Resident Evil 5: Desperate Escape

Beginning at the point Jill Valentine separates from Chis and Sheva, Desperate Escape shows how she and BSAA agent Josh Stone (spoilers!) escaped from the Tricell facility and managed to save the main characters later on. The developers aimed to create an incredibly challenging mission, and I'd have to say they completed that task admirably. While Lost in Nightmaresreturned to the series' roots with puzzles and atmosphere, Desperate Escape is the complete opposite. Strategic movement and combat tactics still help in some of the larger battles, but it's gameplay is very much like the most recent games in the series.

The entirety of the story is just as the title implies: Jill and Josh are escaping, and they're rather desperate to do so. It's just you and a friend against a horde of Majini warriors, and even though you may be better equipped than they are, they have numbers. You'll constantly be surrounded by a great deal of them as explosions go off around you, and having another player you can trust by your side will make it that much more enjoyable. The partner AI seemed to be improved a little from the main game, but you'll still find yourself wishing for a human if you're stuck going the solo route. A few surprising additions found their way into the story mode from the Mercenaries mode, namely in the form of exploding enemies. I was caught off guard many times by exploding bodies after I thought my enemy was dead, which added another layer of intensity throughout the games many firefights.

One of my favorite parts of Resident Evil 5 were the situation-determined action commands, through which you could incapacitate and even kill the enemies in order to conserve ammo usage. These make a huge return in Desperate Escape, as both Jill and Josh come equipped with hand-to-hand moves of their own. Jill makes use of her flexibility and nimbleness by knee dropping prone enemies, and even snapping their necks with her thighs if they are both situated properly. Josh's moves were some of the coolest I've seen, incorporating grappling techniques and various wrestling maneuvers to subdue his enemies. The character animations are incredibly fluid and look amazing in motion.

As I was playing through Desperate Escape with the same friend I finished the main story with, we were constantly surprised with the amount of story points they intertwined within the main plot. It was interesting to see what Jill was up to when she was in communication with Chris, and what she had to go through to save them at the end of the game. As a huge nerd when it comes to storylines, it answered a lot of questions I had regarding the whereabouts of Jill and Josh during all the craziness in Chris and Sheva's storyline. It also does a great job of fleshing out the side characters and adding a bit of depth when it comes to their personalities, ambitions, and overall reason for doing what they do. As soon as a new character is introduced, though, they are usually done in to make room for Jill and Josh, who are the kept as the focus the entire time.

Overall, Desperate Escape is a very interesting experience. It is almost the polar opposite of the last DLC patch Lost in Nightmares as it sticks with the newer formula found in Resident Evil 5. It is entirely action-oriented, with absolutely no puzzles. The main draw is the almost horde-like rush of enemies you'll experience throughout the entire gameplay experience, which makes for a very intense and somewhat frustrating mission. But with the addition of new plot points that flesh out the already interesting Resident Evil 5 story arc, it's a game you'll want to play again to see if you missed any references or side stories.

Likes

• New, revealing story points on how other characters fared.
• Amazing new hand-to-hand animations for both new characters.
• Tons and tons of challenge even for the most hardened RE5 veterans.

Dislikes

• Returns to the emphasis on action of the newer games.
• The challenge can become a bit frustrating after numerous attempts.
• The partner AI still needs a lot of work, but remains somewhat manageable.

Review Score

 / 

The review scale at LevelFortyTwo is between 1 and 5. A score of 5 is considered an amazing game, 4 is a well-done game with only minor issues, 3 is in the middle; not great, but not bad, 2 is a very problematic game, and 1 is absolutely terrible.