Resident Evil: Revelations (3DS) Demo Impressions

Resident Evil: Revelations has already released in PAL territories and Japan, so these demo impressions are not meant for those who are already enjoying the game. With the Resident Evil: Revelaitons (I guess that's how Capcom wants to spell it) game coming out for the 3DS on Tuesday for North American gamers, now is as good a time as any to unveil my personal opinion on the demo to the game. Better late than never, right? If you're type who thinks demo impressions can be considered spoilers, you may not want to read my thoughts. For everyone else, let's begin.

The demo starts off with Jill Valentine waking up on a bed within one of the cruise ship's cabins. She has no idea how she got there, but she knows she must return to and meet up with her partner Parker. Going to the exit, I found the door to be locked, so that meant trekking into the adjacent bathroom and doing some sleuthing. There I discovered a bathtub full of dirty water (did you really expect it to be pure and clean in a Resident Evil game?) with the option to drain it. I did, and the water subsided, revealing a key. Exiting into the cabin room, I walked forward only to be greeted by an albino monster crashing out of a nearby cabinet. Just imagine if this crooked creature came out of hiding while Jill was sleeping. I shudder to think of the outcome. Regardless, several shots of Jill's handgun put this monstrosity out to pasture.

Which virus has infected these poor souls?

Before I continued, I opted to change the controls. I went with Type C (there were three choices) which mapped the aiming to the face buttons a la the PSP's Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. I then inverted the Y-axis to make things even easier for me to control. You can also choose between first or third-person aiming. Getting used to this setup took a little getting used to as I'm accustomed to dual analogs or Wii remote pointing to aim, but I quickly adhered to the controls and moved deeper into the demo.

I exited the cabin room and went into a hallway. Ammo is ubiquitously scarce in old-school Resident Evil games, and at least in the demo, this traditional held true. I traveled through hallways and into a room full of bookshelves placed in a maze-like fashion. I was once again met with another albino abomination which I promptly took out. When these monsters get close, they sink their teeth into Jill's neck, and you must mash the Y button to escape. Thankfully, herbs were generously placed around the many rooms of the demo.

Eventually I entered a dining room filled with tables covered with white linen sheets, already eaten food, and dirty silverware, plates, and centerpieces. Another monster appeared, crawling out from under a table. I must admit here that I was scared once during the demo. There was a hallway that looked unassuming at first. Then two albino creatures dropped down from the ceiling. ..Eek! Anyway, I took out the monster with my newly acquired shotgun received from one of the rooms I visited. I then went up the stairs in the dining room and entered a door. Inside was something I feel I will be using obsessively, the scanner. By using it you can find invisible items and monsters. I didn't come across any invisible oddities in the demo, thankfully. I wasn't wearing any protection, so that was a relief. I did, however, come across several hidden items like ammo for my handgun and shotgun as well as herbs and grenades.

These creatures can pop out from anywhere.

The grenades were used to take out bunches of foes with ease. There's even baddies that explode when they come near you, so taking them out from afar is generally the best and recommended tactic to use. After being overwhelmed by one of the enemies (I had no ammo left) and being chewed up like a dog's bone, I proceeded to exit out of the demo. This seemed like the perfect time to quit and not spoil the rest of that part of the game for me. The rest will be completely fresh to me when I pick up the retail version this Tuesday. Resident Evil: Revelations is already out in Euroland and Japan where in both the U.K. and the land of the rising sun it reached number one on the weekly sales charts. Here's hoping Capcom's console-like Nintendo 3DS Resident Evil gets the same amount of love from North American gamers.