Originally a 2002 Nintendo exclusive, Resident Evil Zero is the prequel story that explains the events leading to the Mansion encountered in the first Resident Evil game. Following on in Capcom’s remastering efforts, Zero has been given a HD treatment. With fans of the original survivor horror genre series clambering for more, does Zero deserve a revisit after almost fifteen years?

Resident Evil Zero acts as a prequel story to the first Resi games and showcases what happened to the S.T.A.R.S. Bravo Team in the Arklay Mountains. You take control of S.T.A.R.S. team member Rachel Chambers and in a nice twist, also play as Billy Cohen, a convicted murderer with a cloudy past. During the game players will have to hot switch between the two in order to solve puzzles and share inventory items.

Gameplay follows the same style of the early Resi games by using pre-rendered environments and wide-angle camera views as you move your selected character around. This HD remaster gives the choice of using the original ‘tank’ control scheme of switch to a more modern one but I found it took some time to master either scheme. It also took a little time to call back into not having an over the shoulder viewpoint which those coming to Zero for the first time may feel uneasy but it is very much a corner-stone of the original Resident series.

Where Zero differs from the other early Resi titles is the ability to hot switch between the two main characters which as above, is used to great effect to solve puzzles and share items. Combined with the traditional game mechanics it gives Zero an interesting twist that adds an extra level as you progress through the game. Unlike other Resi games that required returning or finding a safe room to manage your inventory, you will be able to drop items anywhere and at any time, making managing your inventory less of a chore. Combat will be familiar to players of the early games in series and again take some time to get used to aiming with looking down the sights which modern games use so well. I soon found myself picking and choosing which battles to take on and actively trying to avoid confrontations in order to conserve ammo for those all challenging boss fights. I will be honest and admit that on a few occasions I did load a save game if I messed up a fight and wasted too much ammo, which was always a go to tactic with this series for me.

Whilst the gameplay has remained the same as the original, this HD remaster has brought this close to fifteen year old title up to date. The audio has been cleaned up and enhanced with 5.1 surround sound that makes every footstep sound, creaking door effect and corridor echoes really stand out far more than the original Nintendo platforms. The sound really helps to build that tense survival horror atmosphere Resident Evil games do so well.

Visually the pre-rendered environments have been meticulously cleaned up to full 1080p loveliness and are the biggest change that gives this HD remaster a shine. With the new wide-screen support and played models enhanced, Resident Evil Zero has been brought up to current standards. But sadly the cut scenes remain untouched and whilst appealing to fans of the original, they have not aged well and almost disappointing that no sprucing up was done.

Knowing that is was a 2002 title and even with the enhanced visuals and audio, Zero really feels out of date. Having loading screens when transitioning between environments like doors or stairs really feels odd and unnecessary for this release on now more powerful consoles. The save system can be unforgiving and inventory management cumbersome. Being able to look back at the combat gameplay now and it is not hard to see why it evolved to be so different but as frustrating as it can be during play, it is a reminder of what made the early Resi series so challenging.

Resident Evil Zero HD serves not only as a nostalgic look back to the early days of the survival horror genre that Resident Evil established but also gaming style of the late 90’s. It really shows just how much the genre has changed over the years and console generations. One certainly for Resident Evil fans but you can see the affection in this remastered HD version by the team who worked on it.

It may not be as scary as more modern survival horror games but Resident Evil Zero HD showcases the series that put survival horror on the map.

War has been an integral part of video games since the very early days of gaming. Many genres of games feature just about every aspect of War, with some almost glorifying the violence with little to no effort into showing the results of what War has on the innocents caught in the aftermath of battle with the exception of Ubisoft’s Valiant Hearts. Early in 2015 ‘This War Is Mine’ released on PC and focused completely on telling the experience of life of civilians fighting to survive the effects of War. Now released on PlayStation 4 it has one added expansion, the Little Ones, bringing a child’s view to the game:

This War Is Mine is a survival game where the player controls civilians caught in the devastated aftermath of War. Tasked with ensuring their very survival by scavenging for materials and food whilst upgrading the house they take shelter in. The game has a day and night mechanic where during the day the survivors will work to gather the materials need to forge new stations to build tools needed to help survival. Keeping the survivors fed is a natural element in a survival game and during the day time portion of the game you will also spend time learning more about the survivors around you, their emotional state and their experiences of the war.

At night the survivors can choose to rest, to defend the house from attack or to leave the house and risk exploring the war-torn wilderness to gated materials. Whilst exploring you may encounter other survivors who if friendly will offer to trade resources with you. However some may be hostile and will often be more aggressive and better armed than you so trying to hide and avoid contact becomes a tense game of cat and mouse.

Your house really is your lifeline in the game both in providing a safe place to live and to give a sense of belonging which to the survivors suffering the most from their war-time experiences can give hope. Working to improve the house becomes as important as the need to find food. Improve its defended and you will be better equipped at night. It also adds another element of risk to exploring at night as you could find yourself returning to find your house has been raided and resources stolen or worse, fellow survivors having been attacked and hurt in your absence.

The multi faceted survival gameplay ties in nicely with the tone and message that This War is Mine is trying to deliver. It really holds nothing back in showing how War can bring misery, pain and hardship to innocents caught up in its darkness. I found the themes used very unsettling at times and often uncomfortable to play but it is important to remember that this game wants to show players the reality and ugliness of War which is sometimes diluted and lost in the reporting of conflict on the news or the lack of acknowledgement of collateral damage in other games that focus simply on the action of battle.

The addition of ‘The Little Ones’ expansion to this console brings a very real and emotional new aspect to what is already a sombre and hard-hitting narrative and game experience. The expansion adds children into the mix and this for me was perhaps the most impactful element so far. Adding to the survival mechanics already played, The Little One will have their own needs that require tending to on top of everything else. Naturally the child will require looking after in terms of being fed and kept safe but as a child they will want to play and through talking to them know that the have no understanding of what the war was about or the events now taking place around them. Whilst they are too little to help with exploring and heavy work, they can be taught to search for materials needed.

It is obvious that the game has come from a PC foundation with a clear gameplay system built upon using a mouse and keyboard setup. The move to a console controller has not been a smooth transition and for me proved to be frustratingly sluggish at times. The finicky nature of having to move survivors into the right position to activate action markers can prove to be cumbersome.

This War is Mine: The Little Ones’ is a dark harrowing experience designed to show the harsh reality of the effects of war on innocents of all ages and this is particularly powerful through the eyes of children. Seeing the emotional, physical and mental impact of the after effects of conflict is a stiff reality check when put alongside the glorification and thrill of combat seen in other games. It can be very dark at times and often uncomfortably so with the added element of experiencing it all for the viewpoint of a child hard to play.

I am glad to have experienced this game but it did prove to be a game I couldn’t return to regularly unlike other survival games once its message had been hammered home. But it accomplished its goal of delivering the message that war and conflict have consequences, for combatants and innocents alike.

Tuesday sees the release of the final chapter of the Assassin’s Creed Chronicles series, Russia. As an Assassin’s Creed fan it has been intriguing to see how the Chronicles of China, India and now Russia have brought to life characters that previously have only featured in comic books, novels or animated shorts. Reviews have been mixed on the games so far, so it was with a nervous excitement I fired up Russia and was introduced to Assassin Nikolai Orelov:

Assassin’s Creed Chronicles Russia introduces us to Nikolai Orelov, an Assassin first seen in two spin off comic books ‘Assassin’s Creed: The Fall’ and ‘Assassin’s Creed: The Chain’, with the story of Russia set between those two tales. Nikolai is an experienced Master Assassin and is preparing to retire from the Brotherhood but has been asked to undertake one last mission. That mission is to retrieve an artifact currently held by the Tsar’s but who have been captured by Bolshevik forces. The mission soon takes a tragic turn and Nikolai is left to protect the last surviving member of the Years, the Princess Anastasia who has the artifact, and must see both safely into the hands of the Brotherhood.

Right away you can see the visual difference this time with an almost Graphic Noir feel to the appearance of this title. A grainy overlay helps to give it a cold and rougher texture and tone with objects and environments highlighted in a dramatic red which stands out. This is a sharp contrast to the vibrant colours of India and China and really helps create the atmosphere of 1918 Russia. The sombre musical score blends in well and reflects not just the Russian tone but the personality of Nikolai who as an Assassin that is nearing the end of a long life in the Brotherhood comes across as weary and tired of the life and reminds me of where Ezio Auditore was in Assassin’s Creed Revelations.

If you have played the previous instalments to the Chronicles series then you will know what to expect from Russia. It uses the same 2.5 D environments for a side scrolling sneaking action game. Where Russia differs is that rather than focusing on complex puzzles which require the observation of enemy routes and patience to progress through the stages, instead Russia has more action at its core. The puzzle solving is still a part of the game but Nikolai is more comfortable taking out enemies than trying to sneak pass.

Using his sniper rifle as a main weapon, Nikolai has modified it to use the rope dart element seen previously but also has modified it to act as a winch to pull down vent covers and create bridges. With the time period now more modern, electricity plays a part with shock wire traps blocking windows and doors and mines on walkways that require a magnetic key to pass safely by. The winch can be used to short out these traps and to kill the lights in an area allowing for strategic combat and sneaking. This tweak on the standard gameplay style of the series along with the more relaxed freedom for action made Russia the most comfortable of the three titles to get into.

As Russia is the third and final title of the series, the above changes would really have benefitted both China and India which at times were frustratingly constrained in terms of combat with some stages a complete chore to grind through at times but Russia’s gameplay certainly benefits from the change. This does not mean the stealth element has been removed completely as early in the game a nice twist adds a really clever gameplay style that stays true to the Chronicles experience.

Whilst I found Russia more accessible to play, it still suffers from issues that plagued China and India which for many was off putting. The try-fail-repeat mechanic is still present and at times can be very punishing to the point where you as the player can feel cheated by the game’s cheapness. One stage had me repeating the same section eight times before it let me continue simply because it required a pixel perfect timed jump that for the life of me I felt I was hitting just right. That frustration would in the previous games often result in having to take a break before the controller would go for a quick flight across the room. But with this being the third game of having this mechanic, my patience has grown but it can still feel as though the play testers are exacting a little revenge on players.

The simple truth is that if China and India’s style of play was not your thing, your mind may already be made up about Russia, which would be a shame. If you are a fan of the story telling in Assassin’s Creed titles, Russia’s more laid back style will allow you to enjoy the story of Nikolai Orelov without too much rage quitting inducing punishing stages. The difficulty curve allows enjoyment of the early levels before a natural increase in enemy difficulty starts to ramp up the challenge. There are lovely little details that link Russia to the previous titles and even the enemy guards whistling the iconic Assassin’s Creed menu music from the main games will raise a smile.

I have enjoyed the Chronicles series as a fun challenging spin off to the main game line but it’s unforgiving nature in China and India sadly did put many off. Russia is my favourite instalment because it tells a great story with an interesting main Assassin. Gameplay is rewarding enough to forgive its niggles and I look forward to heading back in to try and improve my level scores.

If you were put off by the previous games Russia may win you over and by ending the series with the most playable chapter yet, you just Might be encouraged to revisit Chiba and India. I know I will be.