Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City

Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City
Developer(s)	Slant Six Games[1] Capcom[1]
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Director(s)	Adam Bullied[1]
Producer(s)	Masachika Kawata[1]
Series	Resident Evil
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows PlayStation 3 Xbox 360
Release date(s)	PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 NA 20120320March 20, 2012 EU TBA Microsoft Windows NA TBA EU TBA
Genre(s)	Third-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City is an upcoming 2012 third-person shooter video game for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, co-developed by Slant Six Games and Capcom, and currently scheduled for a release on March 20, 2012 in North America.^[2] The Microsoft Windows version will launch at a later date.

Plot

The game takes place during the events of Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, and is set in Raccoon City, whose residents have been turned into zombies after an outbreak of the t-virus, a biological weapon developed by the pharmaceutical company Umbrella. Players will take the role of an officer of the Umbrella Security Service (USS). They have a vastly different objective compared to the Spec Ops opposition: Members of the USS are tasked with destroying evidence of Umbrella's illegal activities, including killing survivors of the outbreak, while the Special Operations team has to expose the actions of the company.^[3][4] Operation Raccoon City will allow the player to make major "what-if" decisions such as killing Leon Kennedy, one of the main characters of Resident Evil 2 and the protagonist of Resident Evil 4.^[5]

Gameplay

There are six playable characters in the game, Vector, Spectre, Beltway, Four Eyes, Lupo and Bertha. Each have their own unique abilities; Vector (real name unknown) is the team's recon expert and is equipped with a cloaking ability, Beltway (real name Hector Hivers) is proficient in the use of explosives, Bertha (real name Michaela Schneider) is the team's medic, Spectre (real name Vladimir Bodrovski) is the team's surveillance class and sharpshooter, Four Eyes (real name Christine Yamata) is the scientist of the group with the ability to program the bio-organic weapons (BOWs), and then there is Lupo (real name Karena Lesproux) who is an Assault class/Team Leader as shown in a recent trailer. Alongside the single-player mode, the game will also offer four-player co-operative gameplay, which pits the USS against the US Special Operations task force.^[3][6]

The zombies in the game will be able to attack the player in a multitude of ways. A zombie that gets too close to the player will usually attempt to grapple the player, prompting the player to rapidly shake his analogue stick to avoid infection. Players who are unsuccessful in doing this will be "invisible" to nearby zombies for a limited amount of time whilst they are infected before their death in game. If a player is successfully bitten and later runs out of time after becoming infected, the player will lose control of their character and begin attacking their former teammates until shot in the head, allowing the player to respawn.

The game also utilizes a bleeding mechanic, meaning characters who have been badly wounded will be deemed "bleeding out", giving their screen a blood red hue and making them a higher priority target to nearby infected than the others.^[7]

There will be additional enemy types in the game besides zombies. BOWs that can be confirmed from E3 are Hunters, Lickers and Tyrants. Furthermore, the player will be able to control them under certain circumstances.

Development

The idea for the game came about during the development of Lost Planet 2.^[1] The May 2011 edition of the Official Xbox Magazine, released on April 5, shows an image of an individual in a gas mask along Umbrella, Inc. logo on the issue's cover.^[8] On November 1, 2010 Kotaku reported on a rumor that Slant Six Games, developer of SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation, was developing Resident Evil: Raccoon City. On its website, Slant Six Games wrote that it was currently developing "an amazing new project" that was unannounced, which was developed in conjunction with a "new publishing partner on a world class franchise."^[9]

As of March, 2011, Masachika Kawata estimated the game to be 45% complete. According to Kawata, there are currently discussions on introducing new "bio-organic weapon" enemy creatures into the game.^[10] Ulike previous iterations, Operation Raccoon City will allow players to run and shoot simultaneously.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} "Dossier – Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City". PlayStation: Le Magazine Officiel - France (Yellow Media) (49): 44–53. April 2011. 
2. ^ "Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City chasing down Leon on March 20, 2012". Joystiq. 2011-10-29. http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/29/resident-evil-operation-raccoon-city-chasing-down-leon-on-march/. Retrieved 2011-10-29. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Johnny Cullen (March 28, 2011). "RE: Operation Raccoon City out winter for PS3, 360, PC". VG247. http://www.vg247.com/2011/03/28/capcom-formally-announces-resident-evil-racoon-city/. Retrieved March 28, 2011. 
4. ^ "First details on Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City". StickSkills.com. http://stickskills.com/news/1556/first-details-on-resident-evil-operation-raccoon-city-unveiled/. Retrieved 25 March 2011. 
5. ^ "Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City Announced". TeamXbox.com. http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/23631/Resident-Evil-Operation-Raccoon-City-Announced/. Retrieved 26 March 2011. 
6. ^ "Capcom confirms Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City". Joystiq.com. http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/28/resident-evil-operation-raccoon-city-confirmed/#continued/. Retrieved 28 March 2011. 
7. ^ "Raccoon City, a New Perspective". http://www.mishmashmagazine.com/2011/games/raccoon-city-perspective/. Retrieved 02 June 2011. 
8. ^ "Report: Squad-based 'Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City' detailed in new OXM". Joystiq.com. http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/25/resident-evil-operation-raccoon-city/. Retrieved 27 March 2011. 
9. ^ Michael McWhertor (November 1, 2010). "Rumor: Resident Evil In The Hands Of SOCOM Team". Kotaku. Gawker Media. http://kotaku.com/#!5678986/rumor-resident-evil-in-the-hands-of-socom-team. Retrieved March 28, 2011. 
10. ^ "Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City Producer Speaks". 1up.com. http://www.1up.com/news/resident-evil-operation-raccoon-city. Retrieved 30 March 2011. 

External links

• Official website