The demo's still only available in Japan so far, right? I don't see it the marketplace site.

I tried to use my japanese XBL account along with a free 48 Hour Gold trial code to get this early, but for some reason the code didn't work. I entered it, it was accepted, but the account is still listed as a silver account for some reason. So, no go until this hits the normal XBL sometime, very unfortunate for me.

Lame. This demo is already localized so I see no reason (other than the marketing schedule) why they are holding it from everyone.

I can't really see the bad part about doing this, so I may look around and give it a go.

Well, downloading and burning the demo works just fine and is actually a hellofalot easier than it would have been to sign up for a new Japanese XBL account.

The game looks really gorgeous. Resident Evil 4 really shattered all expectations of how good a game could look on last generation consoles for me personally, and while games like Gears of War really set the bar very high for this generation, RE5 can still definitely stand out on it's own. Textures are crisp, the lighting in amazing, and everything animates very smoothly. The new control scheme is interesting, but not revolutionary. It is somewhat Gears-esque, you move and strafe with the left thumbstick and control turning with the right thumbstick; you can also aim your weapon with the right thumbstick which is a nice touch. That's about all that is different though. Bizzarely, the run button is mapped to A, meaning if you want to run, you automatically revert to the old style control scheme where the left stick controls movement, direction and turning, which makes the new control scheme practically useless considering you're going to spend a hell of a lot of time running away to get a better position, escape the infected, etc.

The new inventory system looks to be much simplified, no more moving everything around to make every last thing fit. It consists of a 3x3 grid. Placing an item or weapon into the top, bottom, left or right slot marks it as a quick-equip item accessed by pressing one of the corresponding directions on the D-Pad. This helps immensely during hectic times when you run out of ammo on your current weapon.

Co-op play works well enough, there was no lag when I played, and they really have no excuse for any issues considering this is simply a two player affair. Co-op is fun, but it seems like it will be an instant tension killer for me. When asked about this same problem Jun Takeuchi (the executive producer) said they believed that the parts when Chris and Sheva are forced to split apart would hold tension, and perhaps it will later, but it didn't particularly help me out in that department.

Lastly, the game plays very similar to RE4. I know this has been stated elsewhere but, if you're looking for another gameplay overhaul like the switch from the classic RE games to RE4, you're simply not going to find it. Co-op adds a new dynamic, but it doesn't really change much. The new control tweaks seem poorly thought out, and the new inventory system can really swing either way depending on how you like it.

Downloaded and tested it out. It's very RE4, the co-op is fun, and the visuals are pretty good. It's basically exactly what I expected it to be like. After playing L4D and having complete fluid control over my character it was frustrating to hop back into the not as fluid control scheme, but it doesn't take long to get used to it again.

The demo's only 500 or so megs - worth downloading for a peek, and it's pretty easy to get it running.

Well, I hated RE4's "have to stop to look around" controls. Don't know if I'll ever play RE5, but I consider it a welcome change.

Couldn't you always look around? It was the little yellow thumb stick. The utility is that you can glance to the side or up before pulling the left trigger, and you'll pull the gun out in that direction. It's a way to quickly glance and take aim.

To me the the controls aren't clunky. They're distinctly human. They only let you move like a person, so you have to assess danger in a way that a person would. The inability to be a Cyclops-aiming, super-strafing badass makes choosing where to make your stand, and how long to make your stand an art form of split-second risk/reward decision making.

I played this coop with Souldaddy. By the way, Hayley, oh my God, these Chocodiles, these Chocodiles Hayley, oh my God, these Chocodiles, oh my God! I don't suggest playing this solo. It works fine and is really fun, but when you actually get to coordinate with a like-minded buddy, it's heaven.

Resource allocation and communication become parallel mini-games in themselves. The way you can easily see your buddy's laser makes communicating about terrain effortless. The way you can see your buddy's ammo count and inventory, and then share and ask for stuff means you don't have to do the Gears of War, "No, you pick it up" routine. The way you can help your buddy while they're being attacked means sticking together is a great idea, but not necessarily paramount as splitting up makes the enemies split up, too. Souldaddy noticed that due to the camera's being over opposite shoulders for each character means the players naturally pick opposing sides when traversing tight corridors. The "look at your buddy" seems quaint when you're first orienting to the new controls, but wait until you get a little disoriented, and hear, "Wait, where did you go? Oh sh*t!"

Left 4 Dead was an old school, single-player shooter cleverly and carefully transmogrified into a cooperative experience. Resident Evil 4 already was a coop game that was missing the second player.

To get coop going you need to set an option at the Network screen so that it's friends only. Otherwise when you host it will automatically give you a random Xbox Live person. Nuts to that. Then Host and invite someone.

I also suggest starting with the second of the two maps to choose from before moving on to the first map. They got the difficulty backwards.

This game makes me feel like this:

This game is an experience designed by and built for people who are awesome. They took everything I liked about RE4 (which I still play on a regular basis as it is one of the greatest games of all time) and smoothed out the edges to make an interface that is so natural I think the only step up would be mind control.

I am going to devote a considerable part of my life to this game. Considerable.

I played it solo despite Danjo's warning and still had a f*cking blast. The computer controlled buddy just turns into a pack mule for your stuff, fire support for when you're pinned, and a healer for when you are about to die. So far she's been nothing but help and doesn't get in the way.

One thing specifically that happened in the demo that is totally what this game is about: I was being chased by a crazy f*cker with a chain saw, I saw a barrel of gas, and I had to use a machine gun to cut down all the crazy f*ckers between me and the barrel to ignite it in time to catch the chainsaw guy with the blast.

There's really only one way to describe that.

Oh my God, these Chocodiles, these Chocodiles Hayley, oh my God, these Chocodiles, oh my God!

I really liked RE4 but I played it on PC and the combination of awful controls, QTEs that were borderline impossible on PC and irritating escort mission mechanics caused me to finally lose interest when I reached the bit with the castle and the catapult monk dudes. A refined control scheme and co-op would pretty much address all of my complains and possibly elevate RE5 to 'awesome'.

No. RE4 is the one with Portuguese virally infected zombified hosts of more malicious genetically engineered organisms that organized and kidnapped the president's daughter.

Despite the fact that RE5 is borrowing so heavily from RE4, I find it interesting that Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami says he won't be playing the game because "it's not going to be the game I would have made"

1up.com has snippets of the interview. Some semi-interesting stuff.

I'm looking forward to it, but I actually find the sunny island skies to be kind of an initial turn-off for me.

Split-screen?

Or split-screen. Either one is available.

Four months? I thought it was three!