Resident Evil: Dead Aim (PS2)

The Resident Evil series finally returns to the PlayStation with this interesting hybrid game. Not a traditional Resident Evil game, Dead Aim combined 3rd-person exploration with light-gun-compatible 1st-person sequences.

It’s a sequel of sorts to Resident Evil: Survivor, a truly terrible PS1 game, that moved the Resident Evil universe into a really bad FPS style of gameplay. The new versions hopes to avoid the faults of its predecessor and provide a more action-packed experience than the traditional RE games.

We had some hands-on time with Dead Aim and we came away with mixed feelings. We thought the game looked great, and especially appreciated its fully 3D environments. But the complicated control scheme kept leading to us getting munched by zombies within minutes.

You can use either a standard PlayStation controller or a light gun with the game, but each has its advantages and problems.

Using a standard controller makes it easy to get around in the 3rd-Person view, but to shoot at an enemy, you need to switch into the 1st-person view. If you’ve ever played a console FPS, you know how tough aiming and moving can be. The switch between the two views can be quite jarring and definitely left us at a disadvantage.

Using the light gun makes the FPS parts of the game incredibly fun, but moving around in the 3rd-person POV was tricky using the small 4-way hat controller on the back of the gun. Switching between the two viewing modes was also a chore.

We suspect that given enough time to get used to the controls we’d find the game much easier to handle. And we’re also looking forward to finally having a decent light gun game that doesn’t move on rails. Already out in Japan, we should see Resident Evil: Dead Aim on shelves this summer.