Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles

Off the bat, let me admit to not having very much in the way of Resident Evil knowledge; I'm not a hardcore fan of the series. But while I enjoyed my recent hands-on time with two levels of Capcom's second on-rails lightgun shooter, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, which takes you through re-imagined levels from Code Veronica and RE2 along with some original stages, I'm a bit surprised by the game's overall lack of suspense. Theoretically, it's creepy to walk around darkened hallways of abandoned buildings, but the effect is pretty much ruined when you're not on the edge of your seat waiting for the next zombie that may or may not jump out at you around the next corner. In the two levels I played, my character walked extremely slowly. On occasion, they'd sprint forward of their own accord -- hence, being on-rails -- but other times, they would just move forward at an excruciatingly slow pace. It's not that I don't have patience; it's just a bit jarring to walk so deliberately when the characters are speaking so animatedly and the background music sounds like a spirited JRPG fight theme. Not that that's a bad thing -- it's just incongruous. It doesn't do the suspenseful tone any favors either.

To those who say the Wii doesn't have enough games for those over 17: you are so wrong. However, if you were to say there are too few M-rated titles that aren't on-rails shooters, we'd probably agree with you. That said, Dead Space: Extraction and House of the Dead: Overkill were among the best Wii games this year. Hoping to round out this trio of excellence in bloody, on-rails shooting is Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, which we ...

Leon and Krauser fight for survival in South America in our latest look at this Resident Evil rail shooter.

We return to Resident Evil 2 and Code Veronica where those zombies just never stay dead.

The only thing scary about this light-gun game is the dreadful shaky camera.