Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles Hands-On

Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles is a rail shooter set in the rich Resident Evil universe. This is the second game in the "Chronicles" series and the follow-up to 2007's Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles. As in that game, The Darkside Chronicles revisits locales from older games in the RE series--specifically Raccoon City from Resident Evil 2 and the mysterious island from Resident Evil: Code Veronica. We had a chance to see the single-player game earlier in the year, but yesterday, Capcom gave us a chance to try out the two-player multiplayer game for the first time.

Of the two levels on display, the first featured Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield set in the opening stages of Resident Evil 2, just outside the police station. The second featured Redfield and Rockfort Island inmate Steve Burnside as they explored the island. As you might expect from a rail shooter, the action is intense from the get-go; luckily, the controls seem to be up to the task of helping you keep the infected undead from getting too close.

Unlike in Umbrella Chronicles, you can play The Darkside Chronicles with just the Wii Remote. You use the B button as your weapon trigger; press the A button to pick up such items as herbs (which, unlike in Umbrella Chronicles, you can bank and save for later); select from one of four weapons with your D pad; and reload by simply waggling the Wii Remote. You can also slash with your knife by holding the A button down and moving the Wii Remote. Headshots were difficult to pull off in the build we played, but Capcom told us that that is being tweaked for the final version of the game, including an improved targeting reticle that will tighten up slightly when poised for a true headshot.

The multiplayer aspects of Darkside Chronicles require a little teamwork when making your way through the levels. Occasional scripted events, such as an infected enemy surprising your teammates for example, will temporarily render your teammates helpless and unable to shoot their weapon. It will be up to you to free your partners with a well-placed shot or two, thus allowing them to gain control of their weapon again. In addition, you'll occasionally run into branching paths you can choose between in order to reach the end of the level. For instance, in the Resident Evil 2 level, we were given the choice of accessing the RCPD front door either by heading across a courtyard or down a set of stairs--presumably either choice would by rife with infected enemies to blast.

The game's active camera movement was met with criticism when it was first showed off earlier in the year, and there's little doubt that the camera is much busier this time around. Especially in outdoor areas, the camera will swing wildly around as the point-of-view character tries to get a sense of what is around him or her. This can make it difficult to get an accurate shot of any approaching zombies. According to Capcom, these dramatic camera movements are meant to increase the tension of a level and are only used in situations where an infected attack isn't imminent. In most actual "shooting" situations, the camera was relatively static, giving us plenty of opportunity to make undead mincemeat of the bad guys.

Perhaps the biggest selling point for Darkside Chronicles will be nostalgia. It's fun to revisit the burning streets of Raccoon City and the spookiness Rockfort Island, and the various enemies you run into make for some pretty tense moments. In addition to hordes of T-virus-infected unfortunates, you get to deal with such RE staples as the zombiefied Dobermans and flocks of angry bats. Then, there's also Steve Burnside's constant yapping and questionable sense of humor, which--depending on your mood--might end up being your archenemy by the time you're done.

Those looking for a chance to mow down a few hundred zombies will be able to get their hands on Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles next week at Comic-Con as the game will be on the show floor in playable form. However, if you can't make it to San Diego, stay tuned to GameSpot for future updates of the game ahead of its release this November.