Tom Chick:

The story in Resident Evil 5 isn’t really the story. Instead, the story is a recursive set of playthroughs — at higher difficulty levels, on Game+ options or just to collect things you need. Your first playthrough will be your most challenging, but it’s the warm-up. You’re dropped immediately into a village siege with nothing but a handgun. This might frustrate you. It’s supposed to. You will remember this place. You will remember it well. Then you will return with a shotgun, an assault rifle or maybe a grenade launcher. You might bring all three. In time, this village siege will be a massacre. I’d argue this is the point of Resident Evil 5’s gameplay: the return to really give these zombie jerks the what for.