Resident Evil 5

Overview

Chris Redfield is sent to Africa in 2009, and the job quickly turns ugly: investigate a biological agent, survive aggressive creatures, and keep moving with Sheva Alomar at your side. Resident Evil 5 is a third-person action-adventure game from Capcom, built around over-the-shoulder shooting, melee strikes, and a steady push through hostile territory.

The setup leans hard into partnership. You can tackle the campaign alone with Sheva controlled by AI, or bring in a second player for co-op online or on the same machine with split screen. Weapons can be upgraded, items can be swapped, and the pace keeps shifting between firefights, quick turns, and boss battles that make room for quick time events. Less wandering, more pressure.

This Windows release is a port of the Games for Windows - Live version from 2009. It includes Steam features such as achievements, cloud support, leaderboards, trading cards, family sharing, and controller support. If you own the Untold Stories Bundle, it matches Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition, which gives you a clean way to package the extras without pretending the game suddenly stops being a mutant-infested mess.

Why play it

• Built around two-player co-op
• Over-the-shoulder shooting with melee options
• Weapons and items can be managed mid-game
• Includes Mercenaries after story completion

Quick facts

Beginner walkthrough

Go in with a partner

Resident Evil 5 is built for two-player cooperation. You can play online or split screen, and a second player can take Sheva. If you start alone, Sheva is controlled by AI, so the story still keeps moving instead of waiting politely in the corner.

Use the inventory smartly

Weapons can be upgraded from the inventory screen without hunting for a merchant, and items can be equipped in real time during gameplay. Each player can carry nine items, and item size does not matter, so a herb and a grenade launcher each take one space. Four items can be assigned to the D-pad.

Expect constant pressure

The game lets you use handguns, shotguns, automatic rifles, sniper rifles, grenade launchers, and melee attacks. You can make quick 180-degree turns, but you cannot run and shoot at the same time. Boss fights may throw in quick time events, and the Mercenaries minigame is unlocked after completing story mode.

Key characters

• Chris Redfield BSAA agent

  Chris is sent to Africa to investigate a biological threat and fights through the crisis with his old enemy, Albert Wesker, still in the picture.

• Sheva Alomar local BSAA agent

  Sheva joins Chris on the investigation and can be controlled by a second player or by AI if you go in alone.

• Albert Wesker old enemy

  Wesker hangs over the story as a dangerous figure from Chris’s past, tied to the events that keep surfacing.

• Jill Valentine former partner

  Jill appears as Chris’s presumed-dead partner, and her photo becomes part of the trail he follows.

Our take

Resident Evil 5 keeps the pressure on with a tight co-op campaign, a blunt arsenal, and a structure that pushes you from firefight to firefight. The Windows port adds Steam support and modern conveniences, while the story keeps Chris and Sheva in motion through a hostile investigation. If you want teamwork with a sharp action edge, this has a clear hook.

FAQ