The Resident Evil series has strayed a bit from its survival horror roots, heading in a more action-oriented direction. Resident Evil: Revelations producer Masachika Kawata believes the main series needs to keep moving in that direction to appeal to a western audience, but claims side-stories like his recent game can provide more of the classic, creepy atmospheric gameplay.

Read more: Action important 'especially for the North American market' »

Resident Evil games work best when focused on frightful environments filled with infected creatures. It’s the very definition of the survival horror genre Capcom helped write. Spin-off entries, like a rail shooter or straight-up action game, go astray from that core principle, much to fans' dismay. Resident Evil: Revelations, Capcom's first installment for the series on the 3DS, stays true to the series' essence for the most part, albeit inconsistently.

Read more: Survival horror succeeds on the 3DS »

Resident Evil: Revelations is one of the prettiest "console-like" experiences on the 3DS. But does it warrant a "console-like" price tag? Capcom thought so, having originally priced the game at $50. Their explanation? "To handle all of that data Resident Evil Revelations requires a 4GB cartridge, resulting in a higher price point."

Fans didn't take too kindly to that announcement, pointing out that the price difference between a 2GB memory stick and 4GB memory stick is negligible. "I have no idea why Capcom has any fans left," Shacker peepooppooppee commented. "They're probably the most hostile and least consumer-friendly company."

Read more: Capcom 'looking for a way to bring your cost down' »

Unlike Mercenaries 3D, Resident Evil: Revelations is shaping up to be a "full" Resident Evil experience. In other words, it's a console game squeezed onto a handheld. But, how do you make an hours-long adventure accessible for on-the-go play? Capcom is taking a page from Alan Wake and Asura's Wrath, and has made Revelations an episodic adventure.

"We were imagining a serial drama, and you play handheld games for relatively short periods of time," game director Koshi Nakanishi said. "We created 12 scenarios that we wanted to end a certain way in a specific situation and had the scriptwriters link them together."

Read more: Capcom's 'forced logic' explains story gaffes »

Visiting the eShop on the 3DS will give you access to 3D videos and screenshots of the latest games. But until now, the eShop hasn't provided gamers any playable demos. That will begin to change tomorrow, as the Resident Evil: Revelations demo goes live on Nintendo's digital store. Following that will be a demo for Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, available on January 26th. As announced by Nintendo, the eShop will be "periodically updated with new game demos."

Read more: Other 3DS demos announced »

Capcom has announced the upcoming Nintendo 3DS-exclusive Resident Evil: Revelations will support StreetPass functionality. The feature will allow players to "collect items via a local wireless connection." These items, a press release revealed, will differ based on the game's multiple modes.

"When a new item becomes available, players will receive a parachute icon and after clicking on this the new item can be collected," Capcom notes. Screenshots revealing the feature (after the break) show that these items will appear in an unlock menu, but it doesn't look like players will need to hunt them down in-game.

Read more: Explaining the different items »

Nintendo outlined its plans for the first quarter of 2012 today, which includes release dates for some of the anticipated first-party titles. Most notable for fans of Nintendo's first-party games is a solid release date for Kid Icarus: Uprising on March 23. The Circle Pad Pro will come alongside Resident Evil Revelations on February 7, for $19.99, and exclusive to GameStop stores.

Read more: More release dates and windows »

A new trailer for the upcoming Resident Evil: Revelations details some of the conspiracies at work in the upcoming 3DS-exclusive title. In the video we meet Morgan Landsdale and the Federal Bioterrorism Commission, which are tasked with investigating the Veltro terrorist group and a mysterious bio-terror attack on the city of Terragrigia.

It's complicated, but it all boils down to one simple rule when the game finally arrives early next year: shoot anything that isn't you or your partner. You're bound to survive if you follow that protip.

Watch: Bio-terror by the beach »

UPDATE -- Capcom USA PR Manager Briant Keltner has clarified to Co-Optimus that the first Raid Mode stage is unlocked after finishing level 3. So it's still not initially available, but at least you won't have to get through all 10 hours of the campaign for it.

ORIGINAL STORY -- Were you planning on playing Resident Evil: Revelations' co-op mode out of the box? Unfortunately, "Raid Mode" is locked until you finish the main campaign, and that feat alone will take around 10 hours.

Read more: Also unlocks playable characters »

The standard price point for games on the Nintendo 3DS is $40. It's not surprising then, that Capcom's decision to price the upcoming Resident Evil: Revelations at $50 has raised a few eyebrows. One might initially assume that the higher price-point might mean the inclusion of something like the Circle Pad add-on for the handheld--a good fit for RE: Revelations--but that's not the case here.

Read more: Why the extra $10, Capcom? »

The 3DS add-on that fits a second analog stick to the device is called the Circle Pad Pro, according to Capcom's Tsukasa Takenaka. This confirms speculation from an earlier report that caught the trademark filing and drew the obvious conclusion. In Japan it will be called the "slide pad expansion."

Read more: 'The right way to play' »

Capcom has finally confirmed earlier reports that Resident Evil: Revelations will have a two-player multiplayer mode. Like Resident Evil 5 on the consoles, the upcoming 3DS-exclusive will feature a co-op mode.

Raid Mode will let you play as Jill Valentine or Chris Redfield through levels taken from the single-player campaign. The arcade-inspired mode will rank players based on performance, and will award loot at the end of each level. Inspired by raid RPGs, enemies will have health bars and levels above them.

Watch: Co-op Resident Evil gameplay »

Nintendo has been quiet on North American plans for the 3DS right analog stick attachment that was officially announced in September. But now, a new trademark filing seems to give one more indication that the odd accessory will come to the west.

Read more: The 'Circle Pad Pro' name »

The 3DS game Resident Evil: Revelations will include a 2-player mode, according to a translation from the recently updated Japanese site. The page references local and online multiplayer, and confirms StreetPass support. Capcom US hasn't officially confirmed the modes, and this oddly contradicts earlier statements.

Read more: 'We're focusing on the single-player this time' »

Capcom has announced a release date for Resident Evil: Revelations, which is headed to the 3DS on February 7, 2012. Said to be a callback to classic Resident Evil gameplay--with content that takes place between the events of Resident Evil 4 and 5--the game stars familiar monster-killers like Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield.

Read more: See the pre-order bonus »