Resident Evil Operation Raccoon City is bad

After spending time with Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City, I can honestly say it felt like a complete departure from what makes Resident Evil games so special. It tried to blend the survival horror roots with a team-based third-person shooter, almost like a 'Resident Evil meets Left 4 Dead' concept, but as I mentioned in my quick take, nothing really clicked. The story, for instance, felt incredibly disjointed. You're playing as Umbrella Security Service operatives, which sounds cool on paper – seeing Raccoon City from the 'other side' – but the narrative was so weak, it barely justified its existence. I mean, where was the tension? The iconic characters sometimes show up, but they often feel like cardboard cutouts rather than the compelling figures we've grown to love (or hate!). Then there are the mechanics. The OCR mentioned 'painful mechanics,' and that’s an understatement. Aiming felt clunky, movement was stiff, and the cover system often worked against you rather than for you. Compared to the fluid controls of modern third-person shooters, ORC felt stuck in a previous generation, but without the charm. And let's not even start on the 'constant glitches.' I encountered so many visual bugs and AI pathfinding issues that it truly broke any immersion I might have tried to salvage. It’s hard to feel like an elite operative when your teammates are running into walls or getting stuck on a piece of debris. The combat was another huge letdown; 'weightless and didn't pack any punch' was spot on. Enemies often felt like bullet sponges, and your weapons lacked any real impact or feedback. For a game that leans heavily into action, this is a fatal flaw. It made every firefight feel like a chore rather than an exciting, tactical encounter. This is actually a common criticism Resident Evil games face when they stray too far into action territory. Fans often lament the loss of true survival horror elements – the careful resource management, the puzzle-solving, the eerie atmosphere – in favor of endless waves of enemies and generic shooting mechanics. ORC unfortunately exemplifies this shift, and not in a good way. It makes you think about what aspects of Resident Evil games are most often criticized, doesn't it? Often, it's when the series tries too hard to be something it's not. Remember the debates around Resident Evil 4's shift to action? While RE4 innovated and largely succeeded, ORC felt like a poor imitation, losing sight of the series' identity. Even the more action-oriented Resident Evil 5 and 6, for all their flaws, had more polish and engaging co-op experiences. And speaking of Raccoon City, this game just didn't capture the dread and claustrophobia of the city like Resident Evil 2 or 3 did. It felt more like a generic urban warzone than the iconic, zombie-infested metropolis we know. Even the Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City movie, despite its own issues, at least tried to capture some of the city’s atmosphere, whereas ORC just felt... empty. Ultimately, my experience with Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City was a prime example of how not to make a spin-off. It lacked the horror, the engaging gameplay, and the compelling narrative that defines the Resident Evil universe. If you're looking for a good Resident Evil game, or even a solid third-person shooter, there are countless better options out there. This one? Definitely a 3/10 and a title I'd advise any Resident Evil fan to simply pass over.