Yi-Hui and I completed Resident Evil 5 recently. I’m a big fan of the Resident Evil series. I played the first game back in 1996 on the original Playstation, and I’ve kept up with the series since.
My all-time favorite entries into the series are Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 4. I had high hopes for Resident Evil 5, but I was somewhat disappointed with the game. It wasn’t as big of a improvement as I hoped for.
There have been rumors that Resident Evil 6 will be a reboot for the series. Since Capcom has been slow in revealing their plans, I thought that I would help them out by stating how I would reboot the series.
Run and Gun
One of my biggest disappointments with RE5 was the inability to move and shoot. Capcom claimed that they intentionally left this out to increase ‘tension’.
Personally, I believe that you can still retain tension while incorporating a ‘run and gun’ system. The critically acclaimed Dead Space is a perfect example. And has Capcom forgotten what it achieved with its brilliant PSOne classic Dino Crisis 2?
But for ‘run and gun’ to succeed, you need a good reason to run…
Overwhelming Odds
What better way to force you to run then by overwhelming you. If I made Resident Evil 6, I would make the majority of the game a desperate struggle to stay alive. Resident Evil 5 was far too easy.
Overwhelming mobs of zombies should be continually pressuring you. When you aren’t being attacked by mobs of zombies, I would include a roaming boss like the classic Mr X from Resident Evil 2.
This boss’s movements should be completely organic (as opposed to scripted). You will never know when he appears. The game’s artificial intelligence should determine when he appears. He could appear immediately after a scripted boss fight, when the players are low on supplies and ammunition.
Imagine trying to fend off a boss like that after you just completed a grueling boss fight. You’d be frightened as hell.
Resident Evil 6 should feel like a gruelling marathon; with zombies chasing you. And while we’re on that topic…
Revamp the enemy designs.
Here’s Resident Evil 5’s idea of scary:
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| Black People – Scary |
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| Fat Black People – Scarier |
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| Fat Black People with a Gattling Guns – Scariest |
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| Giant Cockroaches? Absolutely terrifying. |
RE5’s creature design left some gamers crying: “Racist!” Capcom should forgo race specific enemies and go back to zombies.
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| As a young teeange, enemies like these gave me nightmares. |
I don’t see how an African man is suppose to be scarier than a zombie.
And while we’re on the topic of enemy designs…
Monsters only
I understood why RE5 decided to use Wesker as the final boss. It only seems fitting that they end the series with RE’s primary antagonist.
For the reboot, they need to implement a ‘monsters-only’ rule. I hated Capcom for turning Wesker into a Neo rip-off, complete with leather trench coat, sunglasses, gelled back hair and bullet time moves.
Turning Wesker into an unwitting Matrix parody feels like a Japanese scriptwriter’s poor attempt at making a game that would appeal to American audiences.
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| “The Matrix? Never heard of it.” |
I would also remove zombies-with-guns. Giving the zombies assault rifles and rocket launchers really killed the game for me. The key to creating tension is distance. The players have the advantage of distance due to their ranged weapons.
It is psychologically terrifying to see mutated zombies moving towards you and trying to eat you. It’s less scary when they start shooting at you, frustrating, but not scary.
Rework the weapons system
I want a realistic weapons system. You should not be able to upgrade the power, capacity, penetrating power or reload time so easily.
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| In RE5 this M92F handgun could hold 100 rounds. The real M92F can only hold 10-20 rounds. |
Want more power? Buy special ammunition like armor-piercing rounds, or upgrade the barrel of the weapon. Upgrading the barrel should only give you up to 20% for stopping power. You should not be able to triple the power of any weapons with an upgrade! if you want more stopping power, then invest in expensive specialty ammunition.
Also, I would remove all laser sighting from weapons. If you want a laser sight, then you will have to buy it as an accessory. All weapons should be heavily customizable like Metal Gear Solid 4.
If you want less recoil, you can upgrade the weapon’s grips. Using a weapon more often will also increase the character’s proficiency with the weapon, thereby decreasing reload time and recoil. This gives the players greater incentive to specialize in certain weapons.
Rework the store
I loved the merchant from Resident Evil 4. He was creepy but fun. Kind of like a zombie flasher; except he sells guns.
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| Howdy Stranger. |
I was shocked and disappointed that the merchant did not appear in Resident Evil 5. Resident Evil 6 should bring back the merchant. This will force players to think carefully when they meet the merchant. Should they make a purchase now? Or should they continue to save up for a better weapon?
If they aren’t careful, they may not have access to the merchant for a long time. This forces the players to play intelligently.
RE5’s store was too accessible.
The store also needs to offer ammunition, accessories and a lot more guns. The players should have complete freedom over how they want to play the game. If they want, they should be able to play the entire game with a magnum, provided they can continually afford the expensive ammunition.
I would also use this store to refine the inventory system with something else: the skeletal battle order.
The SBO
Anyone who has served in the army knows how cool it is to customize your skeletal battle order (SBO).
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| How’s this for inventory space? It sure beats lugging a suitcase around. |
RE6 should redefine the inventory system by introducing a customizable SBO system. Now you can only carry what your SBO permits. Need more ammunition? Then buy additional carrying pouches for magazines.
Need more space for first aid sprays? Then buy a utility pouch.
This gives the players much more freedom in customizing their characters. They can deck their characters out in SBOs with a ton of extra pouches, but there needs to be a trade off…
Your weapon or your life
When a zombie grabs you, he/she needs to grab onto something. Zombies should be able to grab onto your SBO/weapons as they try to eat your brains.
Players should be given a choice of struggling to get the zombies off, or employing a quick release, relinquishing their SBO or weapon.
They will be able to retrieve their gear if they manage to put down the zombie. But the overwhelming mobs of zombies will make it difficult to do so. There should be an endless supply of zombies.
This will also force players to work together and look after each other. Imagine both players getting grabbed by zombies while the roaming boss closes in. Should they continue to struggle for their gear? Or should they employ the quick release and make a mad rush to safety?
Mandatory teamwork
Teamwork needs greater focus in RE6. I would create a monster that temporarily disables the movement of a player. If a player gets hit, he/she will need to be dragged to safety by the other player.
Imagine a horde of zombies and the roaming boss barreling down on you as your partner desperately tries to drag the incapacitated player to a safety.
RE6 also needs to introduce more sequences that require greater teamwork. I can easily imagine 5 unique sequences in addition to the standard ‘protect the house from invading zombies scenario’.
Imagine a prison sequence where one player gets captures and stripped of his/her equipment. The second player watches from the rooftops, planning a jailbreak when suddenly, zombies attack. The first player gets hold of a guard’s pistol, while the second player needs to cover the first from the rooftops while the captured player desperately tries to escape the jailhouse, now infested with zombies.
To complete that sequence, the captured player should be in warden’s office trying to retrieve his/her equipment from the warden’s safe. The player has to crack the safe, but before he/she does, they hear the ominous sound of a huge boss barreling down the hallway.
If the player is unable to pick the safe before the boss appears, then the other player will need to slow it down. When the safe is picked, a 2-minute opening timer goes off. The player in the room with the boss will need to survive for 2 minutes before he/she can retrieve the equipment.
The catch? The boss can only be killed when enough damage is done to the inside of its mouth. Unless the sniper on the rooftop has good aim, the only feasible way to kill it is for the captured player to retrieve the equipment.
Use of Darkness
RE6 should incorporate a lot of darkness. Players can buy and attach flash lights to their weapons, but the game should place gamers in the dark realm of the unknown.
Imagine infiltrating a building with no power in the dead of night, going room-to-room looking for survivors.
Or imagine searching a museum during a dark and stormy night. I can imagine a great boss fight with a mummy that has been reanimated with the T-virus.
These are just some of the ideas I have for a Resident Evil game. Want to read more? Stay tuned for part 2!
Got ideas of your own? Let me know by writing a comment below!
