I loved the premise for Desperate Escape when I first read about it. For those that don't know the storyline, I'll bring you up to speed: Josh Stone and Jill Valentine have linked up in the heart of the Tricell facility and need to make it to high ground. There, a BSAA helicopter can save them. They are trying to get to Sheva Alomar and Chris Redfield so they can provide some aid in the search for Albert Wesker. The only thing holding them back is the never-ending onslaught of infected that pour in over the walls and through the doors at every turn. The plot is simple, which is to be expected in an hour-long installment.

Welcome to the Badass Club, Josh.

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Desperate Escape is an action game through and through. The few survival-horror cells that still circulated in the lifeblood of the Resident Evil 5 have been totally wiped out. What Desperate Escape essentially boils down to is an hour long Mercenaries mini-game mixed with standard RE narrative-mode progression (you know, get some keys here and open a door there, kill a mini-boss and acquire some currency). It sounds like it would work out great, I know, and despite the game's strengths, there is one glaring problem that really holds it back from being a success. The action genre's conventions have really outgrown the Resident Evil gameplay, and the over-the-shoulder, stop-and-shoot mechanism has become the Achilles' heel.

The best way to describe the problem with Desperate Escape is to break down why the Mercenaries minigame and the narrative-mode work so well separately, but not together. Mercenaries places an emphasis on survival -- there is an unlimited horde of enemies and you only have one objective: stay alive for as long as you can. The campaign of Resident Evil 5 works because it is a series of missions with enemies that get in your way and control the difficulty. In Desperate Escape, these two modes blend and what you get is a frustrating, constant charge of enemies that allow you no rest as you try and figure out what the game wants you to do. There is always someone grabbing you or hitting you, or strangling you, or killing you, and it doesn't ever let up. Not from the first minute all the way until the end.

Well Hello, M'lady.

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To some gamers it might be appealing, but to me it got annoying fast. I like for my enemies to be incorporated into the strategy of the game, not just a ton of little entities that I have to dispatch before walking another five feet. If you were met with clusters of enemies and could move-and-shoot, I'd be all over that, but the way it is you just feel entrenched. The stop-and-shoot simply wasn't built to handle all this action.

But I won't say that Desperate Escape is a total waste of money, especially if you are a huge fan of the series. The melee attacks are even more varied and I found myself pretty damn giddy when I saw Josh drop the People's Elbow on a maimed enemy (also, the suplex is back, thank God). During the final cut scene, I'll even admit to fist-pumping. I will also say that I hope Josh Stone becomes a fixture in the Resident Evil series -- his attitude and melee attacks made me want to have him as a protagonist in the future. In addition to the episode, you get Rebecca Chambers and Josh Stone as Mercenaries characters, for those who have Mercenaries Reunion. I can justify a five dollar price tag if it means I get two new mercenaries, but really, that may be just me.