I am a gamer who owns an Xbox One console and I always want the best value possible in return for the amount of money I spend on buying new video games.
Ironically, something from the embarrassing build-up of Xbox One finally got released commercially and that game is Crackdown 3.
To put things in perspective, Crackdown 3 was first announced at E3 of 2014 exclusively for Xbox One. It went through a very troublesome production and it was heavily delayed before finally getting released on February 15, 2019.
Now that the game is out, you must be wondering how did the video game critics react to it. Sad to say, Crackdown 3 was not the stellar hit and I’m not really surprised.
According to the game critics…..
Crackdown 3 shows very little in the way of learning from the past or learning from the other open-world games that have graced consoles over the last nine years. Instead it feels slight, mindless, and dull. It feels like a gussied-up first-generation Xbox One game. ~ Giant Bomb
Crackdown 3 is just more Crackdown. For some players, that will be enough. But compared to what Crackdown 3 initially promised, what we ended up with seems lacking in depth and destruction. ~ EGM
Crackdown 3 makes no sense on paper. Its story is nonsense, you spend way too much time searching for hidden orbs and leveling up, and the presentation isn’t anything spectacular. And yet, the over-the-top madness and hilarious, memorable moments it brought me made it impossible to put down. ~ GamingTrend
Crackdown 3 just doesn’t meet contemporary standards as a premium $60 title, with dated visuals, thin gameplay features, and an under-delivered story. There are too many open world superhero-style games that simply do it better. ~ Windows Central
Forget Crackdown 2 ever happened, Crackdown 3 is the sequel we deserve. ~ GameSpew
As a big fan of the first part, it’s not easy for me to say that, but Crackdown 3 is at least five years late…This is all the sadder, because the mechanics in Crackdown 3 are quite solid and I especially enjoy the search for the movement Orbs. But the bottom line is the sobering result of a developmental odyssey, which will probably be the last nail for the series. ~ GamePro Germany
It certainly delivers on letting you blow things up and jump around the city. However, a dozen years after the first Crackdown offered that same experience but failed to provide you with enough interesting content surrounding that, it’s truly disappointing to see this latest iteration suffer from the very same problems. ~ GameSpot
The game isn’t the visual masterpiece one would expect from a AAA production, but it isn’t without its charm. It’s with Wrecking Zone that Sumo Digital stretches their wings thanks to the chaos of destructible environments, but the glaring lack of content and missing features makes it more of a curiosity rather than a fully fleshed out mode. ~ Hardcore Gamer
Crackdown is back with a fun game that ends up being quite repetitive. Sumo Digital has done a great job finishing this title, but we expected a more evolved concept after so many years. ~ Vandal
Crackdown 3 is a good Crackdown game, which, unfortunately, doesn’t mean much anymore. ~ Destructoid
There you have it. Some reviews and statements for your reference in case you are thinking about spending a lot of your hard-earned money on Crackdown 3.
Personally I have no intention of buying the game right now not because of the critical reception but it’s because I am still enjoying Resident Evil 2 “remake” and Tales of Vesperia on my Xbox One. Even if I get tired of those two games, there’s no guarantee I’ll buy Crackdown 3. As far as open-world games are concerned, I want a game that has very in-depth gameplay combined with sufficient cinematic storytelling, high production values and of course enduring, high level of enjoyment. Believe it or not, I still have not played Red Dead Redemption 2 and that game alone is the better choice over Crackdown 3 as far as open-world games of recent times are concerned.
Thank you for reading. If you found this article to be engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. Also my fantasy book The World of Havenor is still available in paperback and e-book format. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me as well. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco.
I recently played the 6-gigabyte demo of the Resident Evil 2 remake on my Xbox One downloaded via Xbox LIVE. It was a one-shot demo limited to only thirty minutes of play time.
So how was my experience? I focused mainly on exploration of the Raccoon City Police Station and orienting myself with the game’s controls (and the 3rd-person view on exploration and shooting).
Having played RE2 on PlayStation way back in 1998, I found it stunning that the in-game environment rendered in full 3D polygons the look of the police station from the old game. Of course, not everything is 100% replicated. There are noticeable changes like re-arrangements of the certain furniture, items and even parts of the layout of the interiors. Clear to say, if you are a very avid RE2 gamer who pretty much memorized the placings of items in the 1998 video game, do not expect to find them the same in the 2019 remake.
Regarding controls, in my view RE2 feels very similar to that of Resident Evil 6 which was the last RE game I played. The 3rd-person view approach on movement and shooting are there. That being said, I find RE2’s shooting-and-moving mechanism inferior to that of Gears of War games with regards to response and precision. Not necessarily a bad thing and I do understand that the lack of response and precision is meant to enhance the claustrophobic feel for gamers. Resident Evil 2, after all, is Capcom’s attempt to revive survival horror seriously.
More on shooting, there is a balance between precision, impact and movement. There I was as Leon aiming at an approaching zombie while slowly walking backwards (to keep a distance). I took a shot at the zombie’s head while moving, the shot did not affect him. When I stopped moving, aiming became more precise (I noticed the on-screen target mark adjusting) and my shots hit the zombie better on the head and body.
Speaking of zombies, they are slow moving but are noticeably faster compared to their 1998 counterparts. Once near you, a zombie can take a sudden move forward to grab and bite you.
What I found intriguing is that when I was caught between two zombies, they both grabbed me and attacked me at the same time causing further damage to Leon’s health. I wonder what would happen if, let’s say, Leon got caught between two Lickers in a similar situation.
On exploration, the move into the dark portions of the police station using only a flashlight to see ahead is a nice touch. I ended up moving cautiously as I explored the rooms and other things to search for useful items like a key, first aid spray, etc.
And then there is the discovery about what happened to the police station. One police officer I tried to save died losing half his body as zombies from the other room grabbed him. Then there is another police officer who helped Leon survive from suffering the same death.
Because I focused more on exploration and getting used to the controls, my 30 minutes ran out without reaching the end.
So how do I feel after playing the one-shot demo? Personally I am not keen on buying Resident Evil 2’s release on January 25. I will observe first how the game will perform critically with the game review writers, the bloggers and of course the feedback of the many gamers who play it.
I do remember the overall feel of Resident Evil 2 on PlayStation in 1998. The first part was all about orientation, exploring the police station and finding out how Raccoon City got overwhelmed with zombies caused by the deadly, artificially made virus. Then as the game progressed, locations changed and more characters entered the plot, the pace quickened, the action became more intense and there was that sense of adventure as well. It remains to be seen if such things will happen in the overall narrative of the RE2 remake.
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First released in late 1999 on the PlayStation console in America, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (Japan title: Biohazard: Last Escape) was a notable game of the Resident Evil franchise that not only proved to be a lot of fun but also a memorable experience for fans. To this day the game is fondly remembered.
In recent times, the Resident Evil franchise made waves with gamers worldwide with Resident Evil 7 (which came with a very daring change of style and gameplay) and the Resident Evil 2 remake demo (which I played the full 30 minutes of). The RE2 demo instantly brought back my own memories of enjoying the PlayStation version of early 1998. Granted, Resident Evil 2 in 1998 was truly a great sequel and its concept was epic compared to its predecessor’s. Because that game was a major blockbuster, Capcom had to come up with worthy follow-ups.
Then something happened over at Capcom in Japan. The initial concept for a sequel to RE2 was in the form of a story set on a luxury cruise liner but the company decided it lacked the time to produce a game out of it and this was related to Sony’s unveiling of the PlayStation 2 console.
After some shuffling of executives and creative people, a team composed of not-so-experienced talents led by game director Kazuhiro Aoyama was formed to produce a spin-off with a plot penned by company writer Yasuhisa Kawamura. The story was reviewed and approved by Flagship (an internal team that led the creative charge of Resident Evil projects) and RE creator Shinji Mikami worked as producer on the project.
Regarding its status, Resident Evil 3 was developed in tandem with the Sega Dreamcast-bound game that became Resident Evil: Code Veronica which was a bigger project and was the true sequel to RE2. The tricky part was that Capcom decided that its RE games released on PlayStation will carry a number on the title for “consistency” while RE games released on other platforms would carry subtitles.
RE3 followed the exploits of Jill Valentine, who was a protagonist in the 1996 original Resident Evil game. The story begins with her stuck in the middle of Raccoon City surrounded by flesh-eating zombies and she has no choice but to fight, run and escape to survive. Along the way, she discovers that what she learned from Umbrella in the first game was nothing compared to the more sinister intentions of the company she discovers in RE3. Making matters even harder for her was Nemesis, a large walking bio-weapon whose purpose is to destroy members of the city’s police unit S.T.A.R.S. (which Jill belongs to).
For what started as a spin-off, Resident Evil 3’s gameplay showed notable improvements over that of Resident Evil 2. As a survival horror game, it has the awkward tank-like controls, the static pre-rendered environments with fixed camera angles and challenges of moving from one place to another while dealing with zombies or monsters.
The most notable improvement made was the addition of the ability for players to do 180-degree quick turn-around movements when controlling the character. Not only does this make moving the character easier, it also adds more speed and strategy into the game itself especially when the protagonist is surrounded by many zombies or monsters. The pace of gameplay also quickened with the quick turn-around.
Another addition is the ammunition crafting system that allows you to make more ammo for your weapons by combining the raw material (example: gun powder) into the in-game ammo-making device. This results making different types of ammunition for different weapons. By the time you reached deeper into the game, more powerful ammunition for newer weapons can be made and used.
Meanwhile the game had key moments that compel players to make a decision as that the narrative and gameplay would move forward. The element of choice is a nice gameplay addition and each choice made showed different results as to what happened next. When Nemesis appears, the game’s movement slows down presenting choices for gamers to make. The good news here is the decision making affects the quality of the story’s ending.
The one addition I find questionable in the game is the dodge which works rather unpredictably in terms of response. There are times it worked and there are times it failed. No matter how you use the controls and time them with the action, the results are always inconsistent.
The biggest addition, not to mention the biggest impact, made in the game is Nemesis himself. Unlike Mr. X in Resident Evil 2, Nemesis is the unrelenting stalker whose presence and action deepened the gaming experience. Not only was Nemesis tough to fight with, he also appeared when gamers least expected and he runs a lot to get to Jill (or the mercenary Carlos who was also controlled temporarily by players). The music accompanying Nemesis’ presence also heightened the fear factor. It is argued that Nemesis himself is the most defining feature of Resident Evil 3 and deserved to have the game’s subtitle made after him.
In my honest opinion, Nemesis reminds me a lot of the horror icon Jason Voorhees from the Friday The 13th slasher horror movie franchise. Like Jason, Nemesis is heavily disfigured (horrific to look at), stalks his prey relentlessly and does a lot (and anything) to kill his prey. Nemesis’ killing of Brad only shows how deadly he is. Like Jason, Nemesis cannot be reasoned with nor does he feel any pity. He simply won’t stop until he kills you in the game.
In terms of technology, RE3 used the same game engine as RE and RE2. By this time, the technology experts at Capcom improved the visual quality and the 2D pre-rendered backgrounds always felt convincing to me each time I played. Rare are the times when I noticed the 3D polygonal characters or monsters stood out from the 2D environments. With regards to the anti-hero elements, the zombies are more varied and most of all the monsters are creepier to look at. The Hunters made a nice return as well.
In terms of exploration, Resident Evil 3 makes heavy use of the city environment complete with many varied interiors mixed with believable exteriors. There were these alleys, streets (with some stores to enter) and more. The many puzzles as well as machines that required key items to be retrieved provide a good challenge although some may find the backtracking a bit tedious.
The return of Jill
Jill Valentine made a nice return as the protagonist of the game. Right from the start, it was explained that she had resigned from the police force. Regarding her skimpy appearance (the blue tube top she wore with short skirt and boots), it turned out she was on her way out of town when the zombie infestation of Raccoon City begins in RE3.
More on Jill’s sexy default appearance in the game, I believe that Capcom’s creative team designed her like that in response to the sexy, armed woman charm popularized by Lara Croft of the best-selling Tomb Raider game franchise.
Take note of this. The first Resident Evil was released in 1996 many months before the first Tomb Raider came out. By the time Resident Evil 3 was released, the Tomb Raider franchise already had three games (note: there was a 12-month cycle for releasing sequels back then) that each sold in the millions and Lara Croft was quickly established as not only as a pop culture icon but also as a digital sex symbol idolized by millions of guys worldwide. I have this theory that some members of the Resident Evil 3 team subconsciously came up with the tube top look for Jill Valentine with Lara Croft as an influence. To say the least, both Jill and Lara are brave women capable of fighting with varied types of guns.
Sex appeal aside, Resident Evil 3’s story is truly a defining tale of Jill Valentine as a character. By connecting her RE3 tale with that of the events of the first game from 1996, I come to realize that her stories made sense. Her becoming disillusioned with the failure of the city police department to go against Umbrella and eventual quitting from the police force was believable. In addition, Nemesis proved to be the ultimate monster she ever faced and all the monsters she encountered in the first game paled in comparison to him.
Alone and without having access to police resources, Jill’s struggle in Resident Evil 3 is a story that won’t be forgotten and the game’s fun and engaging gameplay only made her story even more memorable.
The cinematic “adaptation”
Sienna Guillory as the cinematic Jill Valentine at the left. With her were Sophie Vavasseur as Angela Ashford and director Alexander Witt. (credit: Screen Gems, Inc.)
In 2004, the second Resident Evil live-action movie Resident Evil: Apocalypse was released in cinemas starring Milla Jovovich. The concepts of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis were carelessly adapted by the movie showing a Raccoon City filled with zombies and a live-action Jill Valentine played by Sienna Guillory who appeared with the tube top, short skirt and boots. In a sequence in the movie, Guillory even tried moving like her character’s video game counterpart.
While attention was paid on Jill’s Resident Evil 3 look, Guillory’s portrayal of her was nothing special and this has a lot to do with the screenplay by Paul W.S. Anderson, the directing by Alexander Witt (not really a prolific director) and notably Milla Jovovich’s dominance of the spotlight.
Whenever I watch Guilloy’s Jill in the movie, I really never felt like watching RE3’s Jill at all. Also the film had Jill being inferior to Alice (Milla Jovovich) on screen. There are two scenes in the movie wherein Jill does something to solve the problem, Alice comes in to do it better than her.
Having seen all Resident Evil live-action movies, which I regret for the most part, it is no secret that the filmmakers treated the concepts, characters and other elements from the RE video games with no real respect and certainly with no care about the concerns of Resident Evil game fans.
If you have not seen Resident Evil: Apocalypse and have been interested to see it for the RE3 elements, better not waste your time. Better play the video game instead.
Conclusion
Ultimately Resident Evil 3: Nemesis is a classic even though it was never meant to be the big budget sequel to the classic Resident Evil 2. The game deservedly got released on the Sega Dreamcast, the Nintendo GameCube and Windows PC.
Now that Resident Evil mania is back in gamers’ minds right now, I should say that Capcom should consider re-releasing digitally RE3 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Windows 10 if ever possible. Even though its tank-like controls are very outdated by today’s standards, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis is a classic that gamers of different ages must enjoy without having to go through the hassle of acquiring old existing copies of it (not to mention having an existing old console to play it). I myself am willing to pay for RE3 to be re-released and play it on my Xbox One. Very recently an enhanced re-release of Onimusha: Warlords was done by Capcom. Making the same treatment with RE3 only makes sense.
Who knows what impact a re-released RE3 would create? Such a re-release could lead to a popular demand for Capcom to make a big budget remake of Resident Evil 3 similar to what they have done with RE2. This will also give today’s gamers an opportunity to experience the one defining story of Jill Valentine.
In ending this article, I posted some YouTube videos of RE3 for your enjoyment.
Thank you for reading. If you find this article to be engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. Also my fantasy book The World of Havenor is still available in paperback and e-book format. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me as well. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco.
Author Carlo Carrasco 