Review: Resident Evil 5: Lost in Nightmares DLC
I have to admit that when it comes to the Resident Evil series, I am late to the party. Beyond a touch of Resident Evil 4 on the PC and Wii, and Resident Evil 5 on the 360 last year, that is all the Resident Evil experience I have. So I did not quite understand the complaints that long time fans of the series had in regards to the new direction of Resident Evil 5. After playing through the Lost in Nightmare’s DLC, I now see what I was missing, and it appears that fans of the series will find a lot to love.
Lost in Nightmares takes us to the sequence we saw in the intro of Resident Evil 5, where Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine are breaking into a mansion to find out what is going on at one of the Spenser’s estates. As most remember from that intro movie, this is the place that Jill Valentine ends up leaping out the window, taking Wesker out with her.
As you start up the DLC, you notice a whole new feel for the Resident Evil 5 experience. Gone are the open areas and never-ending sunlight. Instead we are cast into the middle of the night, during a rainstorm. Going into the mansion has us in very confined quarters, including a lot of ominous, long hallways. I really sensed a creepy factor to Lost in Nightmares that I never had during the main campaign of Resident Evil 5. I kept wondering what was around each corner, hearing guttural moans throughout my travels in the mansion. As I continued through the mansion, I realized that I had not been this genuinely scared since Dead Space. It was non-stop tension throughout, and it really made for a more fulfilling experience.
The game is also less combat focused, looking to use the mood as more of an game mechanic rather than the battles. Yes there are new baddies to fight, but they do not come as often, and when they do, there entrances are terrifying. I did bemoan the fact that the game seems to give you even less ammo than you had in Resident Evil 5, making you think before each shot. Will this bullet be a waste, or will it go to good use. It also has a tactical feel, with mines that you can place, allowing you to set up potential ambushes for some of the creatures you end up fighting.
Fans of the series will love some of the little in-jokes, like when Jill sees a lock and states, “ I think I can get that” or Chris commenting on Spenser’s love of cranks. I knew of these through Internet memes, so I did get a good chuckle out of them.
The DLC does include some new models that you can look at, and more achievements for those that like to be completionists. It also supports the same drop in, drop out co-op play that was in Resident Evil 5, however I felt the AI for Jill was a bit better than it was for Sheva.
Lost in Nightmares is a bit on the short side, and for those that might have enjoyed Resident Evil 5 better than other Resident Evil titles, might be upset with the way the game plays out. It also does not help that you kind of know how the scenario will play out. That said, I do feel that for the price of 400 Microsoft Points, it is a far better value than the Versus DLC that came out months ago. Resident Evil 5: Lost in Nightmares gets 4.5 out of 5 Aeropausonauts.
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