Alan Heath reviews Resident Evil: Revelations 2 Episode 2 on PC…
Resident Evil: Revelations 2 is an episodic sequel to the 3DS title that took the franchise back towards its survival horror roots after a couple of action packed entries into the franchise. Set between the events of Resident Evil 5 and 6, Revelations 2 sees the return of Claire Redfield and, playable for the first time in a main story, Barry Burton. Each episode is split into two parts as you play from each characters perspective in an interlocking story.
For Episode 2 the game has had a noticeable jump in difficulty. While the first episode had some tougher moments, particularly with Claire and Moira, this time I really felt like I was getting through by the skin of my teeth. I often felt overwhelmed fighting enemies in greater numbers than my supplies could stand, resorting to running away in an attempt to separate enemies. There are also a few more stealth sections than last time. The tension is high in these moments, not because of any kind of instant fail state, but because of how precious your supplies become. So any time you can avoid using any ammo or health items you need to make the most of it.
The enemy types have been mixed up a bit too. Not necessarily with that many more of them (there is a new creepy pig/dog thing and some giant bugs) but there are fewer of the weaker zombie like enemies, replaced by a larger number of the heavies. Barry’s section found him battling, what I have nicknamed, Mess-O-Limbs almost exclusively. There are also a couple of pretty tough boss fights with unique enemies, one in particular had you fighting waves of runners while dodging a fireball cannon (quite reminiscent of the first Bloater fight in The Last of Us). While mainly utilised in the stealth sections, Natalia’s “Super-Sight” has become more integral to the gameplay thanks to the giant bugs I mentioned earlier, who are also invisible to anything but her vision. There are some nice set piece environments, namely a shanty town with a central building you have to hold up in. But the world is still very flat and boxy, like it might as well be built from LEGO.
This difficulty increase pointed out even more than last time how much the game is designed to be played with a co-op partner rather than an AI companion. There are plenty of times I wish I could split myself in two and control both characters to use their special abilities to their fullest. The A.I does manage to pull off combos sometimes, but you have to work much harder getting enemies in position to increase your chances of this happening. Yes, there is local co-op, but it’s not something I have the opportunity to use very often.
The cast is increased this episode with more members of TerraSave. These guys have been outfitted with the same bracelets as Moira, Claire and Natalia. Indicating their level of fear or mutation. At least two of these guys are also playable in the Episode 2 content of Raid Mode (I haven’t played enough yet to see if more are unlockable). These characters and 10 more missions give another influx of content to an already full and addictive experience.
Resident Evil Revelations 2 Episode 2 has nicely mixed up the gameplay a bit, adding stealth sections as well as some new enemy types and an increased difficulty level. The story is also continuing to unfold in an interesting way. We still have just as many questions as answers which is good for a half way point, I just hope the pay off at the end is satisfying.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| + Challenging Boss Fights | – Still No Online Co-op |
| + Tense Stealth Sections | |
| + More Raid Mode |
Rating: 8/10
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL18yMRIfoszH_jfuJoo8HCG1-lGjvfH2F&v=SMekjOsexHs&feature=player_embedded
Originally published March 3, 2015. Updated April 13, 2018.
