Resident Evil Outbreak

Resident Evil Outbreak
North American box art
Developer(s)	Capcom Production Studio 1
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Director(s)	Eiichiro Sasaki
Producer(s)	Katsuhiro Sudo Tsuyoshi Tanaka
Artist(s)	Yuji Imamura Yoshihiro Ono
Composer(s)	Akihiko Matsumoto Tetsuya Shibata Etsuko Yoneda Mitsuhiko Takano Kento Hasegawa Masato Kohda[1]
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2
Release date(s)	JP December 11, 2003 NA March 31, 2004 PAL September 17, 2004
Genre(s)	Survival horror
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer
Rating(s)	ACB: MA15+ CERO: 15+ ESRB: M PEGI: 16+

Resident Evil Outbreak, known as Biohazard Outbreak (バイオハザード アウトブレイク, Baiohazādo Autobureiku^?) in Japan, is a single player game with online playability for the PlayStation 2 initially released in 2003.^[2] It was developed by Capcom Production Studio 1.^[3] This game was the first in the Resident Evil series to feature cooperative gameplay and online multiplayer support,^[4] although online support was not available for the PAL versions of the game. Outbreak was produced by Tsuyoshi Tanaka, and depicts a series of episodic storylines in the fictional location Raccoon City, set during the same general time period as Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. Outbreak was followed by a standalone expansion entitled Resident Evil Outbreak File #2.

Plot

The beginning of Outbreak is set a couple of days after the initial outbreak of the fictional T virus in Raccoon City, moments before the crisis erupts into complete chaos. The game starts with the eight characters at J's Bar, unaware of what is happening until a lone zombie wanders into the bar and attacks one of the employees named Will. After that the characters must make it through the city. The game ends in the final moments of the same incident, with the player attempting to escape Raccoon City before the US government launches a missile strike to eliminate the threat posed by the T virus. The player controls one of eight characters, or numerous supporting characters who can be selected in their place. Gameplay events transpire across various regions of Raccoon City and span over a period of several days.

There are 5 Scenarios in this game:

• Outbreak
• Below Freezing Point
• The Hive
• Hellfire
• Decisions Decisions

Gameplay

Players can trade items with their AI partners and vice versa.

The player chooses a scenario, difficulty level, and a character. The difficulty level is tied to what enemies and items the player encounters as they progress through the scenario. The game has five scenarios, each of which has an event checklist consisting of special actions that the player must perform to reach 100% completion. Upon doing so the player will unlock "Infinity Mode" in which all the player's weapons never break or run out of ammunition.

Each scenario also has "SP" items. These are invisible items hidden throughout the level, and are randomly generated on two paths. There are twenty scenario items for each scenario, and twenty items specific to each character hidden across the five scenarios. If acquired, these items unlock new costumes and the option to listen to their ad-libs.

Players could connect to the internet servers using a broadband connection and a network adapter. Account registration and login were required. Once players connected and logged in, they could then choose between Free Mode and Scenario Mode. Free Mode took place in a lobby and allowed players to create their own games, scenarios, and difficulty level. Scenario Mode would choose the scenario and players automatically. When a player first started online, they would begin on the Outbreak scenario and progress from there. If the player wished to stop playing, they could save their data and start off from the scenario they were up to at the time. If the player had beaten a scenario, they acquired a star by their name.

On December 31, 2007, Capcom shut down the US servers for Outbreak and on June 30, 2011 for the JP servers.

Development

Resident Evil Outbreak was originally known as Biohazard Online. Developer Capcom released various pieces of media under this name in 2002, including pictures featuring the eight main characters wandering around the Arklay Mountains and a trailer demonstrating the ad-lib system and character communication.^[5]

The title was later changed to Network Biohazard and information was given that the game was to include over twenty scenarios. The final title became Biohazard Outbreak (Resident Evil Outbreak outside Japan) with the number of scenarios reduced to five.

Another five scenarios that did not make the initial cut, though were complete enough to be featured in the E3 2002 trailer, were developed into the sequel Resident Evil Outbreak File #2.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
Aggregator	Score
GameRankings	70.78% (38 reviews)[6]
Metacritic	71%[7]
Review scores
Publication	Score
1UP.com	B-[8]
Allgame	[9]
Eurogamer	5/10[10]
GamePro	[11]
Game Revolution	B-[12]
GameSpot	7.2/10 [13]
GameSpy	[14]
GamesRadar	9[15]
GameZone	8.3[16]
IGN	7.6/10[citation needed]

The game received average reviews and sold about 1.45 million copies, reaching the 32nd position in the list of Capcom's best-selling games.^[17]

Sources

1. ^ (2004) Album notes for Biohazard Outbreak Original Soundtrack. King Records Co., Ltd..
2. ^ "Resident Evil Outbreak". GameFAQs. http://www.gamefaqs.com/ps2/554411-resident-evil-outbreak/data. Retrieved 2011-04-01. 
3. ^ "Interview: Capcom chief lifts Resident Evil 0 lid". ComputerAndVideoGames.com. Future Publishing Limited. August 30, 2002. Archived from the original on May 11, 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5ybfDs1rG. Retrieved May 11, 2011. 
4. ^ Resident Evil Outbreak at Allgame
5. ^ E3 2002 Trailer
6. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". Game Rankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/ps2/554411-resident-evil-outbreak/index.html. Retrieved 2010-05-06. 
7. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/residenteviloutbreak. Retrieved 2010-05-06. 
8. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". 1UP. http://www.1up.com/do/gameOverview?cId=2006663. Retrieved 2010-05-06. 
9. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". Allgame. http://allgame.com/game.php?id=43489. Retrieved 2010-05-06. 
10. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". Eurogamer. http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/r_residenteviloutbreak_ps2. Retrieved 2010-05-06. 
11. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". Gamepro. http://www.gamepro.com/article/reviews/34828/resident-evil-outbreak/. Retrieved 2010-05-06. 
12. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". Game Revolution. http://www.gamerevolution.com/game/resident-evil-outbreak. Retrieved 2010-10-04. 
13. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". Game Spot. http://uk.gamespot.com/ps2/adventure/residentevilonline/index.html?tag=result%3Btitle%3B0. Retrieved 2010-05-06. 
14. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". GameSpy. http://uk.ps2.gamespy.com/playstation-2/resident-evil-outbreak/502999p1.html. Retrieved 2010-05-30. 
15. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". GamesRadar. http://www.gamesradar.com/ps2/resident-evil-outbreak/g-2005120717101994396972. Retrieved 2010-10-04. 
16. ^ "Review: Resident Evil: Outbreak". GameZone. http://ps2.gamezone.com/reviews/item/resident_evil_outbreak_ps2_review/. Retrieved 2010-10-04. 
17. ^ Capcom sales figures

External links

• Resident Evil Outbreak at MobyGames
• Official UK site
• Capcom-Unity