Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D

Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D does exactly what it says on the tin. No more, no less. The Mercenaries minigame, which was introduced in what would become its familiar guise in Resident Evil 4, eschews a story in favor of providing a time-attack shooting experience. It's a sort of horde mode set in various familiar locales from the game(s). The player chooses from several characters from the series, each with their own specific arsenal, and must maintain combos and build a high score by dispatching the roaming enemies efficiently.

The Mercenaries 3D, a 3DS title, makes the mode a standalone experience. It simply offers quickfire arcade action, in single or multiplayer modes. It's a game that can be quickly blasted through if you wish only to complete the stages, meaning that the package is potentially quite shallow. The Mercenaries faithful can spend countless hours refining their strategies and routes through a stage, though, and these are the people the game was really aimed at.

This was my guilty pleasure on the 3DS. It’s pure arcade-style fun, with tight combat and a focus on high scores. But honestly? It gets repetitive fast, and the lack of a real story made it feel a little shallow. Great for short bursts, though!