Gamescom: Resident Evil 6 preview

In case you've not been paying all that much attention to the internet, there's barely a month to go before Resident Evil 6 arrives to send shivers through Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 gamers across the globe. As the suitably six-y release date of October 6 draws nearer, we've finally had the chance to see more of the game at this year's Gamescom show in Germany.

This latest demo showcases three of the game's different characters, with each segment featuring its own unique setting and play style. For instance, flop-haired Resident Evil regular Leon scours North America for evidence of biological weapons (the kind that turn perfectly normal humans into raving zombie-like loons in the Resi world). These sections are the most traditionally Resident Evil, with a focus on shadowy corners, tense set-pieces and mansion-style exploration. Beefy Chris Redfield, meanwhile, goes all Eastern European for some all-out military-style warfare while new character Jake gets his scare on in China.

In the Gamescom demo, Leon's tasked with investigating zombie-infested campus, following the dispersal of mysterious fog-like gas in the area. This nighttime section sees the him rummaging through murky classrooms and corridors in a bid to get as far away from the zombie menace as possible. It's classically creepy, with a barrage of classic Resident Evil tropes putting in an appearance.

There are the iconic health-giving green herbs, 9mm bullets in familiar packaging, even instantly recognisable game design full of locked doors and zombie-summoning alarms. There's new stuff too though - pick up a controller and it's clear that Capcom's working toward a more action-centric template now. For instance, previously clunky controls have been streamlined to bring the series up to the standards of other modern day third-person shooters. Leon moves quickly and fluidly, even leaping over fences and sliding across table tops to the pace fast and the action relentless.

Moving from corridor to corridor, the campus is packed with rich, spooky detail. The fog invasion, for instance, appears to have interrupted Fourth of July celebrations with fairy lights and bunting strewn across the desolate environment. It's full of zombies too, crawling and grasping incessantly as you try to make your escape. Gun play seems a little more fluid too with a simple squeeze of the controller triggers emptying bullet after bullet into your targets, with heads popping and limbs flying in satisfying bursts of blood.

It's rarely about one-on-one combat in Resident Evil 6, with the game throwing huge numbers of zombies at you for an entirely different kind of intense action. Take the sequence we played where Leon is holed up along a narrow corridor, for instance. An alarm suddenly sounds and zombies pour in through the windows in droves. Thankfully ammo is plentiful, making it easier to deal with those undead hordes. In the unlikely event you run out though, Leon has a melee attack, enabling him to kick back zombies, even stamping them down on the ground. It all makes for an intensely action-heavy experience, less about atmosphere and scares, but still entertaining.

Things are even more brutal in Chris Redfield's mission. The action begins as Chris thunders through the picturesque Eastern European city in the back of a tank. There's a total shift of tone, with the snow covered cobbles and buildings virtually black and white aside from the odd splashed of colour. It all feels much more militaristic and gives Capcom's artists another chance to shine. There's an even greater focus on action in this sequence too with gunfire raining down as soon as Chris touches the ground.

Rockets home in, rending the earth in screen shaking explosions while bullets ricochet off the stonework all around. Here, you immediately meet a new form of enemy - infected soldiers, brandishing guns and charging forward with single-minded determination. There's little time to worry about them though as an eye-wateringly huge monstrosity suddenly crashes through the building and onto the street. Time to get your boss battle on as it thunders ever closer.