Resident Evil 5 - New Details

Producer Jun Takeuchi shares some info in the latest Famitsu.
by IGN Staff


Being able to see new footage of Resident Evil 5 was one of our E3
highlights, even though the new trailer didn't really tell us too much
about the game. Enter the latest issue of Famitsu, which is home to an
interview in which producer Jun Takeuchi shared some of the details we
were looking for.

Takeuchi only provided vague hints about the storyline. As many have
guessed from the insignia that appears in the footage, main character
Chris Redfield is a member of a group called BSAA. According to
Takeuchi, something has happened in the desert area that serves as the
game's setting, and BSAA has dispatched Chris to investigate.

Once on the scene, Chris encounters a new form of enemy. Takeuchi
described the game's enemies as something of human form that has
intelligence. However, the foes are neither zombie nor ganado (in
reference to the creatures from RE4).

In addition to the new enemy, a certain girl will make an appearance
in the game. She's someone whom fans of the series will recognize. In
the full version of the E3 trailer (which will be distributed on Xbox
Live and PSN later this month), she appears just briefly, but Takeuchi
expects her to have a more significant role in the next trailer (no
ETA given on that, unfortunately). In the game proper, she will have a
big part both in the story and as part of the gameplay.

On the topic of gameplay systems, Takeuchi admitted to the magazine
that the hardest part of development so far has been in mixing new
elements with part 4's basic gameplay. For the most part, RE5 will be
played from a perspective similar to that of part 4, with Chris
appearing on the left side of the screen. However, Takeuchi also
promised a big surprise addition that he believes is an obvious
evolution for the gameplay.

According to Takeuchi, if, after seeing the E3 trailer, you feel RE5
looks like RE4 now, you'll be left with a completely different
impression following the next trailer.

Previously, Takeuchi has spoken about the importance of light in the
game. In this latest interview, he offered an example of how light
will play a role. Say Chris enters a doorless building. The
surroundings are bright and the interior is dark, so it takes Chris a
few moments to adapt before he can see. The game will replicate this,
along with the opposite effect of going into a bright area after being
in the dark for an extended period. This is where you can expect to
encounter some of the series' trademark fear, this time from the
inability to aim or see.

Takeuchi wouldn't provide a solid release date for RE5, but there
seemed to be some consensus of it appearing some time before 2010. It
will be a long wait, but then again so was the wait for RE4, and that
one turned out pretty good.