When Capcom first revealed their latest entry into the Resident Evil-verse, nobody was expecting a Left 4 Dead-esque game with Mr X ready to give it to ya as seen in Project Resistance. This escape room adventure truly is like if Left 4 Dead and Dead by Daylight got drunk in a bar and Project Resistance was its love child with Mr X as the weird creepy uncle that nobody wants to acknowledge. And you know what? We’re 100% here for it.
We recently got a chance to get some hands-on time with the latest game during Tokyo Game Show this year and while Capcom did make sure that everyone was aware that the title is still very much a work in progress, overall it was quite enjoyable! Immediately after getting started, the Left 4 Dead and Dead by Daylight vibes were abundantly apparent and as someone who is absolutely terrible/terrified at escape rooms, it was very interesting to feel this gameplay experience unfold.
What is Project Resistance?
For those that may have missed the initial announcement, the setting of Project Resistance sees four survivors that must work together in order to live through the night. From zombies wanting to tear them limb from limb, to traps ready to make you feel like the biggest idiot in the world, this puzzle-driven co-op experience was way more than I was originally anticipating.
Much like Evolve, one player will be the Big Bad (called Mastermind) repping that Umbrella Corps pride and will be able to monitor their friends’ progress through the game with that sick camera set up we saw in the teaser trailer. But it’s not just Crreepy McCreeperson watching the others’ every move – they can also conjure up loads of obstacles like zombies and even Mr. X himself.
Mastermind’s objective? Don’t let the four other players beat the clock and overcome all of the obstacles in their way. If they can beat the clock, they win. Since Project Resistance is super dependant on the actions of players in-game, both the survivors and Mastermind, every match plays completely differently and because of that and all of the potential chaos, the replayability is insanely high – something games like Evolve didn’t quite manage to pull off.
Meet the Characters of Project Resistance
With four survivors, of course they are each going to have a very specific role to play. This offers balance and variety while appealing to basic archetype playstyles. For those interested in Capcom’s latest horror title, here’s what you need to know about who you’ll be playing:
- Valerie – Healer
- Samuel – Fighter, melee-focused
- January – Hacker, valuable when shutting down Mastermind’s camera set while gaining some control over the environment
- Tyrone – Tank, also equipped with a pretty stellar shutdown kick
To get a feel for the game, I played both as a survivor and Mastermind. I didn’t think i’d like Mastermind because he seemed complicated with so many variables, but once I managed to find my basic bearings, he was super fun to play. The feeling of power was addictive and being able to completely rock the other players’ world was beyond satisfying. Lock up another player to separate the group, overwhelm them with dead aggressive things – the sky is the limit and exploring that made me want to “play one more round.”
Where Capcom takes this title remains to be seen but it has a ton of potential for longevity – especially if they go the Dead by Daylight route with continuous updates and rotating content. There’s a lot of work to be done, but we knew that already, but from what we’ve seen thus far Project Resistance looks very promising.
