Resident Evil Outbreak

Into Liquid Sky

The single player is worth playing just as much as the online is. They both are lots of fun and at times the game can seem very chaotic but exciting all at the same time.

GamePro

Despite its shortcomings, Outbreak’s hefty replay, intense action, and clever scenario designs make for an engaging play—on- and offline, and a must for any Resident fan. Here, success ultimately depends on how helpful everyone’s willing to be.

Weekly Famitsu

9 / 9 / 9 / 9 - 36 platinum [Vol 783]

Next Level Gaming

Being the gore-hound that I am, I was happy with the final outcome of Resident Evil: Outbreak. I do miss the fact that this game does not have a deep story line. but hell, the payoff of going balls out and kicking some zombie ass is worth it.

Siliconera

When you're running away from a zombie flinging what ever items you're carrying in your hands it feels like something out of a horror movie spoof. What is even funnier is that attacking the zombies with weapons other than a gun is surprisingly effective.

Games Radar UK (Pre-2006)

Assessed solely on the single-player mode this game is a sizey, different and diverse lump of still-classic Resi gaming. Add online and add 5% to that score. [JPN Import; PSM2]

GameZone

It's the biggest leap in the series so far.

AceGamez

Outbreak maintains the lavish horror atmosphere that we've all come to expect and is definitely worth a look, if nothing else, just so see what could be shambling towards us in the near future.

GameShark

I for one found the game rather intriguing even with its faults. Perhaps in the next product iteration Capcom will add a little more inter-player communication to the game and really push it over the top.

Gamezilla!

Another major gripe is that there’s a lot of loading. Without a HDD, every door you walk through will require a pretty substantial loading time.

Stuff

Or you can simply hoard all the good weapons and med packs for yourself and watch your fellow players wither, die and come back to pseudo-life as flesh-eating zombies.

Yahoo! Games

Yes, better communication, more content, and deeper story would all be welcome, but that's the default critic's list for almost every game. How many titles offer the chance to become a zombie and munch on former allies?

BonusStage

The lack of communication options seriously hurts the overall experience and only five scenarios, with no hope for any downloadable content or levels in the future, is certainly not a cause for celebration. Outbreak is still a solid survival horror experience.

IGN

Though shifting its focus to that of a collection game may have been a great way to extend its overall shelf life, it still should have been supported by a stronger storyline, better A.I. for NPCs in the offline mode, additional scenarios to participate in, and more streamlined load times without the need for a hard drive.

1UP

Not letting people in the same room communicate with each other while facing imminent death is neither scary nor internally consistent -- the scare would have come in if there had been some kind of communication system (either voice or keyboard) when it made sense to do so, and leave the player isolated when it didn't.

GameSpy

Outbreak would have been a much, much better game had it had online voice communication. There's simply no excuse for omitting this feature in a game hinges on being able to communicate rapidly between party members.

Playboy

Anyone who believes that fear is most intense when you're alone hasn't been dropped into a group of survivors fighting off flesh-eating zombies. [May 2004]

Game Informer

A surprisingly enjoyable online venture that showcases some amazing gameplay concepts, yet a lack of foresight in the delivery of multiplayer. [May 2004, p.96]

GameSpot

Outbreak doesn't really live up to its potential, but it's a pretty good game for members of its already-established audience.

Cheat Code Central

While Outbreak's gameplay is innovative - online, team co-op play and the ability to turn into a zombie - there is absolutely nothing that stands out here at all thanks to one big fat missed opportunity: Communication.

Cincinnati Enquirer

The game has some other minor flaws, too, such as repetitive environments and a finicky "camera" that may obstruct the view during combat by switching to another angle.

Official U.S. Playstation Magazine

Beyond the online component, Outbreak essentially plays like any other Resident Evil, only with a lesser story, better (though still imperfect) controls, and improved voice acting.

PSM Magazine

In both single and online modes, it definitely has its problems, but as an attempt to expand the scope of the RE universe, it isn't all bad. [June 2004, p.22]

eToychest

It’s got quite a few bugs that should have never made it past the testing cycle, including several glitches that cause the game to freeze up completely, forcing a hard reset to resume play.

Gaming Age

The games' poor communication system and load times keep it from being a more workable online experience. But its unnerving combination of comradery and isolation is sociable, scary fun.

Play Magazine

A lot of what you can do in this game - help the injured, trade items, interact more with the environment, use weapons in more unique ways, like boarding up doors with a nail gun - is more fantastic idea than really effective execution. [May 2004, p.50]

Computer Games Magazine

There is no good way to communicate with other players, making cooperative play that much more difficult. [July 2004, p.6]

Game Revolution

A zombie could have a hundred flailing tentacles and a cool set of giant spider legs, but without a mouth, it just hasn’t got any bite.

Electronic Gaming Monthly

The stiff difficulty, branching levels, and especially your severely limited inventory make cooperation among players essential, but the inexplicable lack of voice (or even keyboard) chat completely destroys all hope of real teamwork. [June 2004, p.100]

RealGamer

As a single player title the game feels a little hacked together and is hard to recommend to anyone other then the most hardcore Resident Evil fans.

PSX Nation

A steep learning curve, buggy online mode, and lack of communication options between you and your allies make this title fall short in just about everything it set out to achieve.

Boomtown

It’s not as good as any of the “proper” stand alone Resident Evils, so unless you’re a hardcore zombie fan this can be quite quickly crossed off your shopping list.

Adrenaline Vault

The graphics and score are outstanding, but ultimately, the gameplay falls flat with heavy-handed mechanics and tedious goals.

GMR Magazine

It does get one thing right: The controls are actually functional and somewhat intuitive. [June 2004, p.89]

Eurogamer

For the PAL consumer, it's one for the absolute die-hards we're afraid, and even they might have issues trying to live with the lack of online play.

GamerArchive

The single player experience never ranges either way from being stunningly average, and therefore this PS2 exclusive is a major disappointment.

Edge Magazine

Aptly, Outbreak is an experiment gone wrong; it indicates the possibilities of an online horror title, but also that Resident Evil's traditional structure can't achieve them. [June 2004, p.102]

Sydney Morning Herald

What was to be one of PS2's flagship online titles is now an embarrassment for Sony.

G4 TV

It still plays too much like one of the old games to feel like a real online title, but the one thing that could have been done to make it better -- namely, a workable communication system for players -- was skimped on.

RewiredMind

Should never have been released in Europe. By removing the co-operative aspect of the game, they've infected the game with a particularly virulent strain of the T-Virus. It shambles purposelessly for your attention, mindless of its origins. Totally dead on arrival.