GENRE
	Survival Horror
	DEVELOPER
	Capcom
	PUBLISHER
	Capcom
	LOCAL WIRELESS MULTI-PLAY
	Yes
	Wi-Fi/GLOBAL ONLINE MULTI-PLAY
	No
	MICROPHONE
	Yes
	BUY NOW AT

In 2005, Resident Evil 4 garnered an unsightly number of awards, including Nintendojo's very own Game of the Year honor. Now, over a year since RE4 revitalized the series that started survival horror, Capcom has decided to go back to their roots, using the Nintendo DS as their time machine. Setting the course for 1996, Resident Evil has reached speeds of 88 miles per hour, and the result is a second--or third, depending on who you ask--retooling of the original game, this time with the subtitle Deadly Silence. Rather than starting from scratch like the GameCube version, Capcom has ported the PS original, with a few tweaks and suprises. What ensues is a fun, if familiar, trip down nostalgia lane.

visuals

While the GameCube remake of Resident Evil boasted an impressive visual overhaul, the DS shows minimal improvement over the original. Polygon counts for characters and enemies are slightly higher, but the backgrounds remain static prerenders. This leaves the game's look feeling distinctly dated, even on the DS; whether a player feels that this is detrimental to the game experience will depend on their fondness (or lack thereof) of the original.

The same goes for the live-action cutscenes, which have also been brought back. These terribly-shot/acted scenes should delight fans of B-movie cheese, though everyone else might want to skip them. Even though the graphics and cutscenes provide for a technically impressive DS game, the techniques themselves have since became extinct, cementing the game squarely in the 20th century.

audio

Just as the graphics have been held over from the first game, so has the horrid (and schlocktastic) voice-acting. We have seen in-game voicing take great strides with this generation, so going back to lines that include the phrase ''the master of unlocking'' may come as an unwanted surprise, and may cause indigestion. The music isn't as offensive to the fifth sense, but still remains forgettable and out of place at times.

Still, players might want to keep the volume up. Whether it's the creepy gnawing and slurping sounds of the undead feasting on their latest victim or a deadly hunter advancing down the hallway, the grisly and unsettling sound effects seem to have aged more gracefully than the rest of the audio department and can even be useful in gameplay.

gameplay

Upon entering Classic Mode--a faithfully recreated version of Resident Evil--gamers are given a choice between two characters, Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield. Both are members of S.T.A.R.S., a special forces team belonging to quiet everytown, Raccoon City. Upon investigating the mysterious deaths of one S.T.A.R.S. team, our heroes happen upon a mansion owned by the evil corporation, Umbrella, Inc. Cue dramatic music, thunder/lightning and zombies. While in-game and FMV cutscenes are sprinkled in gameplay, various files and memos conveniently left laying on tables and dressers often do a better job of storytelling as the plot progresses.

The game itself is played in three dimensions, but the camera angles are set on prerendered backgrounds, which means that if the player moves out of the set, the view will suddenly change and they will be on a different part of the screen. This change can be jarring at times, especially when fighting unseen enemies and bosses. Load times between rooms feature the slow-opening doors on a black background, but thankfully can be skipped on the DS. The controls are unorthodox as well, but fit the prerendering technique. Your character maneuvers not unlike a tank--pressing up on the d-pad always makes you go forward, pressing right is always a turn right, etc. It is a limiting set-up, especially in the light of RE4, which used a similar control scheme with a behind-the-shoulder camera, greatly improving player immersion.

Of course, anyone who's played the original is familiar with the intricacies of a traditional RE game, and for them, Capcom has included Rebirth Mode. With this new version, many new features are added to the mix, many of which take advantage of the unique DS features.

The first change vets will notice is that ammo and save items are rationed much more liberally than the original game, which forced players to meticulously conserve resources. Certain events in the game have also been shuffled around, and some puzzles use the DS touch screen to solve. As DS Castlevania players know, having a level map on the top screen is actually quite useful. RE: DS takes full advantage of that fact, adding a color-coded pulse that acts as a health indicator.

The most radical change to the gameplay is the addition of first-person sequences, which randomly occur between rooms. With the stylus (or a greasy finger), players swipe away with their trusty knife at various enemies they'd previously shot bullets at. It's a fun diversion, and sometimes earns a much-needed extra healing item or ammo clip, but it doesn't affect a great deal overall. Players can also use the touch screen to navigate the menu, and more shady gamers will be amused at what happens after touching Jill and Chris' bathing suit areas in their rest animations. These additions result in a faster-paced, more action-oriented experience, which is good for those who want something more than the game they played a decade ago, but isn't a drastic enough change for those who didn’t care for RE the first time around.

multiplayer

Up to four players can join in on two multiplayer modes. In Vs, players race to see who can get out of the mansion first, scoring points in the process. Co-op mode works along the same lines, only as the name suggests, players work together to solve puzzles and combat enemies. While these may sound entertaining in theory, in practice, gamers will discover that their competition/cohorts never actually show up on screen with them, eliminating a great deal of the appeal. Still, it should provide a decent distraction, albeit most likely short-lived.

overall

This handheld Resident Evil won't win over those who didn't care for the PS version, but for those whose worlds were set ablaze by the creation of survival horror in 1996, Deadly Silence should be as tasty as a fresh Jill sandwich. The extra features are amusing, but do not warrant a purchase for those who already own the original or the GameCube remake. Also, even though it would likely bear the same caveats, a port of Resident Evil 2 would fare better, as that is widely considered to be a better game. In the wake of Resident Evil 4's Game of the Year honors, it's nice to see where the series got its roots, but it also reminds us just how far the series has come.

7.2/10