Rumour: Resident Evil 5 Demo Exclusive to Xbox 360

Japanese magazine Famitsu hints at Resident Evil 5 demo hitting December 5th.

Our friends over at TheSixthAxis are not entirely confident over this news, predominantly due to an unreliable translation, but they do know that the phrases "Resident Evil 5," "demo" and "December 5th" appear sequentially in Japanese magazine Famitsu.

Naturally, we'd expect the demo to be available in Japan only, but whether it's going to be on the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 we're unaware.

I recently got my hands-on the title and let me tell you, it's classic Resident Evil 4 gameplay with gorgeous graphics on both platforms. Resident Evil 5 will be duking it out with Killzone 2 for the graphical crown next year.

We'll let you know as soon as TheSixthAxis receive a more reliable translation.

[UPDATE] - The translation is in. Apparently, Famitsu only makes mention of the Xbox 360. This means that (and we're not the only ones to presume this conclusion) the Xbox 360 will receive an (timed) exclusive demo of Resident Evil 5 next week (in Japan). Sorry, PlayStation 3 owners, there's nothing for you just yet.

The demo will feature two urban settings, playable both offline and through online co-op. It's the same demo you might have previously watched us journalists playing.

[UPDATE 2] - Shacknews has coaxed Capcom into confirming that there will be a downloadable US (and supposedly UK) demo for both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. There is no official release date, but it will arrive later than in Japan.

Patrick Steen