hen you see Master-D’s head explode in the downloadable remake of Bionic Commando, there are a few things you need to know. First, that five-second sequence was the difference between an M rating and a T rating, according to Capcom’s Ben Judd. Since that scene was one of the most memorable things about the NES original, Judd fought to include it in the update—even at the expense of that M-rated label. Second, that horribly squishy sound that accompanies the explosion comes to you courtesy of some fruit and man’s best friend. The sound engineer brought a number of melons to the office and proceeded to smash and crush them, hoping to find the appropriate sound. No dice. Well, at least not until he saw (or rather, heard) the office dog noisily slurping some of the fruit. A few recordings later, and the rest is soon-to-be history.

That little tidbit wasn’t the only interesting thing that happened at Capcom’s recent Captivate 2008 event. We descended on Las Vegas to get closer looks at the company’s 2008 lineup, including new installments to the Street Fighter and Resident Evil series, updates to classics like 1942, Commando and Bionic

Commando, and new announcements like Neopets and Spyborgs. Over the course of two days, we played until our fingers bled (or at least got a little crampy), spoke with a ton of producers and developers, and had plenty of In ‘N Out. Here’s our report:

Resident Evil 5
Resident Evil 5 has been the subject of a lot of scrutiny lately, particularly in regards to its portrayal of blacks. The game takes place in Africa, and early trailers showed the main character, Chris Redfield, who is white, fighting off dead-eyed hordes of machete-wielding black Africans. While the imagery itself could have been enough to polarize sensitive viewers, the voiceover, which included the statements that suggested that Africa was a place without reason or humanity, was enough to create a minor online uproar.

After a presentation that began with a longer version of the trailer, it seems as though critics may have jumped the gun. While many of the scenes are still present—including angry mobs and native Africans getting shot up—there are plenty of zombies from other racial origins getting in on the action. It looks like much of the controversy can be attributed to the length constraints on the first trailer, coupled with some poor decision making.

“We wanted to create something that was accurate and realistic and something that was representative of what we had seen,” says Resident Evil co-producer co-producer Jun Takeuchi. “When we released the first trailer and we got the reception that we did, we were a little bit surprised. When we were creating the trailer, I think everybody did understand that we did not set out with the intention to create something that was racist. There are other creatures and other races as well, and that actually reflects what we saw on our research trips to Africa before development began.”

If you’ve been paying attention to the series’ convoluted storyline, you know that the Progenitor Virus, predecessor to the Umbrella Corporation’s dastardly work, originated in Africa. In the game, players will get a chance to see how that virus is affecting the lives of those who happen to be caught in its horrible grip. Aside from the setting, Capcom’s lips are sealed tight until E3.

Click here for our full Resident Evil 5 preview.

Street Fighter IV
Once you’ve created one of the most technical fighting games around, where do you go with the sequel? That was the question that producer Yoshinori Ono faced when working on the follow up to Street Fighter III. Rather than try to duplicate that game’s success, Ono instead looked back for inspiration. Street Fighter IV is being designed to appeal to both hard-core fighting-game aficionados as well as casual players who enjoyed the game’s breakthrough installment, Street Fighter II, more than 15 years ago.

With that in mind, the design team brought back the roster of eight original and four boss characters, in addition to creating four new contenders and an as-of-yet-unknown number of new boss characters. Ono jokes that original players might not remember the moves for the various characters if they haven’t kept up with the series, but that their hands surely do.

When the first trailer for the game was shown late last year, it left players guessing. What was up with the painterly art style? Would the series be venturing into 3D again? Ono told us that the trailer was for his artist’s benefit as much as it was meant to be a look at the game. His goal was to create a game that looked like a painting come to life. After seeing it in action and getting our hands on it, it looks like that goal has been attained.

Click here for our full Street Fighter IV preview.

Bionic Commando
Seemingly moments after the return to Bionic Commando was revealed, the backlash started. People griped about nearly everything, from the game’s muted color palette to the fact that the game existed at all. Perhaps the biggest controversy centered around the reimagining of main character Nathan “Rad” Spencer. Why was everyone so harsh? “I think there’s a sweet spot with how long you can let a franchise steep,” says producer Ben Judd. “It’s five or so years—maybe 10. It’s not 20. The second you go past the 10-year mark, it’s god.

“I did the due diligence and talked to the head of our design, who was at Capcom at the time when they did that character,” Judd explains. “He was like, ‘You know what? To be honest, that main character was very weak, design wise.’ They were stuck with eight different colors on the screen at the same time, and just to make him pop out of the yellowish environment they made him green. You could only do so much with pixels. ‘In order to make him look like he had eyes there, we had to give him sunglasses. It wasn’t because we thought sunglasses were cool.’ So there are a lot of choices that people don’t realize why they were made, but when they think of Bionic Commando they think need to be that way.”

Spencer’s dreads—target of much ire—were designed to show off the sensation of swinging. The mechanical/hydraulic-looking arm—dubbed “hot-dog arm” by critics—was an important departure from past games, seeing as to how it’s now physically a part of Spencer. If you absolutely have to have it the old-school way, though, you’ll be pleased to know that an updated (but more literal) interpretation of the NES model is included in the game. To access it, you’ll need to purchase Bionic Commando Rearmed, and the skin will be unlocked.

Click here for our full Bionic Commando preview.