This is a heavily streamlined Resident Evil 4 with increased emphasis on precise and brutal gunplay, light third-person puzzling, and campy action film nonsense. It's much more linear and leans heavily into its mission-based structure, keeping each level straightforward but replayable. One could argue that Resident Evil 5 is just a watered-down Resident Evil 4 if not for Sheva, whose presence is reminiscent of the second player character in the older games. She elevates this game from a trivial follow-up to a bold new direction for the series.

Overall, the game would be a worthy sequel to Resident Evil 4 if not for its sorely mishandled setting. Resident Evil 5 is the most political game in the series, and that's too ambitious for Capcom, whose writers come off as out-of-touch and toothless. There's talk of imperialism, terrorism, and eugenics, but it's all just a backdrop for the tentacle monster battles. Don't touch a subject like Western imperialism in Africa if you're not going to do anything productive with it, especially if your portrayals of native Africans come off as racist.