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**Asura** · 12-01-2018, 10:05

Although I'm a big fan of the franchise, as a Saturn own for most of the 32-bit era, I got into the franchise with Resident Evil 2 on PC (as the Saturn version of 1 came out long after release). I think 2 and 4 are the peaks of the franchise for me. I liked 3 for various reasons but it was when the tank-controls era started to go off-the-rails, adding stuff like the dodge move and quick-turn which were too powerful.

I think, combat-wise, RE1 and 2 were clunky, but they had a good design premise - when confronted by enemies, you had to either fight or run. Much of the game seemed arranged in a manner where "fighting a bit then changing your mind and running" was built to be a bad strategy; you expended valuable ammo, you couldn't really turn fast enough to get away cleanly, and the pistol weapon didn't really slow down enemies enough to stop their approach. This seems like a small thing, but having to make that split-second decision was a big deal; it even helped make the "door opening" animations work that masked the loading, because they gave you time to decide what you were going to do, based on what you saw on the other side.

This is one of the reasons the series' more famous moments, like the one with the dogs, were such a big deal. Jump-scares aren't a big deal just because they're a surprise. They work best when the game makes you feel an element of the fear using the gameplay. The need to "fight or run" is tense, but manageable when you get to make that decision. When the game throws a surprise at you, that agency is taken away and you have to think-on-your-feet.

That being said, I loved how RE4 mixed things up so much. It defined many things that would go on to be the norm in third-person action games. I bought a GameCube for it and I didn't regret that decision one bit.

**Team Andromeda** · 12-01-2018, 13:23

Code Veronica is the best for me, though I have to say RE 7 is also the best in the series, But I loved the characters and setting for Code Veronica more . I also find it sad how much overlooked the fab RE 0 is too.

**S3M** · 12-01-2018, 14:04

Still the original for me and the ace remake, series lost its way with 4 a good action shooter but not a horror game, not a fan of 7 either.

**BigDeadFreak** · 13-01-2018, 20:26

I love these retrospectives and Resident Evil is one of my favourite game series.

I got a PS1 in '97 and was a bit underwhelmed. I'd heard all about how it was taking games to the next level and everything was a world away from the simplistic Mega Drive and SNES games. However, I got it with V Rally and Tekken 2 and really couldn't see how they were any different to, say, Lotus 2 and Street Fighter 2. Then I picked up Resident Evil Director's Cut and I was blown away.

I had truly never imagined that games could be like this. It was so cinematic and felt like nothing else I'd ever played. The characters were actually talking to each other GOD DAMN IT!!!!

I died a couple of times on the first zombie but then got myself back into the dining room, put the controller down and had a cigarette whilst just sitting there marvelling in open mouthed wonder at the quality of it all. The backgrounds seemed almost photorealistic and there was a tangible atmosphere to it that I'd never experienced in a video game before.

It took me an age to complete but I loved every minute of it. The second one was great too and really scared the **** out of me. By the time 3 and Code Veronica came out I'd lost a bit of interest and they both seemed a bit formulaic. I loved number 4 but 5 and 6 just seemed like generic 3rd person shooters. Apparently 7 is good but I've never played it.

I came back to the first one a completed it a few times on PS1 and Saturn. It really is an all time classic and one of my favourite gamin experiences.

**Asura** · 13-01-2018, 21:16

Originally posted by S3M View Post

Still the original for me and the ace remake, series lost its way with 4 a good action shooter but not a horror game, not a fan of 7 either.

Yeah, admittedly - I love 4, it's one of my favourite games of that generation, but it's also where the series really started to go off-the-rails in terms of theme. RE4 has some horror-themed parts, but a game isn't a horror game just because it has zombies and gore.

Of course, if they're going to do sequels, they have to do something different with each one, and the horror genre in movies shares the general idea that you raise the stakes of the situations with each instalment, which often leads to something more akin to an action movie. We can all see why it went that way.

I think that whole console era was difficult for survival horror. On the PS1, 3D visuals were still quite crude so much of the horror was atmospheric. That led to some very effective horror games like Enemy Zero on the Saturn, which had completely invisible enemies (in a Hitchcock-esque "the monster is always scarier in your mind" style).

By the time we got to the PS2, videogame graphics had significantly moved on, and we got a few major leaps such as characters having fully animated faces (I remember being really impressed by the Shenmue demo). This meant that videogame "acting" could be a lot better than before, but that meant horror games had to keep pace, and that's difficult.

Horror's not easy when you don't have the medium working in your favour like on the PS1. It's very easy to make something that's supposed to look horrifying just look goofy.

I dunno, this is something of a ramble, but I wonder if it's worth more thought.

**_SD_** · 13-01-2018, 21:35

I never did play the original until REmake on the Cube, so my first exposure to the series was RE2 on PlayStation. Code Veronica on the Dreamcast is my favourite and most memorable entry in the franchise though.

**Neon Ignition** · 15-01-2018, 06:46

I enjoyed RE1 for what it was at the time but didn't buy fully into the hype, it was good but it wore its AITD inspiration a little too heavily to wow me. RE2 though, that was a better experience by giving the illusion of opening itself more. I get why RE3 isn't as fondly looked upon but I did enjoy it quite a bit, it was like playing RE2 with a bit more of a mind-switched-off mindset. Well, except for Nemesis, that wasn't a mechanic I enjoyed much.

Code Veronica though, I've found it too awkward to return to in later years but at the time it was stellar. Though the action was much the same as before it somehow ticked all the boxes and the storyline was a good one with some nice cheesy throwbacks too, nicely paced. RE4, again, it's the best of the over the shoulder entries and on original play of the demo I hated it but the final game played out much better. The only thing I haven't been keen on since this entry is the move away from traditional zombies and onto made up monsters as a primary focus.

RE5, probably took till the third playthrough to click with me and even then it's a big step back from RE4. It's not just the continuous tonal shift away from dark horror but also the co-op mechanic which is one of the worst things the series ever introduced.

RE6, l want to go through this one again. In my head I think I want to like it more than I do, the strand focused on Leon is the best one with it deteriorating as you work through each character. It has it's moments though.

Spin-off wise, and remakes, I've been cold to pretty much most of them. Too much watering down the experience or slapping the branding on a poor product. REmake was solidly done but came after I was long done with the old tank control era Resi.

RE7, it's a genuinely great example of the more recent trend for FPS horrors, tense and masterfully delivered. It's a quirk of the genre that the experience can be quite exhausting and bordering at times on chore like but that's part of why they work. It's a title everyone should play but... I don't want Resident Evil VIII to be more of the same. A Resi 2 style shift towards adding more traditional FPS mechanics and style would be welcome for me.

**BigDeadFreak** · 15-01-2018, 16:11

Originally posted by Superman Falls View Post

It's a quirk of the genre that the experience can be quite exhausting and bordering at times on chore like but that's part of why they work.

I think this is very true. I had to force myself to complete Dead Space even though I thought it was a brilliant game. The graphics, sound, art direction were all superb as was the atmosphere. However, it was so intense it felt like an ordeal to play it.

**JazzFunk** · 15-01-2018, 23:36

Resi V is the most playable Resi ever released.

IT'S DA BIGGIDY BOMBAGGIDY BOGGEDY BOSH.

I think people are too cruel to this lovely-playing game, I really cannot comprehend how Resi6 messed up the feel of gameplay so bad.

**Neon Ignition** · 16-01-2018, 06:54

Here's the clue for the next thread: By Rehab

**QualityChimp** · 17-01-2018, 09:34

20 years later, here are 20 facts you may not have known about Resident Evil 2

https://www.criticalhit.net/features/20-years-later-20-facts-may-not-known-resident-evil-2/

There’s a lot that you probably do know about Resident Evil 2. There’s a lot that you might not know about the gory sequel as well. Here’s a look at twenty terrifying trivia facts about Resident Evil 2.

20 years later, here are 20 facts you may not have known about Resident Evil 2

Production on Resident Evil 2 began a month after development on the first game was finished in 1996.
The early build of the first sequel was known as Resident Evil 1.5 by producer Shinji Mikami, with the first footage of it in action being shown at the V Jump Festival in July of 1996.
The original story retained Leon S. Kennedy, but the female protagonist was Elza Walker instead of Claire Redfield.

Elza and Leon’s narrative paths would remain closed off from each other in this build, never crossing once as they attempted to survive the Raccoon City outbreak.
Each character had two allies to help support them: Leon had fellow police officer Marvin Branagh and the scientist Linda, while Elza could rely on Sherry Birkin and a civilian by the name of John.
John would eventually be redesigned as the gun shop owownerobert Kendo.

The police department seen in Resident Evil 1.5 was originally smaller and more modern in its design, before it was completely overhauled in favour of the classic location that players explored.
Zombies were originally rendered with fewer polygons, thus allowing more of them to be on the screen and create a deeper sense of panic in the player.
Players could originally equip gear such as armour and that allowed them to carry more items and weapons. This gear resulted in cosmetic changes, and could even be damaged.
Despite the production continuing steadily on throughout 1996 and into 1997, creative disagreements between director Hideki Kamiya, producer Shinji Mikami and the higher-ups at Capcom resulted in the Resident Evil 1.5 build (which was at 60-80% finished according to several reports) being scrapped.
Reasons given? Mikami wasn’t happy with the quality of the assembled game thus far, gameplay was criticised for being “dull and boring” and Capcom supervisor Yoshiki Okamoto was unhappy with the story being a conclusive end to the zombie saga.
Okamoto wanted a sequel that would serve as springboard for future sequels and spin-offs, creating a universe of possibilities in the same vein as James Bond and the Gundam series.
Screenwriter Noboru Sugimura was brought to help consult on the script, eventually earning a full-time position as the story was rewritten.
New story elements included a larger Hollywood influence, Elza Walker became Claire Redfield and the narratives of the two lead characters became linked.
With most of the assets of Resident Evil 1.5 being unrecyclable, work began on new environments that were designed to be more extravagant and stylised.
The software program O2 was used, resulting in each environment needing between two to three weeks of rendering time.
Zombies were also reduced in number, with no more than seven on screen at a time so that Leon and Claire could benefit from a bump in the polygons used to render their detailed forms.
For the Western release, the North American version of Resident Evil 2 used more gratuitously violent game over screens and had an increase in difficulty in an effort to discourage people from renting it for a weekend marathon session.

With a $5 million advertising budget behind it, Capcom was banking on Resident Evil 2 selling two million copies during its lifetime. The sequel ended up selling over 4.96 million units on the PlayStation alone and another 810 000 copies of the Dual Shock Version.
Resident Evil 2’s story would be continued in a wide variety of media that included western comic books, Korean manhua, written novels, drama albums and even a radio drama.

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