Diehard GameFAN: Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles (Wii)

Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles is a step down from the overall experience that was Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles. Darkside is more linear, has less overall content, far less unlockables, and has not only lost the ability to somewhat control the camera that the first game had, but at times the camera is so shaky that the game feels like it is suffering from Parkinson's Disease. Still, the game is gorgeous to look at, especially the cut scenes which are amongst the best graphics the Wii has ever displayed. The Darkside Chronicles actually fills in a lot of plot holes that the original Resident Evil 2 and Code Veronica suffered from, while adding some depth and continuity between the games. There is no denying that The Darkside Chronicles is a fun light gun/rail shooter experience, but it's just not as well done as The Umbrella Chronicles or even other rail shooters that have hit the Wii this year like Dead Space: Extraction or The House of the Dead: Overkill. The Darkside Chronicles is worth picking up even if you're not a big RE fan as the controls (save for the camera) are tight, fun, and rewarding. It's just you can get a better, deeper, and more rewarding game in 2007's Umbrella Chronicles and for a fraction of the cost, so if you haven't picked that up yet, get that first and go from there. -