What is "Lag Shot" in Resident Evil 5?
Lag shot is a term associated with performing a gunshot the split second right before a melee attack hits a stunned enemy. Basically, a player fires then melees almost simultaneously. This technique can be done with ANY type of weapon - even a rocket launcher. It can be done with any type of melee as well. This technique can actually be used to play Safari Chris much like BSAA Chris (leg stun only) or it can be used to correct the flaw where Safari Chris' straight might not kill when hitting a Majini from behind after a head stun (straight then lag shot + straight) - when using lag shot before the straight, Safari's straight will always kill if the straight hits!
Around the first year of RE5, lag shot was mainly used while playing off host in duo when a player played with lag. Playing with lag makes a lag shot easier to pull off. When playing with any type of lag, the buttons for performing the lag shot do not have to be pressed as fast! Over the years, players have started to perform lag shot more often without lag. The buttons must be pressed almost instantly one right after the other when lag is not present.
In Mercenaries, most players use lag shot to perform a melee kill more quickly on an enemy after an early stun. It is most useful with Chris and Sheva since their frontal leg melees can both hit grounded enemies. Wesker and Jill can both take advantage of lag shot as well, but the melee will not connect as well in most cases since many of their melees will not hit a grounded enemy (besides arm stun).
Lag shot is best performed with a control type where you can control the camera with the right analog/thumbstick. It's good to tilt the camera toward a stunned Majini before firing the shot right before the melee. With Type C and D controls, a player can only tilt the camera up or down with the right analog/thumbstick, which reduces the amount of control for aiming. With Type A lag shot, you really need all the camera control you can get, so Type C's limited camera control would make that lag shot sequence even harder.
What are the flaws of Lag Shot?
Lag shot does include certain flaws that are caused by trying to perform the lag shot itself.
- When a Majini falls down on both knees for a leg stun, the melee will often miss unless the Majini is uphill or your character is RIGHT NEXT to the Majini. In that case, it is best to perform an instant kill melee from behind or shoot the Majini one more time to cause the Majini to fall. To me, this is the worst flaw of lag shot, simply because, if you had damaged the Majini normally, your character could kill the Majini after the stun, but because you are using lag shot, you need that extra gunshot, but can't get it, so... you are losing time by trying a lag shot when a Majini falls on its knees during a leg stun!
- Never aim toward the head when performing the actual lag shot gunshot or you run the risk of getting a critical shortly before the melee. This can be even worse and you might accidentally activate a scripted Cephalo shortly before a melee.
- Sometimes a Majini will stagger backwards from the lag shot if they are shot in the top half and the melee will miss. This happens VERY rarely, but it will happen eventually. Shooting a Majini in the leg instead of the body will sometimes cause them to fall and the melee will miss as well! It's best to aim toward the body.
- With Safari Chris, if you do a lag shot right after a head stun (lag shot + straight), the Majini might fall and roll to the ground and the straight will miss the rolling Majini. The melee can usually be saved through a stomp when this happens, but this can cause a missed combo!
Type B and D Lag Shot
Player: Berserker Kev
NOTE: Safari Chris is normally a head stun character when trying to melee kill with him. His usual melee kill combination is headshot + straight. When played with lag shot like in the video above, he can be played as a leg stun character since all leg stuns can give you a melee kill. Playing Safari Chris as a leg stun character with the help of lag shot reduces the chances for criticals and random Cephalos in stages where they are both common like Missile Area. I use control type B in the video up above.
The method to perform a lag shot with Type B and D is the easiest, so I will explain it first. With Type B and D, get a stun on an enemy then rush up to the enemy and aim then fire and perform the melee DIRECTLY after firing. The melee button must be pressed between the time period where the gun is fired and the bullet actually hits the enemy.
Here is a full explanation of how to perform a melee from a leg stun with Type B or D:
1) Stun an enemy by shooting the enemy in a leg to get a leg stun
2) Rush toward the stunned enemy to where the melee prompt appears while standing near it
3) Aim at a portion of the enemy with the L1/LT button
4) While aiming press the R1/RT button to fire then QUICKLY tap the Square/X button to perform the melee
The actual shot + melee combination has to be performed one tap right after the other. It's much like Tekken where two button taps must be pressed one right after the other very quickly! Sort of like... R1 ~ Square or RT ~ X.
Type A and C Lag Shot
Player: RAGIA-2-RAGI_
NOTE: The player in the video above is a Type A player. Type A lag shot looks no different from Type B lag shot, but, as you can see, he does it a lot less than in my video - aka. lag shot is harder with Type A and C controls.
Type A and C players have a similar method for lag shot, but, since the melee button and the fire button are both the same, the fire button must be held before stepping in front of the enemy and the gunshot must be triggered by aiming with the aim button. Basically, you have to keep in mind that after you hold the fire button then tap the R1/RT button while holding the fire button, your character will shoot!
Here is a full explanation of how to perform a melee from a leg stun with Type A or C:
1) Stun an enemy by shooting the enemy in a leg to get a leg stun
2) Hold down the fire button (Square/X) then rush toward the stunned enemy to where the melee prompt appears while standing near it
3) While the Square/X button is still being held, aim at a portion of the enemy with the right analog (tilt the camera toward the enemy). The MOMENT you press and hold the R1/RT button to aim your weapon, your character will fire.
4) Right after pressing the R1/RT button to fire, release the Square/X button then quickly tap the Square/X button once again to perform the melee
Just like with Type B and D controls, the melee button press must be tapped in between the time the gunshot is fired and when the gunshot actually hits the enemy in order to perform the melee.
NOTE: If you have any problems performing lag shot with either method, try playing in duo and allowing another player to host - play off host. While playing off host, you will get a bit of lag depending on the connection and the lag shot will be much easier to pull off since you will not need to press the fire and melee button as quickly in sequence.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Resident Evil 5: The Mercenaries - Scoring System
The following tables list all point amounts for Resident Evil 5: The Mercenaries. The only point amount not in a table is the point amount for leftover time. Each leftover second at the end of a run is worth 1000 points in The Mercenaries (1 second = 1000 points).
RE5 Mercenaries Normal Enemy Point Amounts
RE5 Mercenaries Boss Enemy Point Amounts
The tables above show the point amount per normal enemy and boss enemy in Resident Evil 5 Mercenaries. Once an enemy is killed, the full point amount that the enemy is worth will be received the moment that all of its HP total has been consumed - some enemies (such as the Blue Chainsaw Majini) do not even have to be performing a death animation for the player to receive the points for their kill. Keep in mind that the Blue Chainsaw Majini is not truly defeated until all of his HP is taken while he is in his berserk mode state.
RE5 Mercenaries Combo System (Standard Combo)
The table above shows the standard combo system for Resident Evil 5: The Mercenaries. Starting from kill 2, a player will receive bonus points per enemy that is killed so long as the combo chain is kept going through enemy kills. The current combo will appear on the right hand side of the screen. Each kill must be chained within 10 seconds of the next in order to continue the combo chain. Normal enemies and boss enemies both give a player a specific amount of bonus points depending on the current kills that have been chained.
The bonus received from chaining kills gives a player a fixed rate of 1000 points per normal enemy and 7000 points per boss enemy starting at 50 combo all the way until 150 combo. The bonus points for the combo are not added up until the combo is broken or until the run ends at 150 combo.
RE5 Mercenaries Combo System (with Combo Chests included)
This second table deals with the bonus received once a combo chest is activated. It needs to be explained thoroughly to understand it, so let's start with kill 2 and explain it:
As you can see, the bonus received is much higher between kills 2-9. Kills 2-9 are the most vital kills for activating a combo chest. Kills after 10, up to 19, award a fixed rate of 500 points per kill. Kills 20-29 give 400 points. From 30 kills to 39 kills, the combo chests are only giving a fixed rate of 300 bonus points extra per kill, so a player might start to question if they are really needed by then. At 40 kills up to 49 kills a player is only receiving 150 bonus points, which is practically worthless. After 50 kills, combo chests become absolutely pointless since you are already receiving 1000 bonus points per enemy kill.
Obviously, ALL of these points can add up, but after 30 combo, if you have enemies to kill in the area, taking the time to grab a combo chest is not really in your best interest. Think about it, you could have quickly killed the enemies in the area faster to get more enemies to spawn and have a higher time instead of running to the nearest combo chest and allowing the current enemies to stay in the stage longer, reducing time, for a measly 300 points extra per kill. That doesn't sound good when each leftover second is worth 1000 points and you could have possibly finished the stage faster with not grabbing the combo chest after 30 kills.
Long story short, after 30 combo, only grab a combo bonus from a combo chest if there are no nearby enemies in the area to kill. Don't go running toward a chest at 30 combo while a crowd of 5 enemies follow behind and wait for your character to grab the combo bonus - in the end, you're losing by doing stuff such as this.
Overall, how you collect combo chests, is all based on your opinion really since Mercs runs can be so random. The current enemy spawns on the screen are the main deciding factor after 30 combo. Just... don't grab a combo bonus after 50 combo - there is no point to that.
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RE5 Mercenaries Normal Enemy Point Amounts
| Enemy Type | Point Amount |
| Majini (Town) | 300 |
| Majini (Wetland) | 400 |
| Majini (Base) | 400 |
| Bui Kichwa | 400 |
| Kipepeo | 700 |
| Cephalo | 800 |
| Licker Beta | 900 |
| Duvalia | 900 |
| Big Man Majini | 1000 |
| Chicken | 2000 |
RE5 Mercenaries Boss Enemy Point Amounts
| Enemy Type | Point Amount |
| Executioner Majini | 5000 |
| Giant Majini | 5000 |
| Reaper | 6000 |
| Chainsaw Majini (Red and Blue) | 7000 |
| Gatling Gun Majini | 10000 |
| Executioner Majini (Red) | 15000 |
The tables above show the point amount per normal enemy and boss enemy in Resident Evil 5 Mercenaries. Once an enemy is killed, the full point amount that the enemy is worth will be received the moment that all of its HP total has been consumed - some enemies (such as the Blue Chainsaw Majini) do not even have to be performing a death animation for the player to receive the points for their kill. Keep in mind that the Blue Chainsaw Majini is not truly defeated until all of his HP is taken while he is in his berserk mode state.
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RE5 Mercenaries Combo System (Standard Combo)
| Kills | Normal Bonus | Boss Bonus |
| 02 | +20 | +500 |
| 03 | +50 | +1000 |
| 04 | +100 | +1500 |
| 05 | +200 | +2000 |
| 06 | +250 | +2500 |
| 07 | +300 | +3000 |
| 08 | +350 | +3500 |
| 09 | +400 | +4000 |
| 10 - 19 | +500 | +4500 |
| 20 - 29 | +600 | +5000 |
| 30 - 39 | +700 | +5500 |
| 40 - 49 | +850 | +6000 |
| 50+ | +1000 | +7000 |
The table above shows the standard combo system for Resident Evil 5: The Mercenaries. Starting from kill 2, a player will receive bonus points per enemy that is killed so long as the combo chain is kept going through enemy kills. The current combo will appear on the right hand side of the screen. Each kill must be chained within 10 seconds of the next in order to continue the combo chain. Normal enemies and boss enemies both give a player a specific amount of bonus points depending on the current kills that have been chained.
The bonus received from chaining kills gives a player a fixed rate of 1000 points per normal enemy and 7000 points per boss enemy starting at 50 combo all the way until 150 combo. The bonus points for the combo are not added up until the combo is broken or until the run ends at 150 combo.
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RE5 Mercenaries Combo System (with Combo Chests included)
| Kills | Normal Bonus | Bonus w/Combo Chest | Actual Bonus received |
| 02 | +20 | +1000 | +980 |
| 03 | +50 | +1000 | +950 |
| 04 | +100 | +1000 | +900 |
| 05 | +200 | +1000 | +800 |
| 06 | +250 | +1000 | +750 |
| 07 | +300 | +1000 | +700 |
| 08 | +350 | +1000 | +650 |
| 09 | +400 | +1000 | +600 |
| 10 - 19 | +500 | +1000 | +500 |
| 20 - 29 | +600 | +1000 | +400 |
| 30 - 39 | +700 | +1000 | +300 |
| 40 - 49 | +850 | +1000 | +150 |
| 50+ | +1000 | +1000 | +0 |
This second table deals with the bonus received once a combo chest is activated. It needs to be explained thoroughly to understand it, so let's start with kill 2 and explain it:
Starting at kill 2, a player normally receives a bonus of 20 points. When a combo chest is activated, starting at kill 2, a player receives 1000 points in place of the 20 points that would be given for kill 2. So, a player is actually receiving 980 points extra by activating the combo chest at kill 2 (1000 points - 20 points = 980 points).
As you can see, the bonus received is much higher between kills 2-9. Kills 2-9 are the most vital kills for activating a combo chest. Kills after 10, up to 19, award a fixed rate of 500 points per kill. Kills 20-29 give 400 points. From 30 kills to 39 kills, the combo chests are only giving a fixed rate of 300 bonus points extra per kill, so a player might start to question if they are really needed by then. At 40 kills up to 49 kills a player is only receiving 150 bonus points, which is practically worthless. After 50 kills, combo chests become absolutely pointless since you are already receiving 1000 bonus points per enemy kill.
Obviously, ALL of these points can add up, but after 30 combo, if you have enemies to kill in the area, taking the time to grab a combo chest is not really in your best interest. Think about it, you could have quickly killed the enemies in the area faster to get more enemies to spawn and have a higher time instead of running to the nearest combo chest and allowing the current enemies to stay in the stage longer, reducing time, for a measly 300 points extra per kill. That doesn't sound good when each leftover second is worth 1000 points and you could have possibly finished the stage faster with not grabbing the combo chest after 30 kills.
Long story short, after 30 combo, only grab a combo bonus from a combo chest if there are no nearby enemies in the area to kill. Don't go running toward a chest at 30 combo while a crowd of 5 enemies follow behind and wait for your character to grab the combo bonus - in the end, you're losing by doing stuff such as this.
Overall, how you collect combo chests, is all based on your opinion really since Mercs runs can be so random. The current enemy spawns on the screen are the main deciding factor after 30 combo. Just... don't grab a combo bonus after 50 combo - there is no point to that.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Resident Evil: Revelations Guide
I've been working on this guide ever since a week and half before the US release. Just about every section is done on it now. The only section that isn't finished so far is the Raid Mode section. I'd like to make a sort of mini walkthrough per stage... maybe per difficulty, so this will take some major time to fully complete. Therefore, as of February 23, 2012, I now consider this guide "complete" since the walkthrough for the main campaign is fully done and so is the majority of everything else.
I'll get to the rest of Raid Mode throughout the remainder of the month and try to finish that section up. I might add a Hell mode section as well. Honestly, there are only a few parts of Hell mode that I deem truly harder than the normal mode once you get used to it. The final boss in Hell mode is pretty ridiculous if you ask me, but he's not so bad if you remember to bring the rocket launcher to the fight with him.
Resident Evil: Revelations is a total blast of an RE game. I seriously feel this game offers a better RE experience for the main campaign than RE4 and RE5. It has many more elements from a survival horror game and less emphasis on action. I'm so very pleased with this game. The mini game portion, Raid Mode, is really good too. The three difficulties in the mini game really help out in the replay value department - there is so much to complete in Raid Mode. It's good to see Capcom trying out a new type of mini game instead of Mercs once again.
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Oh, and here is one bit of extra info for the post below. Here's another reason why I will never say "I quit" with RE5 Mercenaries:
Because of the great friends that I have made from RE5!
RE5 Mercs Partner - A player that will help you try to achieve a great score.
RE5 Mercs Friend - A player that will help you try to achieve a great score and still stay in contact with you once RE5 has been turned off for the day.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Resident Evil 5: The Mercenaries - Prison SOLO strategy
This is a post for archive information for strategies of Prison SOLO in Resident Evil 5 - The Mercenaries.
-- Prison SOLO Strategy 1
Player: combattmagnum
Video Link 1
Video Link 2
-- Prison SOLO Strategy 2
Player: ChabesuObama
-- Prison SOLO Strategy 3
Player: kirin
NOTE: Take a look at the spawning regions for Prison by clicking on the map below.
Here is a breakdown of all the regions:
Region A = 134 enemies (entire Prison)
Yes, Prison only has one spawning region! So, no matter where you stand in the stage, enemies will spawn. There is no need to worry about moving to another portion of the stage. This is really the way all stages should be...
All other enemies are the 5 Executioner Majini boss enemies (2 Black and 3 Red) and the 11 enemies that start in the stage (including the chicken and EXCLUDING the first Red Executioner Majini - I count him along with the boss total).
134 + 5 Executioner Majini enemies + 11 beginning (normal) enemies = 150 enemies total!
Learn the spawning region boundaries! (all one of them!)
NOTE: The map should say "134 enemies" for Region A. I'm not redoing it though.
-- Prison SOLO Strategy 1
Player: combattmagnum
Video Link 1
Video Link 2
-- Prison SOLO Strategy 2
Player: ChabesuObama
-- Prison SOLO Strategy 3
Player: kirin
NOTE: Take a look at the spawning regions for Prison by clicking on the map below.
Here is a breakdown of all the regions:
Region A = 134 enemies (entire Prison)
Yes, Prison only has one spawning region! So, no matter where you stand in the stage, enemies will spawn. There is no need to worry about moving to another portion of the stage. This is really the way all stages should be...
All other enemies are the 5 Executioner Majini boss enemies (2 Black and 3 Red) and the 11 enemies that start in the stage (including the chicken and EXCLUDING the first Red Executioner Majini - I count him along with the boss total).
134 + 5 Executioner Majini enemies + 11 beginning (normal) enemies = 150 enemies total!
Learn the spawning region boundaries! (all one of them!)
NOTE: The map should say "134 enemies" for Region A. I'm not redoing it though.
Resident Evil 5: The Mercenaries - Ship Deck SOLO strategy
This is a post for archive information for strategies of Ship Deck SOLO in Resident Evil 5 - The Mercenaries.
-- Ship Deck SOLO Strategy (grab grenade launcher)
Player: Kayu_uma
Chainsaw Majini spawn times:
Chainsaw Majini 1 (blue) - spawns at beginning
Chainsaw Majini 2 & 3 (blue and red) - 20 combo
Chainsaw Majini 4 (red) - 30 combo
Chainsaw Majini 5 (red) - 40 combo
Chainsaw Majini 6 & 7 (blue and red) - 50 combo
Always start from the south side of Ship Deck, near the two flash grenade pickups. There is no point in starting on the north end.
NOTE: Take a look at the second video. The player shoots the cocktail Majini on the tower in the distance from the beginning. Keep in mind that you need to get the attention of this Majini or he will stay there until your character moves near him. In the Safari video, the player waits to get his attention at 1:17 in the video by hopping over toward him. Notice how the Majini yells at that time - there is no need for the Safari player to shoot him.
Turn around and pick up the two flash grenades from the start. Move down the stairs and hit the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS then move down the second set of stairs and clear the area of Majini by melee killing them. The FIRST BLUE CHAINSAW MAJINI SPAWNS RIGHT WHEN THE STAGE STARTS and he will drop from the crane tower shortly. He actually spawns as soon as the stage begins, so he will take a while to get to your character. It's best to bear down on him with your most powerful weapon as soon as he drops and knock him out. Like all blue chainsaw Majini, he won't count as a kill on the first knockout and he will revive then go into berserk mode after a few seconds.
After the blue chainsaw Majini falls, run toward the ladder on the north crate and climb it then fall down the other side of the crate. Run toward the second ladder off to the left and climb it then hit the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS above the crate tunnel.
OPTIONAL: Fall off the side of the crate with the 60 second timer and hop over the crates to the west of it then climb the ladder off to the left at the end. Fall down to the crate below then climb the ladder up ahead to the right. Hop across the crates then hit the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS and fall to the lower set of crates then pick up the grenade launcher. This is all done in the first video. Obviously, STARS Chris and Tribal Sheva do not need to do this since they already have a grenade launcher. This is completely optional.
Hit the 90 SECOND TIME BONUS in the west before moving up the stairs. Go up the stairs and climb the ladder in the center of the walkway to reach the lower part of the north tower. Climb the middle ladder to reach the top of the tower. Break the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS and take the rocket launcher. Safari Chris does not need the rocket launcher since he already carries two!
Hop back down the tower then fall off the north end. The CHICKEN should be running around either above the ladder or below the ladder. Climb the ladder in the far north then break the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS. Run over to the combo chest containing the combo bonus then take the combo bonus. Start melee killing the Majini and be sure to kill the chicken. Sometimes it's best to kill the chicken first to make sure it doesn't get away from your character. Toss a flash grenade at the chicken if it is ever much trouble.
The first blue chainsaw Majini will attack soon, so be sure to be on the lookout for him. The FIRST RED CHAINSAW AND SECOND BLUE CHAINSAW MAJINI WILL SPAWN AT 20 COMBO from the the crane in the middle of the stage then they will run to the north to attack your character. It is up to you whether you use the rocket launcher to kill them both at that time or not. By killing the first pair of chainsaw Majini with the rocket launcher, you'll have to fight the second pair with some other powered weapon... unless you are Safari Chris!
NOTE: A total of 4 Majini (3 bowgun and 1 dynamite Majini) will spawn from the north crate and try to climb the tower. They will instantly move toward the tower and try to climb it. DO NOT LET THEM CLIMB! Bullet kill them to make sure that they do not reach the top if you have to. If one of them reaches the top, they will camp on top of the tower for the rest of the run! This can easily screw up the entire run for a player by having them still on the tower when the final enemy is killed. They can spawn AT ANY TIME BEFORE 40 KILLS. They spawn randomly within the 40 kill spawning cycle of the north set of enemies, so you'll just have to WATCH CLOSELY!
The player in the video constantly turns back toward the crate where the Majini spawn and you should too! DO NOT allow the 3 bowgun and dynamite Majini to climb the tower ladder or they will camp up there until the end of the run!
NOTE: At around 20 combo, you need to take precaution in how fast you kill. The only nearby spawn point is the crate spawn point and the north region's enemies mainly spawn in the middle portion of the stage, so the majority will take a while to get to your character. There may be times where you'll have to keep the combo with a powered weapon! Both players in both videos kill slow. Some of the neck breaks are used to slow down the killing process intentionally!
The SECOND RED CHAINSAW MAJINI WILL SPAWN AT 30 COMBO from the crate tower and he will make his way toward your character. At 40 combo, it should be safe to leave the area. Run up the stairs to the left and break the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS along the way. The combo needs to be kept by killing the Majini that move toward your character along the way. Kill them with a powered weapon if you have to. The second red Chainsaw Majini will likely be met while leaving the area at 40+ kills.
Fall from the ladder in the south. You're main goal is to keep the combo and reach the middle path in between the crates for now. Once your character steps into the corridor that leads to the middle path from the north, enemies will begin to spawn again. The THIRD RED CHAINSAW MAJINI SPAWNS AT 40 COMBO from the crane tower and he will likely be met along the way to the middle area.
Your main goal is to stay in between the crate corridor in the middle of the stage and fight the enemies until 85 combo. Make your way toward the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS in the middle portion of the crates and hit that timer while fighting. The FOURTH RED AND THIRD BLUE CHAINSAW MAJINI WILL SPAWN AT 50 COMBO from the overhead crane. It's a good idea to fight them in the corridor area, especially if you have a magnum - you can literally shoot both at the same time with piercing if they stand in a line. It's best to stand with your back to the north end since Majini will often hop across the crates instead of hopping down. Majini will have to hop down and move around the side of the crates to come toward your character, so overall, it will take them longer to reach your character.
NOTE: While fighting in the middle area, two green bottle Majini and two dynamite Majini scripted Cephalos will spawn from the crate above the hopping crates near the middle. The dynamite Majini often spawn later and the green bottle Majini can spawn at any time. There will also be two red wrench scripted Cephalo Majini - one will spawn from the same crate as the other Majini mentioned above and one will drop from the overhead crane tower.
Starting at 85 kills, begin to leave the middle area. Make sure you keep the combo with enemies that are in front of your character or enemies that try to follow your character. Try to always keep an enemy in your line of vision while leaving. Move to the west area. Once you pass middle portion of the stack of crates, enemies will start to spawn from the west area.
Stay on the current side of the tunnel and fight any enemies that appear while in the west area and gradually work your way through the tunnel toward the area in front of the gate and then below the crane tower. It's very important to fight enemies a bit before going through the tunnel to make sure that enemies spawn on the other side of the tunnel once your character moves through it. Just running through the tunnel from the get go will mean that you'll likely have to turn around and keep the combo by blasting an enemy that follows.
NOTE: While in the west area, scripted Cephalos will spawn from all over the place. The first two red wrench Majini that spawn will not be scripted Cephalos, but all the rest of the red wrench Majini (around 8) will be scripted Cephalos, so it's very important that you prepare for them by shooting them in the legs and performing an instant kill melee from behind or by preparing to blast the Cephalo with a powered weapon or kill it with a flash explosive. There is a bow gun scripted Cephalo that will spawn from the beginning of the west spawning region from the north crate below the crane tower and there are three spiked club scripted Cephalos that will spawn from the south crate below the crane tower (near the 60 seconds) - the spiked club Majini will spawn toward the end of the spawning cycle. Keep in mind that the green bottle, red wrench and dynamite Majini Cephalos from the other area can follow you from the last area - basically like a surprise appearance.
Be on the lookout for scripted Cephalos and work your way to the area with the 60 second timer below the crane tower. Starting at about 140 combo, hit the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS and get ready to leave. If you didn't hit the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS on the other side of the hopping crates (near the grenade launcher) then climb the nearby ladders and hop over the crates and hit that timer after 140 combo. Kick open the gate and hit the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS near the explosive barrel and then move up the stairs and follow the path to the crane tower.
Climb the ladder to the top of the crane tower. Four camping bowgun Majini will be at the top of the crane. Run over to the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS on top of the crane tower and hit it then quickly melee kill the last four bowgun Majini to end the run!
NOTE: If the run does not end once all of the bowgun Majini are killed on the tower, look over at the north tower. If there is a Majini on top of the tower, you let a camping bowgun or dynamite Majini get by your character and climb the north tower somewhere in between 1-40 combo. If a Majini is on the north tower, you can take your chances with sniping him from long range, or use the nearby zipline to ride over to the rocket launchers on the east suspended platform then fall and climb the crate to the north and then blast him with a rocket. Either way, you're going to lose time because of him. Ship Deck ALWAYS has this type of risk no matter how careful a player is at times.
-- Ship Deck SOLO Strategy (do not grab grenade launcher)
Player: ChabesuObama
Specific Stage Details for Ship Deck:
NOTE: Take a look at the spawning regions for Ship Deck by clicking on the map below.
Here is a breakdown of all the regions:
Region A = 52 enemies (southwest region)
Region B = 40 enemies (southeast region)
Region C = 40 enemies (north region)
All other enemies are the 7 Chainsaw Majini boss enemies and the 11 enemies that start in the stage (including the chicken and EXCLUDING the first blue Chainsaw Majini - I count him along with the boss total).
52 + 40 + 40 + 7 Chainsaw Majini enemies + 11 beginning (normal) enemies = 150 enemies total!
NOTE: If you look closely at the spawning region map below, there is an area of no spawning in between regions A and B. While standing in the south in between regions A and B, no enemies will spawn! That is a complete dead zone where no enemies can be activated. To test it, kill all current 12 enemies in the stage and stand in that area - no enemies will spawn after each of the 12 current enemies are killed! You'll have to step out of the dead zone to make enemies spawn again.
Learn the spawning region boundaries!
-- Ship Deck SOLO Strategy (grab grenade launcher)
Player: Kayu_uma
Chainsaw Majini spawn times:
Chainsaw Majini 1 (blue) - spawns at beginning
Chainsaw Majini 2 & 3 (blue and red) - 20 combo
Chainsaw Majini 4 (red) - 30 combo
Chainsaw Majini 5 (red) - 40 combo
Chainsaw Majini 6 & 7 (blue and red) - 50 combo
Always start from the south side of Ship Deck, near the two flash grenade pickups. There is no point in starting on the north end.
NOTE: Take a look at the second video. The player shoots the cocktail Majini on the tower in the distance from the beginning. Keep in mind that you need to get the attention of this Majini or he will stay there until your character moves near him. In the Safari video, the player waits to get his attention at 1:17 in the video by hopping over toward him. Notice how the Majini yells at that time - there is no need for the Safari player to shoot him.
Turn around and pick up the two flash grenades from the start. Move down the stairs and hit the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS then move down the second set of stairs and clear the area of Majini by melee killing them. The FIRST BLUE CHAINSAW MAJINI SPAWNS RIGHT WHEN THE STAGE STARTS and he will drop from the crane tower shortly. He actually spawns as soon as the stage begins, so he will take a while to get to your character. It's best to bear down on him with your most powerful weapon as soon as he drops and knock him out. Like all blue chainsaw Majini, he won't count as a kill on the first knockout and he will revive then go into berserk mode after a few seconds.
After the blue chainsaw Majini falls, run toward the ladder on the north crate and climb it then fall down the other side of the crate. Run toward the second ladder off to the left and climb it then hit the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS above the crate tunnel.
OPTIONAL: Fall off the side of the crate with the 60 second timer and hop over the crates to the west of it then climb the ladder off to the left at the end. Fall down to the crate below then climb the ladder up ahead to the right. Hop across the crates then hit the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS and fall to the lower set of crates then pick up the grenade launcher. This is all done in the first video. Obviously, STARS Chris and Tribal Sheva do not need to do this since they already have a grenade launcher. This is completely optional.
Hit the 90 SECOND TIME BONUS in the west before moving up the stairs. Go up the stairs and climb the ladder in the center of the walkway to reach the lower part of the north tower. Climb the middle ladder to reach the top of the tower. Break the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS and take the rocket launcher. Safari Chris does not need the rocket launcher since he already carries two!
Second video, 1:35
The player places a proximity bomb near the side of the top portion of the tower. Why? Because there are a total of 4 Majini that will spawn in the north spawning region that will climb to the top of the tower and camp there if they are not stopped. 3 bowgun Majini and 1 dynamite Majini will spawn from the north crate and try to climb up to the top of the tower. The STARS Chris player in the video is taking a precaution by placing the proximity bomb just in case one of those Majini gets by him.
Hop back down the tower then fall off the north end. The CHICKEN should be running around either above the ladder or below the ladder. Climb the ladder in the far north then break the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS. Run over to the combo chest containing the combo bonus then take the combo bonus. Start melee killing the Majini and be sure to kill the chicken. Sometimes it's best to kill the chicken first to make sure it doesn't get away from your character. Toss a flash grenade at the chicken if it is ever much trouble.
The first blue chainsaw Majini will attack soon, so be sure to be on the lookout for him. The FIRST RED CHAINSAW AND SECOND BLUE CHAINSAW MAJINI WILL SPAWN AT 20 COMBO from the the crane in the middle of the stage then they will run to the north to attack your character. It is up to you whether you use the rocket launcher to kill them both at that time or not. By killing the first pair of chainsaw Majini with the rocket launcher, you'll have to fight the second pair with some other powered weapon... unless you are Safari Chris!
First video, 3:05
A flash grenade can be used to stun a berserking chainsaw Majini. Always keep this in mind if you get tied up in melee killing and one is very close to your character.
NOTE: A total of 4 Majini (3 bowgun and 1 dynamite Majini) will spawn from the north crate and try to climb the tower. They will instantly move toward the tower and try to climb it. DO NOT LET THEM CLIMB! Bullet kill them to make sure that they do not reach the top if you have to. If one of them reaches the top, they will camp on top of the tower for the rest of the run! This can easily screw up the entire run for a player by having them still on the tower when the final enemy is killed. They can spawn AT ANY TIME BEFORE 40 KILLS. They spawn randomly within the 40 kill spawning cycle of the north set of enemies, so you'll just have to WATCH CLOSELY!
First video, 3:47
The only scripted Cephalos that spawn while in the north area is a red wrench Majini and a long pipe Majini. The red wrench Majini is very easy to spot. They both spawn from a crate on the west side of the middle portion of the Ship Deck, so they won't get to your character until a bit later after the killing has started. The player in the Safari video just activated the Cephalo and went for a melee kill on the actual Cephalo... and got it! He activates the long pipe scripted Cephalo at 4:58 in the video.
The player in the video constantly turns back toward the crate where the Majini spawn and you should too! DO NOT allow the 3 bowgun and dynamite Majini to climb the tower ladder or they will camp up there until the end of the run!
First video, 4:03
The player notices the bowgun Majini racing toward the ladder and shoots him in the foot to keep him from climbing. This is one of the 3 bowgun Majini that will try to climb and camp on top of the tower (3 bowgun and 1 dynamite).
NOTE: At around 20 combo, you need to take precaution in how fast you kill. The only nearby spawn point is the crate spawn point and the north region's enemies mainly spawn in the middle portion of the stage, so the majority will take a while to get to your character. There may be times where you'll have to keep the combo with a powered weapon! Both players in both videos kill slow. Some of the neck breaks are used to slow down the killing process intentionally!
The SECOND RED CHAINSAW MAJINI WILL SPAWN AT 30 COMBO from the crate tower and he will make his way toward your character. At 40 combo, it should be safe to leave the area. Run up the stairs to the left and break the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS along the way. The combo needs to be kept by killing the Majini that move toward your character along the way. Kill them with a powered weapon if you have to. The second red Chainsaw Majini will likely be met while leaving the area at 40+ kills.
Fall from the ladder in the south. You're main goal is to keep the combo and reach the middle path in between the crates for now. Once your character steps into the corridor that leads to the middle path from the north, enemies will begin to spawn again. The THIRD RED CHAINSAW MAJINI SPAWNS AT 40 COMBO from the crane tower and he will likely be met along the way to the middle area.
First video, 5:51
The player runs to the middle then stops and turns to fight. He is running to the area in front of the middle path to activate enemies for the east area (east spawning region). If he would have stayed outside of that area, the enemies would have not been activated on the east side. Always rush toward the middle portion to activate enemies since there are 12 or fewer enemies in the stage the entire time before your character reaches the middle portion when coming from the north.
Your main goal is to stay in between the crate corridor in the middle of the stage and fight the enemies until 85 combo. Make your way toward the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS in the middle portion of the crates and hit that timer while fighting. The FOURTH RED AND THIRD BLUE CHAINSAW MAJINI WILL SPAWN AT 50 COMBO from the overhead crane. It's a good idea to fight them in the corridor area, especially if you have a magnum - you can literally shoot both at the same time with piercing if they stand in a line. It's best to stand with your back to the north end since Majini will often hop across the crates instead of hopping down. Majini will have to hop down and move around the side of the crates to come toward your character, so overall, it will take them longer to reach your character.
NOTE: While fighting in the middle area, two green bottle Majini and two dynamite Majini scripted Cephalos will spawn from the crate above the hopping crates near the middle. The dynamite Majini often spawn later and the green bottle Majini can spawn at any time. There will also be two red wrench scripted Cephalo Majini - one will spawn from the same crate as the other Majini mentioned above and one will drop from the overhead crane tower.
Starting at 85 kills, begin to leave the middle area. Make sure you keep the combo with enemies that are in front of your character or enemies that try to follow your character. Try to always keep an enemy in your line of vision while leaving. Move to the west area. Once you pass middle portion of the stack of crates, enemies will start to spawn from the west area.
Stay on the current side of the tunnel and fight any enemies that appear while in the west area and gradually work your way through the tunnel toward the area in front of the gate and then below the crane tower. It's very important to fight enemies a bit before going through the tunnel to make sure that enemies spawn on the other side of the tunnel once your character moves through it. Just running through the tunnel from the get go will mean that you'll likely have to turn around and keep the combo by blasting an enemy that follows.
NOTE: While in the west area, scripted Cephalos will spawn from all over the place. The first two red wrench Majini that spawn will not be scripted Cephalos, but all the rest of the red wrench Majini (around 8) will be scripted Cephalos, so it's very important that you prepare for them by shooting them in the legs and performing an instant kill melee from behind or by preparing to blast the Cephalo with a powered weapon or kill it with a flash explosive. There is a bow gun scripted Cephalo that will spawn from the beginning of the west spawning region from the north crate below the crane tower and there are three spiked club scripted Cephalos that will spawn from the south crate below the crane tower (near the 60 seconds) - the spiked club Majini will spawn toward the end of the spawning cycle. Keep in mind that the green bottle, red wrench and dynamite Majini Cephalos from the other area can follow you from the last area - basically like a surprise appearance.
First video, 8:44
The player sets off one of the dynamite Majini scripted Cephalos from the east spawning region. This dynamite Majini spawned while the player was in the east and followed him to the west!
First video, 8:55 and 9:05
The first two red wrench Majini that spawn in the west area are not scripted Cephalos. If you get a scripted Cephalo from the beginning, that is one of the red wrench scripted Cephalos from the east area!
First video, 9:19
The player fails to get a leg stun on a bowgun Majini then instantly moves to another Majini to kill it. He leaves the bowgun Majini for a possible leg stun later (which he gets) since it has a high chance of being the scripted Cephalo bowgun Majini from the north crate. The player later takes the same precaution with another bowgun Majini - the bowgun can be the sneakiest scripted Cephalo of them all since he will appear from the beginning to the middle spawning cycle of the west spawning region.
Be on the lookout for scripted Cephalos and work your way to the area with the 60 second timer below the crane tower. Starting at about 140 combo, hit the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS and get ready to leave. If you didn't hit the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS on the other side of the hopping crates (near the grenade launcher) then climb the nearby ladders and hop over the crates and hit that timer after 140 combo. Kick open the gate and hit the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS near the explosive barrel and then move up the stairs and follow the path to the crane tower.
Climb the ladder to the top of the crane tower. Four camping bowgun Majini will be at the top of the crane. Run over to the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS on top of the crane tower and hit it then quickly melee kill the last four bowgun Majini to end the run!
NOTE: If the run does not end once all of the bowgun Majini are killed on the tower, look over at the north tower. If there is a Majini on top of the tower, you let a camping bowgun or dynamite Majini get by your character and climb the north tower somewhere in between 1-40 combo. If a Majini is on the north tower, you can take your chances with sniping him from long range, or use the nearby zipline to ride over to the rocket launchers on the east suspended platform then fall and climb the crate to the north and then blast him with a rocket. Either way, you're going to lose time because of him. Ship Deck ALWAYS has this type of risk no matter how careful a player is at times.
-- Ship Deck SOLO Strategy (do not grab grenade launcher)
Player: ChabesuObama
Specific Stage Details for Ship Deck:
NOTE: Take a look at the spawning regions for Ship Deck by clicking on the map below.
Here is a breakdown of all the regions:
Region A = 52 enemies (southwest region)
Region B = 40 enemies (southeast region)
Region C = 40 enemies (north region)
All other enemies are the 7 Chainsaw Majini boss enemies and the 11 enemies that start in the stage (including the chicken and EXCLUDING the first blue Chainsaw Majini - I count him along with the boss total).
52 + 40 + 40 + 7 Chainsaw Majini enemies + 11 beginning (normal) enemies = 150 enemies total!
NOTE: If you look closely at the spawning region map below, there is an area of no spawning in between regions A and B. While standing in the south in between regions A and B, no enemies will spawn! That is a complete dead zone where no enemies can be activated. To test it, kill all current 12 enemies in the stage and stand in that area - no enemies will spawn after each of the 12 current enemies are killed! You'll have to step out of the dead zone to make enemies spawn again.
Learn the spawning region boundaries!
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Resident Evil 5: The Mercenaries - One Reason Why I'll Never Say "I quit"
For the past year, I've gotten to where I just get lazy with my email and allow emails to build up quite a bit in my inbox before I answer them. I literally just leave emails hanging for a month or two at times. I was just looking through my emails a few moments ago and ran across this one. This kind of email means a lot to me and I wanted to share it:
I've also got a few messages in my guestbook much like this one. They mean a lot to me. The overall RE5 Mercs community is really annoying to me now and has been for over the past year making it hard to continue to enjoy and still write out info for the game. "It's not the game that is bad, it's the community surrounding it that makes it bad" so says a certain friend. That's all very true, but I won't even get into that.
At times, I think to myself, it would be so easy to move on from RE5 and just stay gone, but it's emails like this and certain friends that I play with that will keep me involved for a while longer. I will take many breaks from it from now on and work on other games (Revelations and ORC), but I'll always return eventually.
Aside from messing around with Missile Area, getting high scores has been thrown out the window for over a year now from lack of motivation. Documenting info for RE5 Mercs is much more important to me now. I hate leaving things unfinished and there are still more solo stages left to write some info about so I'll continue with that eventually.
Just last night, I had a brainstorm on one more project for Mercs 3D since I'm sort of back to playing handhelds once again. No one is going to really care, but it wouldn't take that long and it's something I want to do! I think it should give me some variety away from Revelations and RE5 Mercs also. I'll get to the ROOT of that problem later. Yuck! Yuck!
I've just been getting back into playing RE5 mercs again. I love it but, I suck at it. Right now, my highest solo score on PA with BSAA chris is around 80k. A string of youtube and google searches for ideas on tactics and I found out that I've been playing using old info. Picking it up again and learning how to play it all over again, especially using Type B controls over Type D controls is going to take a lot of getting used to but I like it for that very reason. It is like playing a whole new mercenaries. I never had any problems getting SS scores in duo, but I like to attribute that to me and my partner just having insane persistence for getting a good run and a pretty tight teamwork game as well. After I get my game right and I conquer solo, I'm going to go back to duo and bust the scores that we previously set, and I'm going to use your guides to help me do it.
Anyway I guess that was a really long winded and unnecessary way of saying thanks for your guides, I share your enthusiasm for RE5 mercs (but not the skill), and keep up the good work. I'm always willing to support people that put a lot of effort into being good at something everyone can share.
I've also got a few messages in my guestbook much like this one. They mean a lot to me. The overall RE5 Mercs community is really annoying to me now and has been for over the past year making it hard to continue to enjoy and still write out info for the game. "It's not the game that is bad, it's the community surrounding it that makes it bad" so says a certain friend. That's all very true, but I won't even get into that.
At times, I think to myself, it would be so easy to move on from RE5 and just stay gone, but it's emails like this and certain friends that I play with that will keep me involved for a while longer. I will take many breaks from it from now on and work on other games (Revelations and ORC), but I'll always return eventually.
Aside from messing around with Missile Area, getting high scores has been thrown out the window for over a year now from lack of motivation. Documenting info for RE5 Mercs is much more important to me now. I hate leaving things unfinished and there are still more solo stages left to write some info about so I'll continue with that eventually.
Just last night, I had a brainstorm on one more project for Mercs 3D since I'm sort of back to playing handhelds once again. No one is going to really care, but it wouldn't take that long and it's something I want to do! I think it should give me some variety away from Revelations and RE5 Mercs also. I'll get to the ROOT of that problem later. Yuck! Yuck!
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Resident Evil: Revelations review
Resident Evil: Revelations
Original review link
Player(s): 1
Extra Features: online multiplayer (1-2 players)
If you're like me, you enjoyed Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil 5 greatly for their fast pace action, but after playing them, you sort of had this feeling that they didn't have the same elements of a survival horror unlike past Resident Evil games - both games seemed too focused on action while the usual horror and suspense found in past RE titles was give much less emphasis. Both RE4 and RE5 were really great for their intense gameplay, but when compared to the older RE games, they were sort of lacking in a more traditional survival horror feel that a more hardcore RE fan that has been with the series from the beginning would hope to find in them.
Resident Evil: Revelations brings back more of a classic survival horror feel found in the older Resident Evil games - puzzle solving, suspense, horror atmosphere, exploration, ammo conserving among other elements no longer take a backseat to the action gameplay like in RE4 and RE5. It's the perfect blend of the newer style of RE gameplay mixed with the older RE games' survival horror feel!
The majority of Revelations takes place aboard a large boat (Queen Zenobia) in the Mediterranean Sea. Jill Valentine has been dispatched along with her partner Parker to search for Chris Redfield and his partner after they have failed to make contact with the BSAA on there whereabouts aboard the vessel. Jill is the main character of the game and the action will switch focus to other characters such as Chris quite often as the story unfolds. The enemies fought in Revelations are all infected with the T-Abyss virus and they all have aquatic features.
The gameplay for Revelations plays much like RE5, but there is much less emphasis on melee attacks. Melee attacks only serve as more of a finishing blow. The stuns leading to the melee attack can actually be quite hard to activate since it takes several shots to a certain portion of an enemy instead of a single shot. If you've played the Lost in Nightmares mini game in RE5, then you'll find that Revelations carries that same overall focus of a horror atmosphere. Revelations places more of a focus on shooting enemies rather than conserving ammo by setting up constant stuns that lead to a melee attack. You're going to be bullet-killing enemies the majority of the time just like in RE4 and the older RE games.
Revelations once again places all ammo and items in the environments. No longer will enemies drop items once they are defeated! You are given a set amount of ammo and healing items per area so you'll have to conserve at times. Weapons are upgradeable with various upgrade items that can be found throughout the ship. Each weapon has a certain amount of slots that can hold upgrades. A weapon's damage, rate of fire, capacity, among other properties can all be upgraded with upgrade items. Upgrades can be placed on weapons at green weapon crates - they look like item boxes. Only Jill can upgrade since the game mainly follows her story. Side characters are stuck with their default weapons and current weapon stats.
The overall weapon variety for Revelations is mainly composed of weapons from RE4 and RE5 and there are some new weapons added to the mix. Players will have a variety of handguns, shotguns, rifles, machine guns, and magnums to choose from. There is also a rocket launcher weapon (one time use). Each character can only hold three weapons. Jill is the only character that can switch weapons in the main game.
Revelations encourages exploration. A player will have to find items and backtrack to many areas of the ship in order to solve puzzles or unlock doors. RE4 and RE5 placed more of a focus on forward progression through rooms and areas, but Revelations brings back some backtracking. The backtracking never did come across as repetitive to me - it was actually quite good to see it back so I could return to older areas like in previous RE titles once again and explore. Revelations' puzzles are all touch screen puzzles. Many of them have a player using the touch screen to remove screws from a control box then rearrange several plugs on a circuit board. There are some welding touch screen puzzles and actual fingerprint puzzles much later into the game as well.
Revelations' overall gameplay has much variety in it. A player will be busy shooting, puzzle solving, exploring and switching to a new character quite often throughout the main story. The game also allows a player to swim through many of the later areas. The swimming is such a nice break from the constant running and walking throughout the ship. Swimming controls are much like you would expect - one button to dive and one button to swim while maneuvering with the left circle pad.
The game is overall very cinematic and story driven. Cutscenes are quite frequent and the game is constantly switching back and forth between characters. Between episodes, the game will have a recap of previous events much like a movie! Sometimes a player will have to progress through a flashback mission. Boss battles are very epic and enjoyable. Each boss and normal enemy has some sort of weak area or weakness that can be used against them. Enemies in Revelations can be quite tough at times. Just normal enemies seem to carry quite a bit of health and are aggressive at times and bosses take a tremendous amount of firepower to bring down.
Each controlled character will almost always have a CPU controlled partner with them. This can be both good and bad. The CPU partner is invincible and has infinite ammo, so you never have to worry about them. The CPU partner will help in shooting enemies and damaging enemies, but they can also interrupt stun and stagger animations. There were many times where I was shooting the legs of an enemy to make it fall and my CPU partner would start shooting the body of the same enemy and cause the enemy to not fall down because the stun was interrupted by the partner's shooting. The main story mode has no co-op play in it - it's all single player.
The overall graphical look to Revelations is quite amazing. It's literally the best-looking 3DS game I have seen. The character models are all just as detailed as in RE5. Environments are dripping with horror atmosphere. There are many closed in areas with blood and guts stripped all over the walls to get your nerves on edge and many huge rooms much like you would expect on a luxury ship. The only bad aspect I could really find about the graphics are jagged edges on the character models at times.
Enemies will go through certain stun or stagger animations while shooting them, but the animations appear to be delayed with some enemies. There were many times where I would waste ammo from shooting an enemy that was already considered "dead" yet the death animation had not kicked in just yet - basically, my shots would start to go right through the targeted enemy then seconds later, the enemy would begin to crumple and fall. Delayed reaction happens quite often in Revelations. The majority of the time, I stand back and wait for reactions after shooting an enemy a few times just to make sure that I don't overshoot.
The sound can really add to the horror atmosphere in Revelations. While walking through corridors, I would sometimes hear voices whispering from an enemy that was up ahead or hear some type of enemy yell in the distance. The overall soundtrack is quite fitting for the many areas as well. It has several quiet tunes that play during normal gameplay and loud tracks for big boss battles. The character voices are all very well done also, much like in RE5.
Revelations controls exactly like Mercenaries 3D for the most part. If you've played that game, you'll be right at home with Revelations. There is not much difference at all. Revelations has a newly added dodge feature similar to the dodge found in RE3. Like in RE3, the dodge will seem kind of random at times. It is done by pressing the left circle pad up or pressing the left circle pad down along with the B button the second an enemy attack, but sometimes it will not activate when you really need it.
Raid mode is unlocked as a player progresses through the main story of Revelations. Raid mode is a survival mode with several stages where a player must fight through waves of enemies in order to clear a stage. Unlike the unlockable Mercenaries mode in past RE games, there is no time limit. Players will have to fight a set amount of enemies in order to finish a stage. As a player shoots each enemy, damage is displayed based on where the enemy is shot. Raid mode is an excellent way to learn the different weaknesses of each enemy since the damage delivered per shot is actually showed on the screen. Weak areas will be showed in a red color to signify the greater amount of damage delivered per shot.
Raid mode has a slight RPG feel to it. Besides displaying enemy health and weak points, some enemies have upgrades on them that will make them have a higher defense, move faster or attack more aggressively among many other enhances. Some enemies have icons near their life bar that display their current status enhancement. Enemies can be larger than others too. I ran across some huge Hunters and Ooze Mutants in one stage of the game.
Battle Points can be collected by playing the main game and by playing Raid mode. There points can be used to buy extra weapons or customization parts for Raid mode. Weapons and customization parts are also unlocked by finishing stages. All characters from the main game can be unlocked for use in Raid mode. Each character can carry three weapons at a time and all characters have their own unique abilities such as reloading certain weapons faster or taking off more damage with knife attacks. Players gain levels from completing stages, which allows new weapons to be equipped.
Raid mode can be played solo or with a partner in all stages. A partner can join locally or through wireless internet play. In duo games, both players fight a stage's enemies and progress through the stage together. It's much like duo RE5 Mercenaries. Battle Points are awarded to both players just about equally. Raid mode has a total of 21 stages and a bonus stage. The stages rise in difficulty pretty quickly and there are multiple difficulties per stage. Raid mode will last a player quite a while if you want to try to get everything in it.
The main campaign took me a total of 12 hours to complete. The game has several unlockables that can be obtained by completing missions in the mission selection menu. Missions are basically just like Mercenaries 3D's medals - they are a list of objectives that must be performed to gain an unlockable. Both the main game and Raid mode have their own lists of missions.
If you were let down by how much priority the action gameplay of RE4 and RE5 took over many of the more established RE survival horror elements, you should really give Revelations a try. It plays much more like Lost in Nightmares rather than RE5. It truly is the best blend of RE5 gameplay and classical RE gameplay that I have played so far. A fan of both the newer action horror gameplay and the classical survival horror gameplay should find something to enjoy in Revelations.
The Good:
+ It's a great blend of RE5 gameplay with the more classic RE feel
+ Much gameplay variety
+ Raid mode
The Bad:
- The dodge feature will not always activate
- Enemy reaction and overall stuns seem delayed
92%
Resident Evil: Revelations is a combination of RE5 gameplay mixed with classical horror elements from past RE games that will please both new and old RE fans.
Original review link
Player(s): 1
Extra Features: online multiplayer (1-2 players)
If you're like me, you enjoyed Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil 5 greatly for their fast pace action, but after playing them, you sort of had this feeling that they didn't have the same elements of a survival horror unlike past Resident Evil games - both games seemed too focused on action while the usual horror and suspense found in past RE titles was give much less emphasis. Both RE4 and RE5 were really great for their intense gameplay, but when compared to the older RE games, they were sort of lacking in a more traditional survival horror feel that a more hardcore RE fan that has been with the series from the beginning would hope to find in them.
Resident Evil: Revelations brings back more of a classic survival horror feel found in the older Resident Evil games - puzzle solving, suspense, horror atmosphere, exploration, ammo conserving among other elements no longer take a backseat to the action gameplay like in RE4 and RE5. It's the perfect blend of the newer style of RE gameplay mixed with the older RE games' survival horror feel!
The majority of Revelations takes place aboard a large boat (Queen Zenobia) in the Mediterranean Sea. Jill Valentine has been dispatched along with her partner Parker to search for Chris Redfield and his partner after they have failed to make contact with the BSAA on there whereabouts aboard the vessel. Jill is the main character of the game and the action will switch focus to other characters such as Chris quite often as the story unfolds. The enemies fought in Revelations are all infected with the T-Abyss virus and they all have aquatic features.
The gameplay for Revelations plays much like RE5, but there is much less emphasis on melee attacks. Melee attacks only serve as more of a finishing blow. The stuns leading to the melee attack can actually be quite hard to activate since it takes several shots to a certain portion of an enemy instead of a single shot. If you've played the Lost in Nightmares mini game in RE5, then you'll find that Revelations carries that same overall focus of a horror atmosphere. Revelations places more of a focus on shooting enemies rather than conserving ammo by setting up constant stuns that lead to a melee attack. You're going to be bullet-killing enemies the majority of the time just like in RE4 and the older RE games.
Revelations once again places all ammo and items in the environments. No longer will enemies drop items once they are defeated! You are given a set amount of ammo and healing items per area so you'll have to conserve at times. Weapons are upgradeable with various upgrade items that can be found throughout the ship. Each weapon has a certain amount of slots that can hold upgrades. A weapon's damage, rate of fire, capacity, among other properties can all be upgraded with upgrade items. Upgrades can be placed on weapons at green weapon crates - they look like item boxes. Only Jill can upgrade since the game mainly follows her story. Side characters are stuck with their default weapons and current weapon stats.
The overall weapon variety for Revelations is mainly composed of weapons from RE4 and RE5 and there are some new weapons added to the mix. Players will have a variety of handguns, shotguns, rifles, machine guns, and magnums to choose from. There is also a rocket launcher weapon (one time use). Each character can only hold three weapons. Jill is the only character that can switch weapons in the main game.
Revelations encourages exploration. A player will have to find items and backtrack to many areas of the ship in order to solve puzzles or unlock doors. RE4 and RE5 placed more of a focus on forward progression through rooms and areas, but Revelations brings back some backtracking. The backtracking never did come across as repetitive to me - it was actually quite good to see it back so I could return to older areas like in previous RE titles once again and explore. Revelations' puzzles are all touch screen puzzles. Many of them have a player using the touch screen to remove screws from a control box then rearrange several plugs on a circuit board. There are some welding touch screen puzzles and actual fingerprint puzzles much later into the game as well.
Revelations' overall gameplay has much variety in it. A player will be busy shooting, puzzle solving, exploring and switching to a new character quite often throughout the main story. The game also allows a player to swim through many of the later areas. The swimming is such a nice break from the constant running and walking throughout the ship. Swimming controls are much like you would expect - one button to dive and one button to swim while maneuvering with the left circle pad.
The game is overall very cinematic and story driven. Cutscenes are quite frequent and the game is constantly switching back and forth between characters. Between episodes, the game will have a recap of previous events much like a movie! Sometimes a player will have to progress through a flashback mission. Boss battles are very epic and enjoyable. Each boss and normal enemy has some sort of weak area or weakness that can be used against them. Enemies in Revelations can be quite tough at times. Just normal enemies seem to carry quite a bit of health and are aggressive at times and bosses take a tremendous amount of firepower to bring down.
Each controlled character will almost always have a CPU controlled partner with them. This can be both good and bad. The CPU partner is invincible and has infinite ammo, so you never have to worry about them. The CPU partner will help in shooting enemies and damaging enemies, but they can also interrupt stun and stagger animations. There were many times where I was shooting the legs of an enemy to make it fall and my CPU partner would start shooting the body of the same enemy and cause the enemy to not fall down because the stun was interrupted by the partner's shooting. The main story mode has no co-op play in it - it's all single player.
The overall graphical look to Revelations is quite amazing. It's literally the best-looking 3DS game I have seen. The character models are all just as detailed as in RE5. Environments are dripping with horror atmosphere. There are many closed in areas with blood and guts stripped all over the walls to get your nerves on edge and many huge rooms much like you would expect on a luxury ship. The only bad aspect I could really find about the graphics are jagged edges on the character models at times.
Enemies will go through certain stun or stagger animations while shooting them, but the animations appear to be delayed with some enemies. There were many times where I would waste ammo from shooting an enemy that was already considered "dead" yet the death animation had not kicked in just yet - basically, my shots would start to go right through the targeted enemy then seconds later, the enemy would begin to crumple and fall. Delayed reaction happens quite often in Revelations. The majority of the time, I stand back and wait for reactions after shooting an enemy a few times just to make sure that I don't overshoot.
The sound can really add to the horror atmosphere in Revelations. While walking through corridors, I would sometimes hear voices whispering from an enemy that was up ahead or hear some type of enemy yell in the distance. The overall soundtrack is quite fitting for the many areas as well. It has several quiet tunes that play during normal gameplay and loud tracks for big boss battles. The character voices are all very well done also, much like in RE5.
Revelations controls exactly like Mercenaries 3D for the most part. If you've played that game, you'll be right at home with Revelations. There is not much difference at all. Revelations has a newly added dodge feature similar to the dodge found in RE3. Like in RE3, the dodge will seem kind of random at times. It is done by pressing the left circle pad up or pressing the left circle pad down along with the B button the second an enemy attack, but sometimes it will not activate when you really need it.
Raid mode is unlocked as a player progresses through the main story of Revelations. Raid mode is a survival mode with several stages where a player must fight through waves of enemies in order to clear a stage. Unlike the unlockable Mercenaries mode in past RE games, there is no time limit. Players will have to fight a set amount of enemies in order to finish a stage. As a player shoots each enemy, damage is displayed based on where the enemy is shot. Raid mode is an excellent way to learn the different weaknesses of each enemy since the damage delivered per shot is actually showed on the screen. Weak areas will be showed in a red color to signify the greater amount of damage delivered per shot.
Raid mode has a slight RPG feel to it. Besides displaying enemy health and weak points, some enemies have upgrades on them that will make them have a higher defense, move faster or attack more aggressively among many other enhances. Some enemies have icons near their life bar that display their current status enhancement. Enemies can be larger than others too. I ran across some huge Hunters and Ooze Mutants in one stage of the game.
Battle Points can be collected by playing the main game and by playing Raid mode. There points can be used to buy extra weapons or customization parts for Raid mode. Weapons and customization parts are also unlocked by finishing stages. All characters from the main game can be unlocked for use in Raid mode. Each character can carry three weapons at a time and all characters have their own unique abilities such as reloading certain weapons faster or taking off more damage with knife attacks. Players gain levels from completing stages, which allows new weapons to be equipped.
Raid mode can be played solo or with a partner in all stages. A partner can join locally or through wireless internet play. In duo games, both players fight a stage's enemies and progress through the stage together. It's much like duo RE5 Mercenaries. Battle Points are awarded to both players just about equally. Raid mode has a total of 21 stages and a bonus stage. The stages rise in difficulty pretty quickly and there are multiple difficulties per stage. Raid mode will last a player quite a while if you want to try to get everything in it.
The main campaign took me a total of 12 hours to complete. The game has several unlockables that can be obtained by completing missions in the mission selection menu. Missions are basically just like Mercenaries 3D's medals - they are a list of objectives that must be performed to gain an unlockable. Both the main game and Raid mode have their own lists of missions.
If you were let down by how much priority the action gameplay of RE4 and RE5 took over many of the more established RE survival horror elements, you should really give Revelations a try. It plays much more like Lost in Nightmares rather than RE5. It truly is the best blend of RE5 gameplay and classical RE gameplay that I have played so far. A fan of both the newer action horror gameplay and the classical survival horror gameplay should find something to enjoy in Revelations.
The Good:
+ It's a great blend of RE5 gameplay with the more classic RE feel
+ Much gameplay variety
+ Raid mode
The Bad:
- The dodge feature will not always activate
- Enemy reaction and overall stuns seem delayed
92%
Resident Evil: Revelations is a combination of RE5 gameplay mixed with classical horror elements from past RE games that will please both new and old RE fans.
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