Four out of Five Stars

It’s hard to find terrifying videogames these days, but “Resident Evil: Revelations” for Nintendo 3DS brings the series back to its horror roots.

The game impresses with its great visuals, eerie environment and game-play mechanics.

For a handheld game, “Resident Evil: Revelations” is visually impressive. The Nintendo 3DS’s  effects help provide some of the best graphics seen on a handheld.

Character models are well put together, and environments help make for a lifelike setting.

Unlike its predecessor, “Resident Evil 5,” the game features spooky scenery and delivers many frightening moments instead of adrenaline-fueled action sequences.

The SS Queen Zenobia, the game’s main cruise ship and setting, is similar to the mansion explored in the original “Resident Evil” game. Narrow hallways, dimly lit backgrounds, corpses and creepy music help make the gamer feel more uncomfortable with every step.

However, the creatures of “Revelations” don’t take enough advantage of the game’s intense environment. While some — the bosses in particular —  are scary, there seems to be a lack of enemy variation. Most of the game’s creatures seem uninspired and generic in their design.

The game makes up for its lack of enemy variation with solid gameplay mechanics.

The game’s shooting portions are done with a first-person camera view, which works surprisingly well for the 3DS. Much like previous “Resident Evil” games, the player can’t move and shoot at the same time. This is a good thing, though, as it helps add to the game’s intensity and scariness. Every shot counts; missing even one can be critical to the character’s life or death.

Flicking the left analog stick to avoid enemy attacks is also a clever gameplay mechanic. Doing so makes it easier for players to escape if they are too bombarded by creatures.

“Resident Evil: Revelations”’s gameplay performs just as well as any of its predecessors, but the game’s storyline may be the worst in the series. It isn’t anything special, and there are several plot holes.

However, some of these problems are overcome with an impressive cast of lead characters.

Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield, the game’s two main protagonists, are  both in the original “Resident Evil” game. The plot follows Jill as she is sent on a rescue mission in search of Chris on board the ship. Little does Jill know, the ship is the genesis of a viral outbreak that turns its victims into mindless and diseased creatures.

Other supporting characters, such as Raymond, add little to no value to the game. Raymond’s character alone is one of the dumbest characters to ever grace the “Resident Evil” world. Speaking of plot holes, it isn’t even clear why he matters to the game.

This red-haired emo character could never be taken seriously as a top-secret government agent.

“Resident Evil: Revelations” plays like most of the classic “Resident Evil” games, which means ammo is scarce, enemies are plenty and puzzles are a pain.

It may have its flaws, but it still is one of the best games produced in the series in recent years.