Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS

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Video Game Analysis: Resident Evil 6 1.

What is the game’s name?

Resident Evil 6 2.

What is the game’s genre?

Survival Horror/Action 3.

What is the game theme?

Zombie Apocalypse/infection outbreak, again. 4.

How many hours did you play the game?

15+ 5.

Is the game part of a series?

Yes. It's the sixth sequel in the Resident Evil series. The first three games were survival horror games that contained mostly puzzles in 3D environments, with some bits of enemies here and there. In the fourth title, the game switched more over to the action genre which most gamers praised it for doing so at the time. However, when the fifth game was released, the game was more of the same. The sixth game took it to a whole new level but going mostly all action and making the game extremely linear, which caused a lot of complaints with previous fans of the series (including myself). 6.

What is the game’s platform?

Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. 7.

Is the game free to play or require purchase?

The game requires a purchase and has promised DLC in the future. However, the game does offer a massive demo for free. 8.

What is the game’s maturity rating?

The game is rated "M" for Mature. It has several dozen ways for you to die; you can get eaten by a shark, grinded into a million pieces, and slammed into by an ambulance. The game is proud to display a ton of blood and gore, along with tidbits of language scattered along the way. 9.

What was the game’s release date?

October 2, 2012

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS

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10. Who published the game? Capcom 11. What company created the game? Capcom 12. What game engine was used to create the game? MT Framework 13. Who is the intended audience for the game? Mature gamers, horror/zombie fans, and Resident Evil fans. 14. What is the game’s metacritic score? 67 (Xbox 360 version) and 74 (PS3 version). 15. Are you able to communicate with other players in the game? How so? The game can be played multiplayer or cooperatively with either 2-4 players. Gamers can communicate via the Xbox Live or PlayStation 3 headsets. The game does offer an odd communication system, where you can command or 'praise' your partner(s). The best part is that when you are playing with the AI, they either completely ignore you or they constantly reject your commands despite you being a few feet away from them. Did I mention that they have jittery thumbs? I guess that isn’t too important. Game Premise 1.

Describe the main premise of the game

Resident Evil 6 is spread out between four campaigns. Long story short for all four campaigns, a new bio terrorist group known as New Umbrella released a new zombie virus. So you and two anti-terrorist groups (The DSO and BSAA) have to stop the virus at its source, and of course, kill a lot of zombies along the way. 2.

Describe the backstory of the game if any

Resident Evil is a massive series. Each character in the game with the exception of the partners (think of a sidekick) has been in previous Resident Evil games. The main characters from each campaign have all fought and stopped zombie outbreaks and whatnot in the past. 3.

Does the backstory help engage the player? Provide examples

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS

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It only does if you played the previous games. The game makes very few references to the last game, so either way, you won't be lost. 4.

Does the backstory help set the tone for the game? Provide examples

Not really. This is an entirely new story and is set 3-4 years after the previous game (the game goes between 2012 and 2013). 5.

What are the goals of the game?

The game is fairly linear but it's basically going from point A to B. Fight a few zombies, and maybe find a key or two which only takes a few minutes to do. 6.

What is the purpose of the game?

Kill zombies and find the master mind(s) behind the current zombie outbreak. 7.

What are the game rules? How does the game convey the rules?

This is honestly Resident Evil 6's biggest problem. It's a game that is trying to be everything. The game has some fairly vague rules. You just try you hardest to get from point A to point B and just hope to god that some random thing doesn't kill you out of nowhere or that no quick time event suddenly pops up that would force you to smash a button several times. I was in situations where I would have no idea on what to do next, and I figured it out on my own which was extremely frustrating. 8.

What skills are required to play the game?

You honestly don’t need any “skills” to play the game. All you really to get used to is the controls, and you’re good. 9.

Describe the feedback system in the game

Sadly, for this game, you really aren’t told what you are and aren’t doing right until you die. The quick time events sometimes tell you what buttons to press, sometimes, they force you to guess (or it’s just a glitch). 10. How does the game tell the player what to do? Though the objective on the upper left part of the screen. 11. How does a player know they are performing appropriate actions? For the objectives, usually you hear the characters start talking or you actually see something happening, maybe even a cut scene will start. For quick time events, it’s a little trickier because

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS

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even if you fail half of them, you are forced to retry them until you finally get it right, but in a few cases, doing one incorrectly can result in death. 12. Is there a score? How does the player know their score? At the end of each section (which are split in chapters), the game gives you a results screen with letter grades from S being the best, to E being the worst. It gives you bonus points for doing certain things in the game (like shooting a zombies head off). From what I recall, the game also has online leaderboards for whoever has the best scores as well. Instructions 1.

How does the player know what to do in the game?

By looking at the objectives. 2. What skills does the player need in order to play the game? Keyboard controls, Game controller conventions, etc… For the most part, it’s fairly easy to start playing this game. Once you understand how to aim and shoot, the rest of it is relatively easy to get into. Sadly, the game does not come with a manual with the controls, but the start menu does have them in there if you need them. 3. Does the character/player acquire new skills as the game proceeds? How does the player learn the new skills? The player can use skill points found throughout the game to unlock new abilities for their guns. 4.

Are there tutorials? If so, what form do the tutorials take? Cut scenes, text, NPC etc…

Resident Evil 6 has no tutorial. 5.

Character Analysis

Main Character 1.

List all the attributes of the main character/characters

Since Resident Evil 6 has three main campaigns and one side campaign, I’m only going to mention the main characters from the main campaigns. While the game does have many other characters, I would probably be here all day if I had type about all of them. Leon Kennedy – Previously in Resident Evil 2, Leon was a police officer who just had a very bad first day. After a long night of fighting hordes of zombies in Raccoon City, Leon and two other survivors (Clare and a little girl Sherry) managed to escape the city. Leon would later appear in Resident Evil 4, where he would return to fight a new kind of enemy, the infected. Basically,

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS

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since the second game, Leon quit being an officer, and was trained to be a special agent by US Government. The president’s daughter was kidnapped and brought to Spain. Leon goes to save her only to find several villages of people infected by a parasitic infection (which makes people attack him of course) which eventually is given to him as well. After fighting many bosses, Leon gets the cure, and saves the president’s daughter. In Resident Evil 6, Leon was with the president when the president was about to reveal the truth about Raccoon City (apparently it was kept a secret). Out of nowhere, the president becomes a zombie himself. Leon is forced to kill him, and teams up with Helena Harper, who is a member in of a secret military agency. Leon eventually finds the mastermind was the president’s aide, Derek Simmons. Leon and Helena eventually find Simmons who gets infected, and after many, many battles against the transformed Simmons, Leon finally kills him. Chris Redfield – Previously in Resident Evil and Resident Evil 5, Chris was once a police officer in the STARs unit and is a current member of the BSAA, a anti bio terrorism group. In Resident Evil, Chris along with other STARs members were forced to escape into a mansion after the first zombie outbreak occurred. After fighting many bosses and enemies, Chris along with fellow STARs members Jill, Rebecca, and Barry escaped the mansion. In Resident Evil 5, Chris was sent to Africa to investigate a bio terrorism incident. After fighting many infected enemies (the same infection seen in Resident Evil 4), Chris discovers that Albert Wesker, the former captain of the STARs unit, is behind the incident. Wesker infects himself with the virus, and after many, many transformations, Chris kills him. In Resident Evil 6, Chris became a drunk with amnesia (you have to love the writing in this game), and eventually returns to the BSAA to help with a new bio terrorism incident in China. Chris later learns that Albert Weskers son, Jake, has the antibodies to cure the new virus, and of course, after many battles in the game, Chris escapes China. Sherry Birkin – Previously in Resident Evil 2, Sherry was the daughter of two scientists from Umbrella (the organization that made the original zombie virus). Her father created the G-Virus (the second zombie virus), and he injected it into himself when Umbrella shot him nearly to death. Sherry was told by her mother after the incident to go to the police station. Unfortunately for her, the police station was already overrun with zombies. Clare Redfield (Chris Redfield’s sister) found her and helped her escape Raccoon City. In Resident Evil 6, Sherry joins the Division of Security Operations (DSO). Her mission was to find and protect Jake Muller, who just happens to be the son of previous Resident Evil villain, Albert Wesker. Jake’s blood held the cure for the current infection present in Resident Evil 6. After fighting the same boss several times throughout the game, they finally kill him, and save the world from the virus. 2.

Example: Role, Abilities, History, Family, Class, Description, etc…

I’m a little confused on if this is even a question or not, but if it’s what the characters are, they are basically all part of government groups to basically stop bio terrorists.

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS 3.

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Does the game provide player customization?

It provides customization for only weapons in the game, such as faster reloading, larger clip size, faster firing rate, etc. 4.

Describe the customization process

The customization menu is just basically a store. You just choose your upgrades, and move on. 5.

What parts of the player are customizable?

Just their weaponry is customizable. 6.

Where in the game does the customizing occur?

Customization options usually appear between chapters in the game. 7.

What is the main problem, or obstacle, the player must overcome in order to win the game?

Basically, if you manage to see the quick time events when they appear, you win. If you manage to kill one of the game’s bosses (which on some occasions, you fight the same boss many times), you win again. 8.

How does the player solve the main problem or obstacle in the game?

You shoot them with bullets or blow them up with explosions. Violence is the only answer in this game. 9.

List and describe additional obstacles or problems the player encounters in the game?

Figuring out how to kill the final boss in Leon’s campaign was the worst part for me. I had to look up a guide on the internet to learn how to kill him. Apparently you have to shoot the spider creatures lightly colored leg orb thing (which should have been super bright), then you put a zombie on a lighting staff, and then a bolt of lightning hits the boss. You repeat this several times. I wish I was making this up. 10. Describe player movement mechanics. Provide details on how the player walks runs, jumps, flies, etc… If Resident Evil 6 did one thing right, it would be with running. In the two previous games, your character always jogged but never ran. This wasn’t very good when your enemies could run after you and were wielding weapons. During situations like this, you would probably want to run. Resident Evil 6 thankfully gives you the option to do so. You cannot fly or jump in this game. Non-Player Characters

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS 1.

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Does the game have any NPC’s?

NPC’s are rare to see in Resident Evil 6, but when you do see them, they almost always die. 2.

What is their purpose or purposes?

They have none. 3.

List attributes of the NPC. Can it talk, walk, shoot, heal, etc…?

They sometimes say a line of dialogue, but that’s it. Level Objectives 1.

Does the game have multiple levels?

Levels in this game are actually chapters. 2.

How many?

I actually forgot but I think it’s about 4-6 chapters per campaign. 3.

How does the player know they have beaten a level?

The game usually goes into a massive cut scene, and the game indicates that the chapter is over. 4.

Do the levels progress in difficulty?

It usually stays at the same difficulty throughout the game. The game does offer lower and higher difficulty options (I play on Normal). 5.

Do the levels progress linearly?

Yes, way too much so. 6.

Does the game have a level boss?

Usually they do. As I mentioned earlier, the game’s bosses typically return several times in different chapters. 6.1. Describe each level boss in detail Yikes. Is this between all three campaigns? I’m only going through Leon’s campaign for the sake of time. 6.2. Level Boss 1: Unknown, I’ll call it Gray Spore Monster (Level Boss 2 are Helena’s sister who becomes an infected monster, and Simmons who reappears several times before he actually dies at the end of the game. Simmons was the spider boss I was mentioning earlier).

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS

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6.3. What skills does the main character need to beat the level boss? They would need patience, ammo, and explosives. I’m dead serious. The first boss is nearly impossible to beat without unloading several rounds of ammo into it. The room with the boss has fellow survivals that eventually get infected while helping you. You can save them, but if they become infected, you get more ammo. It’s like the game wants to let the survivals die so that you can kill the main boss. For this boss, I ran out of ammo completely. I miraculously killed it with a knife. This was not fun at all. Every boss with the exception of the last one is like this. 6.4. Describe the difficulty in beating each level boss There is little to no difficulty, you just unload bullets into them and dodge them. It’s just tedious and annoying for each boss. Fighting bosses in this game is not fun at all. 6.5. Did the level prepare the main character to beat the level boss? No. 6.6. How? I was trying to protect the survivals until I was overwhelmed by the boss. The survivals just kept walking into the boss, like they wanted to die. I was thrown into a loop of running for dear life, and picking up ammo from my fallen allies. Game Mechanics 1.

Describe player onboarding

The player is not given any onboarding at all. They are just given objectives on what to do. Not on how to do them. 2.

Describe main game mechanic

Shooting and running. 3.

Describe the game economy

Gold coins. You earn these from killing enemies or finding them in barrels or crates. 4.

Describe player health

Through six green squares on the lower right corner of the screen. You can get more health by collecting herbs and first aid spray. 5.

Describe the scoring system

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The player is scored by the grading system at the end of each chapter. You get points for killing enemies and team work. 6.

Describe tools and weaponry

The game doesn’t have any tools, but for weaponry it’s just guns and explosives. The game has handguns, sub machine guns, sniper rifles, and assault rifles. It also has rocket launchers and grenades. Oh, and every character has a knife. Game Impressions 1.

Did you like the game? Explain why

Resident Evil 6 was a game that was trying to be like every other game this console generation. While people complained that Resident Evil 5 was too similar to the last game, Capcom took this way too seriously. The game is completely linear. The game also has a quick time event for every little thing in the game, even when there shouldn’t be one. I didn’t like it. 2.

Do you feel this game is worth the time, effort, and money to play? Explain why

I feel it’s worth the time if you are fan of the series, but if you are somebody that’s just coming into the Resident Evil series; I’d recommend Resident Evil 4 first. Other than that, the game is just an example of terrible game design. 3.

Is this game fun to play? Expand

Honestly, the only fun moments to play this game are with a friend or when you can do the melee/finishing moves on enemies. Doing a suplex to a zombie or snapping a zombie’s neck is pretty darn satisfying. As for actually shooting at them, this is actually boring because they rarely die. Half the time you shoot one down, even in the head, they become twice as aggressive. I’ve learned that it’s better to just avoid the enemies rather than fighting them. 4.

What makes this game fun? Expand

See above. 5.

Did you learn anything while playing this game?

I learned on how badly a well-established & respected game series hit such an all-time low. 6.

Were there any ethical or societal issues addressed in this game? Discuss

Not really, all I know is that bio terrorism and zombies are bad. 7. No.

Will you continue to play this game?

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON 10 VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS 8. Would you recommend this game to a friend? No for now, I’d recommend it when it drops in price. Co-op and the Mercenaries game modes are actually fun. The main game is not fun. 9.

Using a scale, of 1 being poor and 5 being very good, how would you rate this game?

2.5/5 10. Using a scale, of 1 being very easy to 5 being very hard, how do you rate this games difficulty level? 2/5 11. Using a scale of 1 being not very detailed to 5 being very detailed, how detailed do you find this game? 3.5/5. The graphics are great, and it’s probably the only thing I like about the game. Okay, I like Leon’s jacket in the game too. I want one in real life.

Running head: CHRISTOPHER_ROBINSON 11 VIDEO GAME ANALYSIS References Resident Evil 6. (2012, October 2). Capcom. Resident Evil 6. (n.d.). Retrieved November 23, 2012, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resident_Evil_6 Resident Evil 6. (n.d.). Retrieved November 23, 2012, from Resident Evil Wikia: http://residentevil.wikia.com/Resident_Evil_6