Resident Evil 6 is a weird game, man. On one hand, you have this game that has no clue on what it wants to be; a game with no real identity, and only sold well because of the Resident Evil name, but my god, if this isn’t a textbook definition of “its so bad its good,” then I don’t know what to say about my knowledge in video games.
Normally, I would start with a quick synopsis of Resident Evil 6, but I cannot manage to explain this game’s story. The main appeal of RE6 are the four playable characters, each with their own story, while also having each of them being connected in this over arching story. The problem is, if I were to try to explain the over arching story, I would sound like a maniac and try to piece together all of the events of RE6. If I try to explain each character’s story, it wouldn’t make sense from a reader’s perspective. For now, let’s just the story is nuts. Each of the four characters and what plays out in each campaign is something out of a Michael Bay film, and something you would not expect to be in a Resident Evil game.
Speaking of not being a Resident Evil game, RE6 is not one! Each zombie has no sense of tension or suspense to them, like with previous RE titles. Instead, each enemy encounter is more like a hack and slash, where you quickly go through zombies like its nothing, as you progress in the area. In addition, the gameplay of RE6 is just not good. First off, you could technically beat this whole game with just kicks. Yes, you have a melee attack button in this game. Second off, there are so many quick time events, whether it be against enemies, or for progression, get ready to spin the control stick and mash buttons a lot. Yeah, it works and the game is playable, but with melee attacks, quick time events, and me constantly forgetting that this is a Resident Evil game, I can’t help but wonder how this game exists.
Even though Resident Evil 6 has major issues, I can’t help but think about how stupid this game was, but how much fun I had with its stupidity.
Fair warning: this next paragraph contains spoilers for Resident Evil 6. Go to the last paragraph to avoid spoilers.
First off, if I had to give RE6 credit where credit’s due, the game does look pretty good by today’s standards. I played the Nintendo Switch version, and throughout my playthrough of RE6, I was impressed to see how good the zombies looked. Even by today’s standards, yeah, it’s no RE7, but it still holds up fairly well. Also, I do appreciate how Capcom went all out with the RE fanservice. Seeing Chris and Leon work together to stop the C-Virus was a treat, as I love both characters a ton. Best of all, they brought back Sherry Birkin from RE2, who now works in the US National Security department. Also, having a call back to Wesker in the form of Jake Muller offered some nice dialogue interactions between some of the characters. Finally, the co-op makes its return from RE5, and I’d argue that its better in RE6 than in RE5. They fully embrace the co-op in RE6, with there being whole gameplay sections where you and your partner are split apart, and need to reunite, which I found to be very fun.
In the end, RE6 is a mess of a game, with the story being whatever across the four campaigns, and a loss of identity in its gameplay. But I couldn’t help but have fun with its stupid moments. If one were to ask me for an example of a game that is so bad it’s good, Resident Evil 6 would be my number one choice.