David Wolinsky, Contributing Editor: I'm not sure what you thought of Resident Evil's tactical shooter spinoff, but I think a lot of people are just scratching their heads over Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City. It's a definite departure for the series, so that might be the best place to start: Do you care that it has very little to do with Resident Evil as we've known it to date? And once you got past that -- if in fact you did -- what did you think of the game?
Eric Neigher, Contributing Editor: Well, it's got zombies in it, so it has a little bit to do with the series. And it's obviously set in Raccoon City, too. But yeah, instead of playing one of Resident Evil's standard characters, you're instead taking the role of a member of an Umbrella Corporation (the series' major evil force) kill team, trying to hunt down series mainstay Leon Kennedy in the titular city. The game is a four-player cooperative shooter, so you're with a team of either A.I. or meatbag cohorts. I didn't see much survival-horror here -- ammo seems plentiful, and you gun down hordes of zombies a la Left 4 Dead, instead of running away and trying to conserve resources. It was fun, but a definite departure from Resident Evil proper.
David Wolinsky: OK, so we've touched on what the game isn't, what is it? Any zombie-raccoons involved at all?
Eric Neigher: Not as far as I could tell. Why the city is named after a small mammal is unclear, but one assumes raccoons populated the lands surrounding it at some time. Hopefully, they were not zombified at this point. Anyway, the game is sort of Capcom's take on Left 4 Dead, except with an emphasis on offense, rather than survival. For once, you and your team are prepared for the zombies, and come equipped with the ordnance to regulate on them very hardcore-like. Weapons include submachine guns, grenades, and a handy combat knife, and the team members (except for its buxom leader) were all armored and prepped against zombie bites. I didn't get a clear sense of the story, but hunting down Leon Kennedy was a part of it, as was containing an outbreak in Raccoon City. In all, I'd say this is definitely more four-player action than story-driven horror.
David Wolinsky: That's a good point, that this places a bigger emphasis on offense. Of course, this being a tactical shooter, strategy is emphasized, too. I noticed something like six character classes in my demo, from a straight-on female commando to a guy specializing in ranged combat. I chose the lady gun enthusiast, and noticed that she had the shocking ability to shoot while ambulating the streets. I wandered down the road and faced two waves of zombies. I think after that you need to head into a building, but I didn't get quite that far. What I did see, though, I was intrigued by. I could see the potential for this being a lot of fun on multiplayer, for sure. What was your experience like? Who did you choose to play as?
Eric Neigher: I played as some scale-armor-encased badass who wore a gas mask-lookin' apparatus and had a UMP submachine gun -- or something that looked like it. I moved past the initial segment (that took place in a street scene), into a sewer, and then again in the courtyard outside a building. All of the sequences were pretty similar: Use cover and teamwork to survive waves of some very sick people -- or corpses, more accurately. "Don't let them bite you" was the operative phrase. But yeah, you can tell it's a Resident Evil game -- you heal with randomly placed green herbs and punch zombies away with quick-time events. Fans won't be disappointed, as long as they can accept the new gameplay style.
David Wolinsky: Yeah, as with a lot of other stuff at this year's E3 Expo, I think people should just chill out and feel the love. This might not be a traditional Resident Evil game, but it looks like it's shaping up as a solid squad-based shooter. I'm curious about whether we'll see an offline single-player campaign where you have to bark orders to your wingmen, but even with A.I.-controlled allies, I think it'll work. Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City might not light the world on fire, but it should be a welcome addition to anyone's collection -- Resident Evil fan or not.