Metachronos overall score = 7.5 / 10
Positive
- A faithful translation of Capcom's original survival horror classic
- Features two playable characters plus two distinctly different single-player modes
- Some excellent sound and music, plus voice acting that's so bad it's funny
- Creative minigames make use of the touch screen and microphone
Negative
- Visuals look grainy and washed out
- Controls are clunky and can take getting used to
- Cheesy video and dialogue don't really fit with the game's serious theme
Resident Evil's story comes straight out of a horror movie--a bad one if you judge it by the quality of the so-awful-it's-funny voice acting and the cheesy full-motion video cutscenes seen in the intro and endings. But apart from some dialogue that's every bit as painful as the various gruesome-looking scenes of violence the game is filled with, the story of Resident Evil effectively sets the stage for plenty of tense and suspenseful action. The premise is simple but compelling: The elite S.T.A.R.S. alpha team is sent in to reconnoiter with bravo team, which disappeared while investigating a disturbance near an old mansion. But alpha team is promptly attacked by monstrous things and forced to split up. Now Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, together with several other surviving comrades, are trapped in the mansion and trying to regroup and escape. But are their conventional weapons enough to protect them against the living dead? After an awkward start, the story becomes quite captivating as Chris and Jill begin unraveling the mysteries of both their hideous enemies and the mansion.
Resident Evil DS features a classic mode that's mostly identical to the 1996 original, the updated "rebirth" mode that introduces some new surprises, and a Wi-Fi mode in which up to four players can either compete or cooperate as they fight through several different areas. You've also got two playable characters to choose from and multiple endings to discover in the single-player modes, and many more characters are unlockable for use in multiplayer, which helps create lots of lasting value. The underlying gameplay is a pretty simple mix of blasting zombies and other monsters at close range while solving occasional puzzles, but it's good enough to sustain multiple plays through the storyline (which takes maybe six or seven hours the first time), especially since enemy placement changes depending on the mode and your character. Chris and Jill take slightly different paths through the game, but apart from that they play almost identically. Jill has an easier time because she can pick certain locks and carry more stuff, but Chris can take more punishment. Both will need to overcome a few fairly well-thought-out puzzles besides just blasting zombies, though.
You know a game's a classic when you can play it years later and still have a great time. Resident Evil: Deadly Silence is surprisingly successful at translating the scary bits of the original to a much smaller format, and the end result has a lot to offer Resident Evil fans as well as those who've always wondered what the fuss is about. You wouldn't expect a portable game to be able to scare you, especially since this version's visuals simply aren't on par with the cutting-edge graphics Resident Evil is known for. But Resident Evil DS packs in a lot of gory, atmospheric moments. It's pretty wild that now you can play a game like this on the go.
Subject: Resident Evil: Deadly Silence 
Sun Apr 27, 2008 9:00 am
