This episode is completely different from Lost in Nightmares.  It is relentless and incredibly awesome.  The Majini keep on coming and if you are not careful, you may find yourself with little to no ammo very early in the game.  There are plenty of places to find ammo, health, and new weapons, however, you will want to conserve as much as you possibly can especially early on in the level.  It is even more imperative that you work together as a team, if you are playing local or the online co-op.  There are no medals to collect however there are are plenty of score stars to help add to your overall level score.

If killing Majini’s is your thing, this is definitely the DLC for you.  At the completion of our first run through, we had killed over 300 enemies which is a ton more than any level in the regular game.  It is the most intense level of Resident Evil 5 in the whole game for sure.  You will face a lot of familiar enemies including the Executioner and Chainsaw Majini.

There are five achievements added to the game for an additional 100GS.  With the Desperate Escape DLC you also get two more playable characters in The Mercenaries Reunion.  You will now be able to play Rebecca Chambers from Resident Evil 0 and Josh Stone from RE5.  In addition to the DLC release comes Character Pack #2 (purchased separately) which includes the “Heavy Metal” outfit for Chris and the “Business” outfit for Sheva, both of which add some new flair to the game-play and the cut scenes. If you purchase this, you will also get “Heavy Metal” Chris and “Business” Sheva as playable characters in The Mercenaries Reunion.

Desperate Escape is a must-have DLC for fans of the Resident Evil 5 game as it helps round out the overall story.  Also, if you want a good solid hour or two of intense zombie killing, then you should download this episode as well.  There really isn’t a moment to relax and that’s what makes this DLC so much fun.

Resident Evil 5: Desperate Escape is available now on the XBL Marketplace for 400 MSP and the PSN Store for $4.99.  Costume Pack #2 is available for 160 MSP/$1.99.  Costume Pack #2 includes the Chris Redfield Heavy Metal costume and the Business costume for Sheva Alomar.

This is a review of the Xbox 360 DLC.

A review code was provided but did not affect the outcome of this review.

The episodes starts off as you are dropped off at the mansion with Jill picking the locks to get in. It’s business as usual as you uncover several dead bodies and bloodstains in the foyer and stairs. The first portion of the DLC is about finding a way deeper into the mansion. You uncover several clues and passwords that will get you closer to your target. Along the way, you will find some ammo and a few new weapons like the shotgun, magnum, machine gun, and rifle. I’m not sure if the choices are random, but we played on Normal and got the shotgun and magnum. When we played it again on Veteran, we got the machine gun, rifle, and the shotgun. You will also find some grenades and flash bangs. We found some proximity mines on Vet mode. Again, not sure if these are random or if they are tied to the difficulty level.

You collect Score Stars, 18 of which are hidden throughout the level akin to the BSAA Medals. Be sure to look everywhere because they are in all the places you least expect them and in a few places you expect them to be.

Keeping in RE5 fashion, the game requires that you work with your partner. This is imperative in the harder modes. Neither Norm nor I played the DLC alone (we’ve not even played RE5 alone), mostly since the game is really about working with your partner. This is one of those games that is best enjoyed with a friend either locally or online.

The DLC will give you between 1.5 to 2 hours of gameplay, depending on how thorough you play through the game. If you want to collect all the medals, the game will take you longer. There’s a high replay value to the DLC, especially if you want the challenge of collecting all the medals as well as playing all of the difficulty levels. There are 5 achievements for a total of 100 GS that all seem relatively easy to get but will require at least 2-3 playthroughs.

There isn’t anything new in the dlc except for some of Jill’s abilities. She can pick locks and play the piano. There’s a great part where Jill has to play Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata using quick time button events. You can keep on playing until you mess up. She doesn’t play the entire piece, but she gets through about a third of it before restarting. I got through about 2.5 times before realizing that it wasn’t going to be an achievement or play through the entire piece.

The graphics are great as usual although there were a few parts that had a distracting filter over them that seemed to downgrade the graphics to a very grainy look and feel. Not sure if that was intentional, but both Norm and I commented on it when we saw it. The sound is great and really suck you into the dark atmosphere of the game. We recently upgraded our sound system and with all the lights off and the sound up, it really gives you the creeps.

If you were a fan of RE5 and want a little more of the action, the DLC is a solid investment. You will also get The Mercenaries Reunion, which is similar to The Mercenaries mode but features 8 playable characters including Excella Gionne and Barry Burton with this DLC. You can download the Extra Figurines for free and view them in the Figurine Gallery. There are some fancy new costumes for purchase as well. If you haven’t played RE5 yet, you may want to wait for Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition, available March 9th, 2010 for $49.95, which includes the game plus all the DLC.

The DLC fills in some of the mystery leading up to Jill’s disappearance but not what happens to her in between that and when we meet her in RE5. The only other question that is left unanswered is that Jill Valentine’s hair is brown in the DLC and when we see her in the actual RE5 game, she has blonde hair. Makes you wonder if Wesker prefers blondes over brunettes.

Resident Evil 5: Lost in Nightmares is available now on the XBL Marketplace for 400 MSP and the PSN Store for $4.99. Costume Pack #1 is available for 160 MSP/$1.99. Costume Pack #1 includes the Chris Redfield Warrior costume and the Fairy Tale costume for Sheva Alomar.

A review code was provided but did not affect the outcome of this review.

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