series, there isn't enough to convert
new players here. The upcoming
Gamecube "Resident Evil 4" must
rejuvenate this franchise or else it will
simply fade into mediocrity like Cap-
com's own "Megaman."


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