RESIDENT EVIL: THE UMBRELLA CHRONICLES (WII)
Capcom’s struggle to deliver telling Resident Evil spin-offs has been a long and storied one, dating back to 2000’s experimental Survivor. Moving from pre-rendered environs into full 3D, this PlayStation title was something of a leap into the unknown; an unusual hybrid of exploratory first-person survival horror, and a lightgun shooter. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it didn’t quite gel. However, the germ of an idea was sown and perhaps ultimately accounted, several years down the line, for The Umbrella Chronicles. Here, Capcom opted wisely to place all its eggs in the one basket, offering a more cohesive, focused experience. It’s an awful lot of fun, albeit not without a few troubles of its own.
With Resident Evil’s 2002 remake and subsequent prequel Resident Evil Zero already in the can from GameCube releases just a few years beforehand, the Wii’s similar graphical architecture, together with the possibilities opened up by the motion controller, made UC a plausible next step for the series on Nintendo hardware. The game provides a potted-retelling of the stories of three Resident Evil titles, each condensed into three, arcade-style shooting levels. Logically enough, the two aforementioned GameCube releases get the treatment, with the action-packed events of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis thrown in for good measure.
Nope, de-Nope-Nope. How did a spider that size get through the door and then shut it behind them?
Each scenario is imagined as a cooperative venture, with frequent dialogues playing out as you move through briskly-paced scenarios amidst familiar surrounds. Just as in the main series, zombies can soak up quite a few pistol rounds, so if you’re to survive, a keen eye is needed to pick out much-needed health sprays, herbs and weapons dotted around the levels. Unusually, the player is encouraged to blast lamps, tables, pots and any number of others incidental scenic scatter, as doing so often yields intel and ammunition, whilst also contributing to your end of level grade.
The key to the game’s success is it doesn’t make the mistake of trying to be too similar to the survival horror originals. The developer wisely focused on the lightgun genre’s strengths and adapted Resident Evil’s considerable potential to suit. Whilst atmosphere and jump-scares have long been a hallmark of the series, Umbrella Chronicles opts instead for leaner, adrenalin-packed scenarios populated with all of the grizzly creatures you’ve come to know and love (or perhaps fear). In particular, the lickers and spiders remain incredibly creepy.
The key to the game’s success is it doesn’t make the mistake of trying to be too similar to the survival horror originals. The developer wisely focused on the lightgun genre’s strengths and adapted Resident Evil’s considerable potential to suit. Whilst atmosphere and jump-scares have long been a hallmark of the series, Umbrella Chronicles opts instead for leaner, adrenalin-packed scenarios populated with all of the grizzly creatures you’ve come to know and love (or perhaps fear). In particular, the lickers and spiders remain incredibly creepy.
Like the GameCube entries, UC induces a heavy sepia effect, with mixed results. The upshot is, the environs retain a significant sense of the vintage horror film feel upon which the series was built, and the gameplay is consistently solid and packed with cool little details. However, drab, colourless interiors make enemies harder to track, whilst the busy streets of the Resident Evil 3 sections appear aggressively washed-out.
The mansion incident is the best of the three scenarios. Inevitably, this may to some degree be rooted in nostalgia, however the range of enemies and the close confines of the original Resident Evil make for a tremendous fit. Iconic BGMs have undergone a modest reworking, whilst classic moments such as the snake boss and the dogs crashing through the windows, are all present and correct. The train derailment section the game opens with makes for a nice curio, perhaps in significant part because of the comparatively obscurity of Resident Evil Zero. There’s the undoubtedly a novelty to tackling the events of what will have been, for a great many Wii owners and series fans alike, a first look at Zero’s events. It also strikes a better balance than the Nemesis segment, the weakest of the three, relatively-speaking. It’s fairly breathless stuff and a good bit of fun, but it’s also unbalanced and prone to some dodgy difficulty spikes. The streets fail to evoke memories of the PlayStation original in any meaningful way.
The Umbrella Chronicles almost comes unstuck through a few careless design choices. Firstly, the fairly fundamental act of reloading weapons. Rather than allowing the player to reload through the press of a button, you’re instead prompted to shake the Wiimote from side-to-side. The problem is, unless you go a bit mad, it’s somewhat hit and miss. As is always a problem when moving a motion controller out of sight of the screen, it doesn’t always realign the crosshairs all that quickly, leaving the player vulnerable. Things aren’t much better with the Zapper peripheral, as the back part of the gun is perfect for smashing your wrist. It’s a shame there’s no option to reassign reload to the ‘1’ or ‘2’ buttons.
The mansion incident is the best of the three scenarios. Inevitably, this may to some degree be rooted in nostalgia, however the range of enemies and the close confines of the original Resident Evil make for a tremendous fit. Iconic BGMs have undergone a modest reworking, whilst classic moments such as the snake boss and the dogs crashing through the windows, are all present and correct. The train derailment section the game opens with makes for a nice curio, perhaps in significant part because of the comparatively obscurity of Resident Evil Zero. There’s the undoubtedly a novelty to tackling the events of what will have been, for a great many Wii owners and series fans alike, a first look at Zero’s events. It also strikes a better balance than the Nemesis segment, the weakest of the three, relatively-speaking. It’s fairly breathless stuff and a good bit of fun, but it’s also unbalanced and prone to some dodgy difficulty spikes. The streets fail to evoke memories of the PlayStation original in any meaningful way.
The Umbrella Chronicles almost comes unstuck through a few careless design choices. Firstly, the fairly fundamental act of reloading weapons. Rather than allowing the player to reload through the press of a button, you’re instead prompted to shake the Wiimote from side-to-side. The problem is, unless you go a bit mad, it’s somewhat hit and miss. As is always a problem when moving a motion controller out of sight of the screen, it doesn’t always realign the crosshairs all that quickly, leaving the player vulnerable. Things aren’t much better with the Zapper peripheral, as the back part of the gun is perfect for smashing your wrist. It’s a shame there’s no option to reassign reload to the ‘1’ or ‘2’ buttons.
You'll meet a number of familiar friends and foes along with way
Whilst it’s not crucial to play through the game with two players, the experience is certainly a lot more enjoyable with a friend. If you do choose to go it alone, expect a slightly tougher time of things. Your always-vocal partner doesn’t actually help, and this means going without the kind of back-up you might reasonably have hoped for when reloading your gun, or trying to retrieve an item. Still, there’s plenty of incentive to return as the player is graded, in the usual Resident Evil fashion, on completion time, kills, intel emblems uncovered, and the rather rubbish critical kills. These require that you hover the reticle over a target’s weakpoint long enough for it to flash, to count. In hindsight, it would have made more sense simply to count headshots.
As well as nine main levels, there’s a bunch of alternative scenarios which are cool. Here, you can tackle the events in and around the original game, from the perspectives of Rebecca Chambers and everyone’s favourite nasal psychopath Albert Wesker. It’s a love letter to fans, but a shooter that’s accessible enough for those unfamiliar with the series to enjoy as well. You’ll replay the levels plenty of times, not so much for grades, but for stars that allow the player to upgrade weapons, and for the sheer fun of it all.
The Umbrella Chronicles is well worth investigating. Signature characters, scenarios, monsters and music help lend significant weight to a Resident Evil lightgun game, and whilst the gameplay doesn’t sit amongst the finest the genre has to offer, it’s more than strong enough to make for a really enjoyable romp. At last, the wait for a decent Resident Evil spin-off was at an end, though whether or not you’re a fan of the series, it’s a riotous good time.
As well as nine main levels, there’s a bunch of alternative scenarios which are cool. Here, you can tackle the events in and around the original game, from the perspectives of Rebecca Chambers and everyone’s favourite nasal psychopath Albert Wesker. It’s a love letter to fans, but a shooter that’s accessible enough for those unfamiliar with the series to enjoy as well. You’ll replay the levels plenty of times, not so much for grades, but for stars that allow the player to upgrade weapons, and for the sheer fun of it all.
The Umbrella Chronicles is well worth investigating. Signature characters, scenarios, monsters and music help lend significant weight to a Resident Evil lightgun game, and whilst the gameplay doesn’t sit amongst the finest the genre has to offer, it’s more than strong enough to make for a really enjoyable romp. At last, the wait for a decent Resident Evil spin-off was at an end, though whether or not you’re a fan of the series, it’s a riotous good time.