Where the whole series started, Capcom's wonderfully gorey original. Introduced the world to Gill, Chris and the rest of the STARS unit (before shortly slaughtering them all like Stan Lee) and also the insidious Umbrella Corporation. Was later converted to the PC, Sega Saturn and Ninteno DS with a full remake appearing later on the Gamecube. However, the PSone original remains the definitive article.
Resident Evil: Director's Cut - Playstation One, 1997
A remorseless cash-in by Capcom on the originals populrity, or a reworked masterpiece filling in the sections that had been left out? Well, in all honesty a little bit of both. Went deeper into the fates of several supporting characters, and also contained a demo of resident Evil 2 which got fans pulses racing.
Resident Evil 2 - Playstation One: 1998
As with James Cameron's Aliens Resident Evil 2 strayed from the path of its prequel to go from tense horror to unremmiting violence and fire power. And it works fantastically. Introduced Chris' little sister Claire (who was to go on to become one of the series most beloved characters) and also Leon and Ada. Featured more monsters, a longer game, secret unloackable modes, more weapons and smoother gameplay. Was later translated over for the PC, Gamecube, N64 and the ill-fated Dreamcast (RIP). Also opened the doors for the beginnings of the Dino Crisi series
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis - Playstation One, 1999
Although the third game in the series is a blinder, this is really when the rot started to set in for the series. Despite featuring new weapons, new areas, new monsters and a brilliant new Dodge function, the game felt like a slightly gorier rehash of Resident Evil 2. Although, it did plug some gaps in the story, and introduced the brand new villain Nemesis who became extremely popular with fans. Later appeared on the PC, Dreamcast and Gamecube.
Resident Evil: Survivor - Playstation One, 2000
Desperate to revitalise the brand after Resi 3, Capcom opted to create the survivor series. Leaving behind third-person adventure and replacing it with first person lightgun tomfoolery, Survivor was the beginning of the deeply mediocre Resi spin-offs. Although generally fun as a lightgun game, and fully canon with the storyline, Survivor never really achieved much due to its rough presentation, poor controls and collision detection and some god awful AI.
Resident Evil: Code Veronica - Dreamcast, 2000
A fantastic return to form, and a triumphant blow for Capcom. Jumping from the PSone to the more powerful Dreamcast, Capcom created their first fully 3D Resident Evil. Playing as series favourite's Claire and Chris Redfield, the game takes place nowhere near Raccoon City, and instead shows the shadowy Umbrella Corp as the worldwide terror that it really is. Boasted fantastic graphics, excellent gameplay, a fully original plot and enemy design and also it was hard as nails to boot. A jewel in the Resident Evil Crown. Was later ported to the PS2 and the Gamecube. With games like this, it was deeply surprising that the Dreamcast went the way it did (RIP little guy)
Resident Evil: Survivor II Code Veronica - Playstation 2, 2001
Why Capcom why? The PS2's first dalliance with the Resi franchise was not a happy one, as Capcom decided to release another sub-standard Survivor game. While it boasted better collision detection, better graphics and the sublime plot from the original Code Veronica, Survivor II is a mess of a game, with clumsy AI and some sections that were just far too hard. Better, but by no means good enough.
Resident Evil: Gaiden - Gameboy Colour, 2001
A slight anomaly in the Resi Franchise. By no means bad, just very, very odd. It was a top down game similiar to most RPG's, and didn't work very well because it wasn't in any way scary. It was a small gem of a game though, with the player assuming control of Leon Kennedy and Barry (who we hadn't seen since the first game) Capcom have stated that Gaiden isn't part of the official plot of Resi though, the word Gaiden literally meaning "anecdote". Very hard for collector's to get their hands on because very few were ever made.
Resident Evil - Gamecube, 2002
The first of Capcom's many alleigance changes, they suspected that the PS2 would not be able to handle the new games that they made on the gamecube (although, the far more system-bothering Resident Evil 4 would go on to be a PS2 game, as well as appearing on the Wii...) Essentially a rehash of old ground with fancier graphics. Admittedly looked stunning, and added some new, tension filled sequences, but as a remake could never attain the glory of its peers.
Resident Evil Zero - Gamecube, 2002
Another triumph for the series, Zero took the lessons learned from the first Gamecube release and expanded upon it, creating an intense and genuinely terrifying game. Playing as Rebecca, the game is a prequel to the first game, and showed what Capcom could really do if given the proper tools and right direction. Raised the plothole of Rebecca proving fairly leet in Zero, but being a noob in every other game.
Resident Evil: Outbreak - Playstation 2, 2003
A stunning premise for a game, let down by redtape and Capcom's eternal money grubbing. Essentially a version of Resident Evil that could be played alongside friends online (4 years before Valve even hit upon the same idea in the forthcoming Left4Dead) that saw you take control of various civilians with various talents and skills. The Beta's showed a fantastic and genuinely horrific game, where you really bonded with your team. However, as Capcom wanted to cash-in on the popularity of Zero the Online function was removed and replaced with some deeply dodgey and frustrating AI. A fundamentally flawed work of genius.
Resident Evil: Dead Aim - Playstation 2, 2003
Aaaaargh! And it was all going so well. Another chapter in the eternally mediocre Survivor games, Dead Aim has nothing to do with the plots of the previous titles (or indeed, any valued plot whatsoever). Thought it could erase the horrors of the last Survivor games by introducing the ability to control your characters movement. Coupled with terrible controls and sub-standard level design, this just made the game frustrating. While superior and far better made than the previous Survivor titles, it isn't really hard to improve upon guff. Frustrating!
Resident Evil: Outbreak #2 - Playstation 2, 2004
Now while it's true that this game showed up a little too late on Capcom's part, it's a good thing they actually did release it. Taking the time to properly implement the online functions, #2 was everything Outbreak should have been. With tougher levels, bigger monsters and a more refined score system, #2 was a great game. However, Capcom had missed their chance, and the game did not do as well as it really deserved.
Resident Evil 4 - Gamecube & PS2, 2004
Nobody saw this coming. For the new chapter of the canon series, Capcom created one of the greatest games of all time. Doing away with Umbrella, Zombies and Raccoon City, Resi 4 relocates to Europe with the player once again taking control of Leon Kennedy. Leon is now a Government Agent, and one of the people responsible for the decline of Umbrella. He is sent to locate the President's daughter who has been kidnapped by a terrorist group named Los Illuminados in rural Spain. However, the group turn out to be horrific cultists, infected with mutagenic parasites. So instead of slow moving zombies, you faced psychotic, fast-moving, weapon weilding cultists. The greatest in the Resident Evil thus far, and a good indicator of how Resi 5 should play. Was later converted to the PC and also a special Wii edition with motion sensitive controls.
Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles - Wii, 2007
We return yet again to the torrid Survivor games, however, The Umbrella Chronicles turns out to be as equally good as the previous canon titles. Using the unique set-up of the Wii, Capcom created a heavily addictive crash-course in Resident Evil History, racing it's way through all the major titles before culminating on the final assault on Umbreall HQ (plugging some of the story holes left by Resi 4) A stunning addition to the series, with massive replay value and a finely tuned Co-op mode.
Resident Evil 5 - Playstation 3, 2008 - 2009
The forthcoming 5th part of the main series, Resi returns to it's spiritual home at Sony. From the details released so far, the player will control Chris Redfield in an unknown southern area, similiar to the Congo or Venesuala. It will play similiarly to Resi 4, but boasts more enemies, more reactive controls and visuals that are the best the series has seen yet. Should bate controversy also as the enemies appear to be dominantly African. Also rumoured to be appearing on the X-Box 360 as well, Resi 5 promises a bright future for the series.
Music
Characters
Now Resident Evil is like the bloodiest, goriest monster-filled Soap Opera you ever did set your eys upon. So, to make things simpler (or more complicated) here is a list of all Resi's major characters in alphabetical order. I haven't included the characters from Survivor cause their just slly. Be warned, theres alot of them, and you will get confused :p
Ashcroft, Alyssa (Outbreak, Outbreak #2)
One of the selectable characters from the Outbreak games, Alyssa is a reporter that was in Raccoon City investigating the Umbrella Corporation when the city decided to go tits up. Has a lock-pick similiar to Jill, and is also pretty handy with a handgun. Based on Nicole Kidman, very popular on the Japanese Servers
Ashford, Alexia (Code Veronica)
One of the eternally disturbing Ashford twins, she is a genius researcher whose Father helped set up Umbrella. Has a crazy sadistic sexual relationship with her twin brother Alfred. Creator and apparent host of the T-Veronica virus, she eventually mutates into a heinous mutant that gives birth to rabid giant ants. Grizzly.
Ashford, Alfred (Code Veronica)
The second of the deeply disturbing Ashford twins, Alfred has been safe-guarding his sister whilst she incubates the T-Veronica virus. However, his years of solitude have made him crazy with a penchant for donning his sisters clothing and running about his mansion with an elephant gun. Deeply frightening...
Birkin, Annette (Resident Evil 2)
Resident Evil has a bit of a thing for bonkers women, and Annette is no exception. Loves her husband William and his research more than her own daughter Sherry, and goes to some extreme lengths to keep the G-Virus fromm Ubrella. Eventually meets her fate at the hands of her mutated husband, whilst declaring her undying love for him. Hows that for Pathos!
Birkin, William (Resident Evil 2 and 0)
The big baddie of Resi 2, and along with Wesker tried to seize control of Umbrella from it's original CEO; James Marcus. Deems his research too valuable to be handed over to Umbrella, and so injects it into himself, becoming the bag of mutagenic fun that is G. Deeply unhinged and a workaholic, William is responsible for many of Umbrella's Bio Weapons including the Hunter Program
Birkin, Sherry (Resident Evil 2)
Daughter of Annette and William, Sherry grew up being ignored by her parents. Is found by Claire and saved by her, her current wereabouts are unkown (although some people speculate she will make a reappearance in Resi 5). Her blood actually carries the cure to the G-Virus parasite which saves Leon toward the end of the game
Burnside, Steve (Code Veronica)
Fulfilling the role of girly-boy in Code Veronica (well they needed at least one, or noone in Japan would buy it) Steve is a whiney, self centred brat who teams up with Claire to escape the Umbrella Facility they are trapped in. Has a tragic (read irritating) past, and ends up killing his zombified father. Becomes a huge stonking Monster toward the end of the game, but somehow retains his memory of Claire. Tells her he loves her at the end before he passes away (awww). His corpse is being held by Wesker, and may well make a reappearance in a later game.
Burton, Barry (Resident Evil, Gaiden, Resident Evil 3)
Barry is one of the best characters in the series, mainly because of the appalling dialogue he comes out with. He calls Jill the "Master of Unlocking" and claims that she almost became a "Jill-Sandwich" after a roof collapsed. But Barry's a family man at heart, and although he is Wesker's bitch in the first game, he regains his honour and halps bring down Umbrella.
Chambers, Rebecca (Resident Evil, 0)
Young, nubile and very innocent, Rebecca is hugely popular in Japan (i wonder why?). Teams up with escaped convict Billy in Zero, and later Chris in the original Resi. Is a bit of a Noob, but however is likeable, and sexies up with a few secret outfits in Zero. In Resident Evil 2, if you searched Wesker's desk in the STARS office 50 times, you found a photo of Rebecca in a skimpy Basketball uniform (easy now boys, she's not real)
Chapman, Jim (Outbreak, #2)
Another selectable character in Outbreak, Jim is modelled on Chris Tucker and is therefore more irritating than a splinter up your ass, even if said splinter was on fire. His talent is he can play dead, and usually I can be found helping him perfect this by beating him with a rusty axe.
Coen, Billy (0)
Billy's cool. A former GI, he was arrested when he refused to shoot villagers in Zimbabwe, and was on his way to a correctional facility when the events of Zero freed him. Teams up with Rebecca, proving to be bigger, tougher, stronger and more tattooed than she is. Rebecca lets him escape at the end, because she has a bit of a thing for him (plus if she apprehended him, he'd probably break her in two) No messing with Billy.
Graham, Ashley (Resident Evil 4)
The president's daughter, only bloody gets herself kidnapped whilst in Spain by a crazy Death Cult. Leon is sent in to save her, and is pretty much useless from thereon. If she climbs up a ladder, Leon can peek up her skirt, triggering erections in hundreds of pre-pubescent boys and Japanese businessmen. Minorly irritating.
Hamilton, George (Outbreak, #2)
I don't trust this guy. One of the playable characters in the Online game, theres just something unseemly about him. He's a former surgeon, so he's handy with a knife, and he's a divorcee. But it's the eyes that really get you, like the cold dead eyes of Patrick Stewart *shudder* Handy with herbs and medicine
Hunk (Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 4)
Hunk is currentl masquerading as an Umbrella Operative, but we all know he's really jsut the Pyro from team Fortress who was on holiday in raccoon City. Hunk is a change from the normal characters, being super tough and well equipped immediately. Speaks in a muffled, Helghast-esque voice, so is instantly very cool.
Kennedy, Leon (Resident Evil 2, Gaiden, 4)
Old floppy-locks himself, who strangely machoed up just in time for Resi 4. Formerly of the Raccoon Police Department, Leon has a penchant for dangerous women, shotguns and gross understatement. Everyone thought he would get with Ashley in Resi 4, but the trye believers know he has room in his heart for only one deranged assassin (Ada). One of the best characters in the series, and a proven snappy dresser.
King, David (Outbreak, #2)
One of the best playables in Outbreak, Davey came aremed with a nail-gun, a massive tool (easy girls) and could literally build a flamethrower out of household objects. Could also repair broken equipment with his handy toolbox (look, girls, if your not going to calm down I'm going to have to ask you to leave). Based on lover of orphan immigrants and puffy lips, Brad Pitt.
Krauser, Jack (Resident Evil 4)
A shadowy figure from Leon's past, Ol' Jackie Boy is a mentalist mercenary hired by Los Illuminatos to stop Leon. Has a penchant for being bare chested and knife fights. Eventually goes the route of most Resi villains, and mutatesinto a horrible monster before going to meet his maker
Lennox, Cindy (Outbreak, #2)
Cindy is an alluring barmaid in a tight fitting uniform, so is the most sought after character on the Japanese and American servers. Handy with herbs and not alot else, Cindy is very popular in Resident Evil Hentai (believe me, you don't want to see it...)
Marcus, James (The whole damn series)
The numero uno baddy in Resident Evil, and one of the key founders of Umbrella who is brytally murdered by Wesker and Birkin. Guilty of the crimes of being composed of zombified slugs and looking like Ian McKellan. Is alluded to in all the games, but makes his official appearance in 0 and the Umbrella Chronicles. Eloquently spoken, creator of the T-Virus and Asexual (cause he's a giant slug monster at heart)
Mendez, Bitores (Residet Evil 4)
The scary as hell village leader in Resi 4, Leon squares up against this walking behemoth multiple times before he (unsurprisingly) mutates into a heinous Monster (mybe Capcom didn't get on with their Fathers). Looks like the forsaken lovechild of Uncle Fester and Rasputin.
The Merchant (Resident Evil 4)
A crazy cockney arms dealer in rural Spain, whats not to love. Leon buys all his weapons and upgrades from this nutter in Resi 4. Interestingly enough, if you look at him through UV goggles, he is infested with Las Plagas yet seems friendly to you. Can't pick your friends can you...
Oliviera, Carlos (Resident Evil 3)
Former member of Umbrella's clean-up corps, now allied with Jill in the fight against Umbrella. Became disenfranchised with his employers when their Zombies ate his friends (sob). Carlos is from a ghetto in Mexico, and has a certain Latin flare that makes him popular with the ladiez...except Jill, cause she's hardcore.
Redfield, Chris (Resident Evil 1, Code Veronica, Resi 5)
Chris is a moron. No seriously, he's cool and I love him like a brother, but did you SEE the piano section in Resident Evil? I will forever be haunted by the phrase "Chris doesn't know how to play the piano". Aaaaargh. Apart from the moronicness, Chris is pretty hardcore, and we love him
Redfield, Claire (Resident Evil 2, Code Veronica)
Currently at war with Jill over who adolescent males most wish were real in the vain hope that they might notice their raging boners, Claire is pretty cool. Not as cool as Jill, but cool in her own way. Spends most of the time looking for Chris (whose probably away not knowing how to play the piano) and slaughtering zombies. Had a thing with Steve and Leon, but no man can truly claim her heart (cause I suspect she's a lesbian, look how mannish she is. I mean LOOK!)
Ryman, Kevin (Outbreak, #2)
The single most popular character on the Japanese servers, mainly due to his shocking similiarity to everyones favourite midget scientologist; Tom Cruise. Kevin was actually part of the Unit that Leon was joining in Resi 2 before the city went tits up. Handy with firearms, and one of the strongest characters in the game.
Saddler, Ozmund (Resident Evil 4)
Spending his days flower arranging, religion managing and looking like Palpatine from Star Wars, Saddler is the real big bad in Resi 4. Controls the Los Illuminados through his puppets Salazar & Mendez, and is also in charge of the cult planning to take over the USA by infecting the President with Las Plagas. Thats why they always say 'use a condom' I guess.
Salazar, Ramon (Resident Evil 4)
Capcome finally caught on to the only thing that could make Resi scarier; Freaking Midgets. Salazar has some kind of horrible degenerative disease that makes his body de-sync with his actual age, and has two big ass scary monsters as bodyguards, but his scariest aspect is his midgetness. I mean look at him, CARNY-BOY!!! AAARGH
Sera, Luis (Resident Evil 4)
Luis is pretty cool. Leon meets him in Resi 4, and whilst initially you suspect him of being a dirty bouble-crosser, he pulls through and becomes a staunch ally. Ultimately dies in one of the saddest and most shocking Resi deaths to date.
Suzuki, Yono (Outbreak, #2)
Another Outbreak plyable character, Yono is actually one of the best characters in the game simply because she has the largest item capacity and the fact that she's dead nippy in a tight spot. Also the most important to the actual story, as she is a former Umbrella technician. Rumours abound that she will make a Canon appearance in Resi 5, with her ties to Umbrella leading to some interesting theories.
Valentine, Jill (Resident Evil, Resi 3)
I would marry Jill if she really existed. Thats how much I love her. The single best character in the whole damn, saga, Jill is hardcore. She's smart, handy with a lockpick, good with explosive weapons and looks good in a miniskirt. Also plays an excelent rendition of "Moonlight Sonata". Was so popular she actually got her own game in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. Is only ever outdressed by Leon and the movie's portrayal of Jill as a noob who needs rescuing from Milla Fucking Yohovovich should be punishable by death! I'm going to go calm down now...
Vickers, Brad (Resident Evil, Resi 3)
You know Jonny Sazaki from MGS? Or even Brian from almsot everything? Well Brad is Resi's version of that character. He is composed of 50% Noob and 50% Fail. Brad is a coward that earns him the nickname "Chickenheart" from his STARS colleagues. The only reason he survives the first game is because he shits himslef and flies off in the STARS chopper. Meets a nasty, face-rape based death at the hands of Nemesis in Resi 3. Bonus! Had a quite clearly unrequiented love of Jill.
Victor, Mikhail (Resident Evil 3)
Commander of the Umbrella Cleanu-up Squads in Resi 3, Mikhail should get his own game, as he's utterly hardcore. Although in the main story arc he meets his maker during Resi 3 along with the rest of his Umbrella Clean-up Unit, You can play as the crazy bastard in The Mercenaries side game. He's hardcore, and can easily take Hunters on with just his combat knife.
Vladimir, Sergei (The Umrella Chronicles)
I know I said I wouldn't mention any of the silly characters from the Survivor games, but Umbrella Chronicles is awesome, so it warrants a mention. A former Soviet commander, Sergei is Oswald's top minion and generally deals with Umbrella's military tasks. Has a crazy Tyrant bodyguard named Ivan. Not so sure about his Sephiroth-esque hairdo though...
Wesker, Albert (The whole damn series)
Looking like the bastard brother of Jonny Bravo, Wesker is pretty much the main and best antagonist in the whole damn saga. Every game has at least part of Wesker's scheming affecting it. Dies horrifically in Resi 1, but due to some genetic tomfoolery, resurects faster, stronger and more resilant than ever. Former colleague and friend of Dr Birkin and Dr Marcus. Now no longer in the employ of Umbrella, Wesker now serves a different shadowy master.
Wilkins, Mark (Outbreak, #2)
My personal Favourite from the Outbreak games, Mark is hardcore. Essentially Ving Rhamies from the Dawn of the Dead remake, Mark is a Vietnam vet who is strong, stamina-laden and handy with all kinds of weapons. Used best to defend the weaker characters and twatting zombies in the face with an Iron Bar.
Wong, Ada (Resident Evil 2, Resi 4)
Players first become aware of Ada in Resi one, when a document reveals her name to be a password into Umbrella's systems (her then boyfriend used it as his Login) So when she shows up in Resi 2 as part of Leon's story, we all knew we were in for something special. Goes on to be one of the games most complex characters, as she works for Wesker (sometimes...) but quite clearly fancies the pants off Leon. One of the series best loved characters.
Now the hardcore of you will be asking yourself "Sean, you great noob, why haven't you mentioned Ozwell Spencer, the original founder of Umbrella, and the major uno bad in the whole series." Well, I would reply that he has never recieved a physical representation or appearance in the game, despite being a leading character. So I didn't stick him in, as he is really just a background element by a fancier name. Has since gone into hiding since Umbrella was liquidised.
Television
Books
"Where do the novels tie in then?
The various novels written by S.D Perry linked to the Resi franchise are primarily based on the stories portrayed in the actual Canon game series, with others taking their lead from them. However Capcom have confirmed that the novels aren't canonical. However, they are fantastic reads, and should be invested in for the hardcore fan. The novels released so far are as follows:
1: Zero Hour
2: The Umbrella Conspiracy
3: Caliban Cove
4 City of The Dead
5: Underworld
6: Nemesis
7: Code; Veronica
8: The Umbrella Chronicles
I am not going to go into detail about the novels because their plotlines so closely resemble that of the games. The books however are very easy to get a hold of, and actually come in one huge bundle deal known as Resident Evil: The Genus Files. Also, there is a collection of Resident Evil Graphic Novels which actually mimic the games exactly.
Heroes
Saga <QoTpA>'s Details
Status:
In a Relationship
Here for:
Networking
Orientation:
Straight
Hometown:
Raccoon City
Zodiac Sign:
Aries
Smoke / Drink:
No / Yes
Saga <QoTpA> is HISTORY!!! Posted at 11:09 PM Jan 14, 2008 view more
Welcome friends to the first ever Queens of the Pwn Age Saga Special. Just to give you an overview of what the Saga section is, basically it is either Kenny or myself (Sean) not simply reviewing a single game, but reviewing a whole franchise of games including their offshoots and branches into other mediums (basically a big fat excuse for us to spew rhetoric on things we like and dislike). In future this shall include such things as The Zelda Saga, The Silent Hill Franchise, The Command & Conquer Universe and the Half-Life games (guess who will be doing that one :p). For the first ever Saga Special, myself (being Seanron, thats Dark Lord Seanron to you!) shall be casting my aching loving gaze over a games series that is close to my little, black heart. So without further ado...
a wee bit ago, on a web browser probably not far, far away...
Resident Evil (known as Biohazard in Japan) is the shittingly long, and bowel-worryingly massive media franchise consisting of 13 games, a huge numbers of Manga and books, 2 good films and 3 utterly crap ones. It has sold over 35 million of its games alone and has been a staple of my sad little existence since it’s original release in 1996. It has jumped consoles more times than horse-faced git Makali Culkin has tried to revive his career, and has robbed me of more sleep than the thought of both Dita Von Teese and Christina Aguilera suffering a chronic case of arousal that only an evening with my good self at the same time can cure.
But lets not get ahead of ourselves, “what the rampant-kangaroo-anus is Resident Evil?” I hear some Halo 3 playing redneck screaming from the back of the room. Resident Evil is the first proper Survival-Horror game ever released (at least it would be, if the fantastic Sweet Home for the SNES didn’t already exist) and sees the player controlling a third-person protagonist. The basic aim of the game is to survive horror (see what I did there) by fighting off hordes of atmospheric Monsters, solving atmospheric puzzles and collecting items, all in atmospheric locations with atmospheric music (all tailored to evoke a frightening atmosphere…or something). Where the series success lies is down to its originality, as before this the goriest and scariest that games got were either Doom on the PC (Square Monsters fight square man in big square areas) or Splatterhouse on the SNES (slightly less square man fights slightly less square monsters in Street Fighter stylee…what?) and was one of the earliest games to actually use tension as the main drive. The style and conventions that Resi set down have been repeated ad-infintum by gormless dick-holes in a bid to reinvent the wheel (Gears of war, Dead Rising, the apparently scary sections of the Halo games) but none really live up to the joy of the Resi series (except Silent Hill, but choosing between them is like asking me if I would prefer to be raped by Hulk Hogan in the anus or the face, I don’t really want to have to choose, but both leave me similar feelings of fear and uncontrollable perspiration)
Resi features a recurring cast of characters that I have really gotten to know and love and set pieces and monsters that appear time and time again. Now most Resi fans treat anything new with a sense of fear and trepidation (something I like to call the Zelda-complex) I actually like it when Capcom (the parents of the franchise) actually try to shake things up and be a little different. But because most gamers in the world have about as much intelligence as a fried donkey scrotum and about as much acceptance of originality as American Male Youths have of Homosexuality, the series sometimes falls into old routines. Now while routine can be enjoyable (as my long tenure in World of Warcraft will no doubt testify) it can be taken a step too far as with the remake of the original Resi on the Gamecube. Sure the graphics and voice-acting were better, and there were a small gaggle of extra sections, but it’s essentially like having intercourse with a ribbed condom, fun and enjoyable the first time but painting the same condom silver, sprinkling it with glitter and using again, not so much.
Also, the console hopping got slightly annoying. Capcom seemingly have no virtue when it comes to bed-swapping, and jumped around more often than a Gigolo out to win the award from most contracted STD’s in a single evening. It’s spiritual home is of course the Playstation, but when Capcom thought it could produce a better game on the Gamecube it jumped ship (a fatal move on it’s part really, as the PS2 then went on to prove it could produce much more powerful titles such as Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and Shadow of the Colossus and also alienating many of Resi’s original fan base). Capcom released a further two Gamecube-only titles with Resident Evil Zero (an admittedly brilliant take on an Origin story for the character Rebecca Chambers) and Resident Evil 4 (perhaps the greatest of the Resi series), before realising “Hey, you know what was awesome, being on the Playstation!” and jumping ship yet again with a PS2 version of Resi 4 (much to the chagrin of Nintendo fans who thought that the adult-orientated series would remain on the people-friendly Gamecube). Now Capcom and Nintendo have always had a very loving relationship, and Nintendo have always assumed that the next canon instalment of the game, the originally titled Resident Evil 5, would be appearing on Nintendo’s little white box of motion-sensitive cuteness; the Wii. This isn’t the case, as the next instalment will be appearing exclusively on the monolithic, black powerhouse that is the Playstation 3 (although I take the word ‘exclusively’ with a great sodding spoonful of salt when Capcom say it, as no doubt the X-Box 360 will lift it’s skirt enticingly and Capcom will hastily jet off to enact the horizontal monster mash upon Microsoft’s Anus)
But I’m getting ahead of myself here, lets talk about the individual games and aspects of Resident Evil one by one, and hopefully you’ll see why I love this series, and if not, well then you can shut your eyes, scroll really slowly down the page using your mouse-wheel and pretend I’m actually a Gamespot.com reviewer (“WTF is Resident Evil??? Duh, Halo is teh sex! Masterchief pwns Gill you Noob! WTF? The Wii and Playstation is teh gay!!! Mega Lolzor. X-Box live and Achievements are the L33test things since sliced bread, because I am incapable of setting my own bloody goals to challenge myself and need the dribbling cock-monkeys at Bill Gates Is God HQ to set everything out for me!!!”) Hopefully though you have more bloody sense and are open to more enlightened and slightly different views to the norm. So I bid you read on and enjoy.
At it’s core, Resident Evil has always been a games series, much to the oblivious nature of most 13 year old boys, who keep going on the Capcom forums complaining why “Milla Yovovich isn’t in the fucking game, why the hell make a game about a film without the main star?” To them I say sod off you great sopping cunts. There are two types of core Resident Evil game, the first being the third person survival horror that has become the staple of the franchise, and the slightly less popular first person light-gun based games of the Resident Evil: Survivor series. Sometimes the series deviates into new territory, so to make things easier for all the Microsoft fans out there, I am going to look at each game chronologically, and link it to the others as necessary.
The Canon Series
Now the Resident Evil series is like a big old tree, with many branches leading away from the central body. The most pronounced of these branches is of course the Canon series (literally the part of the series dealing with the main story, and not (in fact) the series featuring heavy artillery). This includes the original game, the numbered sequels (Zero, 2, 3, 4 and the forthcoming 5) and Code Veronica. These games deal with a minority of the main characters (focussing on Chris, Jill, Leon and Claire) and a plethora of support characters (see the box-out on the cast). The canon series deals with the characters struggles with Umbrella during and after the mansion incident, except for 4 (and possibly 5) which takes a bold step into a new story arc which also works fantastically. All share gameplay styles common to the series, and set the trend for all the other branches that are linked to it.
Resident Evil (1996)
The First ever Resi game appeared when I was but 12 years of age (man, now I feel old) and secured my admiration in that zombie-like state of fanboy rabidness. Originally on the Playstation One (known simply as the Playstation back then before Sony decided to adopt the original naming policy adopted by EA sports) it has since been converted onto the PC, the now deceased Sega Saturn and most recently the Nintendo DS. Also a remake of the game appeared on the Nintendo Gamecube also, but I will discuss that later. It featured a huge sprawling ad campaign, which was swiftly banned by the BBFC for being too graphic (the incredibly memorable Bloodbath poster sticking out particularly in my mind) and set Resi up as the game most rebellious adolescents wanted to get their grubby, masturbation-rashed hands on.
Resident Evil set down the conventions that would follow into the other games, and would also influence the gaming industry as a whole. It is viewed from the third person perspective, with a 3D polygonal character against still rendered backdrops. This meant that Capcom could manipulate exactly where the camera angle was at all times, adding tension because sometimes you couldn’t see exactly what was coming. A lot of people bemoan this, but it was a simpler time with simpler dreams, and I would still rather play the original Resident Evil than pitiful 3D attempts to emulate it such as Bloodrayne (I can hear the fan boys typing angrily now). You controlled your character collecting various keys, documents and items, which would allow you to traverse the game world (in this case a Mansion in the Arklay Mountains outside Raccoon City, loving the Japanese impression of what American Town names are) whilst fighting off enemies using various weapons. The game was incredibly linear, although you did have the choice of two protagonists; Chris Redfield, being the butch manly character, who is apparently too dim-witted to keep hold of his gun (he loses the damn thing in the opening FMV) and Jill who is the smarter, cooler female choice (Jill was always much cooler than Chris) who actually starts with a firearm and has a rather handy lock pick. Essentially, Chris’s game is slightly harder than Jill’s, with him pairing up with a rookie team member (Rebecca Chambers, who the Japanese have a rather frightening obsession with) whereas Jill is helped throughout by the slightly more experienced, magnum-wielding Barry Burton.
The story (indeed, it’s so long now I think it is safe to refer to it as The Lore,,) follows as such; Mysterious and brutal murders are occurring in and around the forests of the Arklay Mountains bordering Raccoon City. The STARS (The Special Tactics And Rescue Service) are sent in two teams (the originally named Alpha Team and Bravo Team, Tom Clancy would be proud) to investigate. The Bravo team went in first, and apparently being complete Noobs, crashed and got slaughtered by various horrid creatures. So Alpha (containing both Jill and Chris) is sent in to rescue them, and turn out to be just as Noobish as the last lot, being cornered in a nearby mansion by what appears to be a single dog monster (an interesting fact, considering you fight far more dangerous monsters throughout the game) although Capcom have always hinted that there was actually a whole pack of the buggers outside, but could only afford one ill-made puppet for the intro sequence.
We eventually discover that the Mansion is actually a huge research facility owned by The Umbrella Corporation, a huge soulless organisation, who manipulate, scheme and essentially have no core morale values or love for other human beings (you know, like EA) In this facility they were working on the T-Virus, a deadly bacterium that turns any living thing it contacts with into horrific monsters and zombies. So the game switches from escaping the mansion Scooby-Doo style, to escaping huge sterilised laboratory much like escaping from Sachsenhausen in Germany (oooooh, topical) Eventually Jill and Chris discover that they’re Commander at STARS (the apparently all-knowing, scientific genius, Johnny Cage wannabe, Albert Wesker) has led them here to be test subjects for all these creatures, and is in fact going to steal one of Umbrella’s most powerful bio-weapons, The Tyrant. Woes betide us though, when the beast awakes, pwns Wesker and begins pursuing your character. At the speed of a small child with no legs. And bricks tied round the stumps of their missing limbs (too much? I thought so). So the battle is easy, and you escape, only for the big bugger resurrect like some demented Paladin. A slightly more difficult battle ensues, and the game ends with you victorious and the Mansion reduced to tons of molten slag. Result!
Now this is the earliest Resi game, so it was a bit lame in the old replayability department, but as a sign of the times and a flag post in the great snowy tundra of video gaming history, no better game exists.
Resident Evil 2 (1998)
Everyone remembers the wonderful film Alien, a modern classic it is, full of suspense, fear and visceral horror and stood out as the original amongst the other sci-fi of the time. No one saw the direction that absolutely fantastic sequel Aliens would take, that of a rollercoaster ride of violence, explosions and oh so many monsters. This evolution can also be used for the Resi series, as Resident Evil 2 is surely the Aliens to Resi 1’s Alien.
Capcom thought “How exactly can we top the last game?” They could have gone down the route of more atmosphere (ala Silent Hill) but instead they decided upon the James Cameron route. More weapons, more high speed plot, sharper image and far more zombies. RE2 just feels meatier than it’s predecessor, and there’s a reason that it is considered the finest of the Resi series (I share this viewpoint entirely, there are certain games that define how and what you play, and Resident Evil 2 is a fine example of this)
The game begins 2 months after the original, and takes place in Raccoon City (the city bordering the Arklay Mountains of the first game) Gill, Chris, Brad, Rebecca and Barry have escaped the Mansion incident and attempt begin plans to take down Umbrella. Unbeknownst to them is that the T-Virus of the original game has spread through the sewers of the city, causing another outbreak of “itchy tasty”. However, you do not play as any of the original characters, instead two new ones are introduced. First off is Claire, Chris’s little sister who is in Raccoon looking for Chris as he has gone missing (he has actually gone undercover to expose Umbrella). She has a penchant for pink denim, motorcycles and possibly lager. Next is the deceptively feminine Leon Kennedy, a new Rookie Cop just recently transferred to the RPD. His interests include oriental women, being a do-gooder and looking a bit like Leonardo De Caprio. Both these characters meet in a diner under assault by the zombified hordes of Raccoon’s citizenry. They are separated by an overturned oil-tanker (isn’t it always the way) and agree to meet at the Raccoon Police Department.
So you choose to play as one of these characters, starting in the chaotic streets of Raccoon and being forced to make your way to the Police Station. Now the first thing you’ll notice is the improved graphics. RE2 uses a very similar system to the original, with static backdrops and polygonal characters, but the integration is much smoother and flows a lot better. Also, the controls while being very similar to the original (and therefore impossible for Kenny to grasp. You know, pressing up to aim up, and pressing down to aim down, and using left and right to turn left and right. its just so complex) are much smoother and more responsive, giving over to a faster gameplay style. And the zombies, oh the zombies. Whereas in the first game, the most you’d ever have to fight in a single area was maybe 2 or 3 monsters, the very first section your in has 15 zombies. That was a huge number of fully 3D characters to have on-screen at any one time for the PSone, and also the zombies varied wildly ranging from cops, to tramps, salesmen to the now expected naked zombie. It also introduced female zombies, which worryingly triggered a spate of ‘naked-zombie girl’ cheat codes that were first of all hoaxes and showed a lot of gamer to be deeply disturbed little puppies.
So you’d pick your way through Raccoon Streets, eventually coming to the RPD, and then striking out toward the Industrial centre of Raccoon, with the now-expected Umbrella Facility underneath. You collected items to solve puzzles, keys to unlock various doors and weapons to fight of the genuine hordes of enemies you had to face. The game also introduced a villain who pursued you throughout the game; Dr William Birkin. Dr Birkin (or G as he is referred to throughout the game) is one of Umbrella’s top researchers, and rather than hand over his work to Umbrella (the G-Virus) he instead injects himself with it, becoming a huge, parasitic, asexual monster with huge claws and a bulbous eye growing out his shoulder. Apart from raising questions as to why the G-Virus would necessitate an eyeball the size of a border collie on its hosts shoulder, he also acts as the main antagonist throughout the game.
Battles with G replaced the boss battles from the original game (against monsters such as Yawn, Plant 42 and Tyrant) and had you fighting even more grotesque mutations of G as the game progresses. Starting as a fairly unaltered human with said humungo-eye and one large claw, he eventually becomes a huge tank of bubbling flesh with a huge fanged maw and hundreds of tentacles. The design for G was superb, and dragged the series away from the Tyrant which was really just a big man with pointy nails. To facilitate you in your fight was a whole swathe of weapons, both new and old the good old grenade launcher and its triple ammo capacity returns, as does the shotgun. However, now those crazy kids Leon and Claire could get their hands on an automated Machine Gun, which tore chunks out of enemies, but only had a single high-capacity ammo clip. In a similar vein was the Flamethrower (being another similarity to Aliens) that toasted enemies and set them alight, but only had a single ammo tank. Both these new weapons were so large that they took up 2 slots in your inventory, so to take them and use them became incredibly strategic. I vividly remember one boss fight with G in which your waiting for an industrial lift to come, and G crashes through the roof (having now sprouted an extra set of appendages, and is twice as tall as your character) my inventory was set to bursting with guns and first aid sprays, but not a lot of ammo. After defeating him, I cheered, only to have my elation destroyed when the bugger simply mutated into a huge monstrous quadruped with big teeth and I had nothing to fight him with. So it is a constant battle in what to carry, weapons, ammo, health and items. Many people bemoaned this, saying your should be able to carry as much as you want (ala Tomb Raider and Silent Hill) however Capcom knew that fear derives from the unknown, and not knowing what to carry at all times made your choices nerve-wracking and stressful, which is why the system is brilliant, and endures in the game till this day.
And something that folk discovered after completed the game really made the game worth buying, as after completing the game, you were allowed to play as the other character from the other side of the tanker. So essentially you had four different versions of the game (Leon and Claire’s standard games and the Scenario B’s which take place with the other character). This was awesome, because Capcom actually put a lot of thought into the second scenario. Things you did in Scenario A affected B; both scenarios go through similar locations, and both have the chance at obtaining the Flamethrower and Machine gun. If you took the weapons in Scenario A, then the character in Scenario B wouldn’t be able to have them as well. The second scenario was kept fantastically under wraps by Capcom, so was a very welcome surprise to gamers who finished the game. The second character would meet varying versions of G (completely different to the G’s encountered first time round) and also be pursued by a new monster, Mr Green. Mr Green is a semi-sentient Tyrant (a pre-cursor to the Nemesis program) appearing as a huge pale skinned bald man in a Dark Green Spetsnaz Overcoat. He is incredibly strong (punching through walls with ease, and being able to break the players back if he gets within range) incredibly tough (being able to withstand all most ballistics before collapsing) and also very fast if he has a clear line of sight (you know the Big Daddies from Bioshock, learned all their tricks from this guy). Eventually, in classic Resi style, the last time you fight the bugger he has horrifically mutated into a giant clawed monster in a scarily-familiar battle (it’s almost identical to the Tyrant battle in the first game, only harder and speeded up). Eventually you meet up with your first scenario character and you both make your escape.
Something else that also remained from the original that garnered both equal amounts of praise and loathing was the terrible voice-acting. All the lines are so po-faced and clichéd that it is very difficult to take them seriously. Now, I like Resi’s terrible scripts, I find them incredibly endearing and reminds me of old B-Movies and terrible horror movies that me and my Aunt Liza used to watch (Return of the Living Dead 3 sticks out particularly) and reminds me of being young. One Particular bad character is Annette Birkin (wife of William before he bugged out) and her utterly melodramatic attempts at psychosis; “The G-Virus will be mine…mine…MINE MWAHAHAHA!” and the nameless black Cop who Leon meets. He tells Leon to go in a fashion that would be considered tragic and heroic if extras in Godzilla movies regularly won Oscars, however we live in the real world and it just comes across as a bit naff. But Resi is all about the bad acting, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
Also introduced to rapturous applause were the Minigames that became unlocked after completion (these would go on to be a permanent fixture of the series). The first one concerned an Umbrella operative codenamed ‘Hunk’. Hunk must traverse the streets, fighting zombies and monsters to get to the Helicopter based retrieval point. He must do this in an allotted amount of time, with the fastest times gaining awards and various degrees of unlockable content. This was immense fun, as there were no puzzles or keys, it was just a solid blastathon and cemented RE2’s place as the action game of the series. If the players found this easy, then the 4th Survivor challenge was unlocked. It was the exact same game as Hunks, however instead of an elite, heavily armed Umbrella operative, you played as Tofu: A huge block of Tofu which waddled clumsily and was armed simply with a combat knife. To say Tofu’s section was difficult is a bit like saying ‘Sean likes a drink now and again’ and ‘Kenny, he looks a wee bit like a girl’ in that it is a gross understatement.
So apart from Resident Evil 4, RE2 is the action game of the canon series. It is also the best of the originals, and I hope that Playstation Store deeply consider releasing it online, because if you haven’t played it then you haven’t experienced some flawless videogame history. 10/10, just like the original.
Resident Evil 3 (1999)
Now you all may have realised that my favourite character in the whole Resident Evil series is Jill. Not since Samus from the stonkingly brilliant Metroid series have I played such an engaging and likeable female lead character. And, like many fans of the game, I was overjoyed that she would be getting her own game in the canonical series. Resident Evil 3, although proving to be frustratingly similar to the 2 previous titles, is still a beast of a game. It featured a better combat system, more destructive weapons, and the titular villain Nemesis (who still regularly tops gamer polls for best villain and most likely to open a puppy sanctuary) who relentlessly pursues the player throughout the game like some bulky, misshapen Governor of California. It improved slightly on the dialogue (although radio conversations with Barry were still a highlight due to their awfulness) and featured a more action packed plot. However, the graphics were yet to make any kind of headway since Resi 2, and the gameplay remained very similar to its two predecessors. However, look deeper and you have a deeply rewarding title in the series.
Now Capcom are quite clearly in love with the story they crafted, especially the story of Resident Evil 2 (zombie plague infests small American town deep in vast forest, eventually becomes radioactive slag when the Government condemns it unsalvageable), so much so that many of the later games would return to those fateful days when Raccoon met it’s demise. Playing through Resi 2, it was quite clear that Chris and Barry had gone in search of Umbrella inn order to deliver a smiting of mighty proportions, however not much was revealed on Jill’s fate after the Mansion incident. So Resi 3 kicks off with Jill’s fate. First off you’ll notice a revamp for Jill; gone are the old threads of the STARS uniform and in comes black PVC miniskirt, knee high boots and a boob-tube. People suspected that this new ‘sexier’ look would mean Jill had softened up, but thankfully these fears were unfounded as the old girl proved to be as tough as ever. Resi 3 inherited the nifty auto-aim system from Resi 2, Jill was far nippier with a quick-turn function to evade enemies, and also a handy new dodge move that allowed her to leap out of the way of incoming attacks. These new controls made the game feel a lot smoother, and opened it up to people who felt the previous controls were blocky or unintuitive (like Kenny, I am still at a lost to understand what was so complex about them…). This allowed the game to be faster paced, with fewer puzzles and more action.
And the action came in bucket loads. From the onset of the game you were assaulted by hordes of zombies, some of which actually ‘galloped’ toward the player which took veteran players by surprise who were simply expecting the regular floor-shufflers. Also, while previous titles took their time in introducing new enemies and bosses, there is no such luxury in Resi 3. Drain Deimo’s (huge, fly-like humanoids, think Geoff Goldblum with Cannibalism) would scurry at you from the beginning, and the first attack from Nemesis comes completely unexpectedly and urgently. This gave the game a real sense of danger. Whereas the previous games relied on tension for fear, Resi 3 used oppression and claustrophobia, with the back-streets of Raccoon seeming small and horrific especially when stalked by the hulking leviathan that is Nemesis.
And Nemesis really was Capcom’s trump card in the game. Although there had been giant monsters in the first games (Tyrant from Resi 1, G and Mr Green from Resi 2) none pursued the player as intelligently or as threateningly as Nemesis. He could follow the player into any room, could attack at range using a handy portable rocket-launcher (and later on, he developed huge stinking tentacles coated in poison) and butchered a reccuring game character in a fantastically brutal way. He was also the first Resi monster that could speak; true, his one bit of dialogue was “STARS!” uttered in a booming tenor, but it added character and made him feel more threatening. Here is a creature whose sole purpose is to destroy the STARS team, and even at the end of the game when he is dying and convulsing in a pool of his own juices, he is still trying to kill Jill (Volume II…sorry) Capcom improved on the enemy AI used to make Nemesis as effective an antagonist as possible; he had excellent aim (although I’ve found aiming to be an annoyance when wielding a rocket launcher) and could run incredibly fast. The only way to actually stop the brute chasing you was to gun him down, with his corpse bestowing vast amounts of ammo upon the successful player (much like Mr Green from Resi 2) Later in the game, when he (unsurprisingly) mutates into a more horrific form, he loses some of his charm as he becomes simply a huge lump of flesh with a huge mouth, but Nemesis still ranks as a series highlight
However, Resi 3 does seem like the less intelligent of the original games, lacking the subtlety of the first or the brilliant plot and original settings of the second. It makes up for this with its huge levels of gore and violence, and a heavily action orientated plot. Although the game yet again takes place in a different part of Raccoon City to its forebear, the game can’t escape feeling like an expansion rather than a game in its own right. The graphics are incredibly similar to Resi 2, as are the early sections of the city, however, the game picks up considerably after the arrival of the Umbrella clean-up team. These hard-bitten mercenaries are some of the best characters in the game, and also introduce us to the second playable character, Carlos. Carlos fulfils the empty space usually occupied by either Chris or Leon, but is slightly easier to sympathise with as first of all he was orphaned as a child, and the unit he serves with are horribly massacred by Zombies. This leads to him receiving an epiphany and joining with Jill in order to escape the horrors of Raccoon. Playing as him is fun, as he comes equipped with a machine-gun and heavy pistol, and can take a lot more damage than Jill.
The section you play as Carlos is excellent, with him running through an abandoned hospital locating medical supplies for Jill (who has been injured by Nemesis). However being a hospital in Raccoon City, it’s owned by Umbrella and is infested with two variants of the Hunter genus and is incredibly tense as Carlos navigates his way through the burning and crumbling corridors, being pursued by high speed monsters. Carlos also acts as a major piece of character development for Jill, showing how fragile and melancholy she has become since STARS was destroyed and her closest friends (Chris and Barry) fled the city. Her relationship with Carlos really drew out her human side, and made her a thoroughly likeable character.
However, I can’t make it through a Resi review without mentioning the god awful script which seems to be a necessary component of the Resi Franchise. Jill (and Carlos) had some right stinkers of dialogue in the first game, and Resi 3 see’s fit to continue that trend. Now this is a huge platform of debate amongst gamers. If you’re like Kenny for example, you’ll not be able to stomach Resi’s awful acting. However if your like me (and I guarantee you I am) then you’ll find it charming and likable. It really is down to personal taste, but Resi 3 isn’t big on script anyway being primarily an action title.
Before we leave Resident Evil 3 to the vaults, I should mention Mercenaries. Similar to the Hunk and Tofu mini games of the previous titles, Mercs became available once the player had completed the game. Where it differed however was the fact that you played as Carlos’ clean-up team (before their unfortunate dismemberment) fighting off hordes of progressively more diffuciult monsters and challenges. You could choose which character you wanted to play as out of a selection of five. Each had their own skills and weapons (acting as a template for the Outbreak games) and the whole point was to amass as many points in the shortest space of time possible. It was STUPIDLY addictive, and I ended up playing it more than the actual main game itself. Although there wasn’t any other scenarios in Resi 3, the Mercs Minigames made up for it in gooey bucket loads.
Now I would love to give Resi 3 a 10/10, but it wouldn’t be fair. It’s an awesome game, and stand alone it is awesome. But in terms of the series, it was a simply shinier, ‘splodier version of Resident Evil 2. 9/10 as it’s a brilliant game, but not quite the genius we were looking for.
Who I'd like to meet:
Resident Evil: Code Veronica (2000)
I loved the Dreamcast. Sure, it had a lame controller, very few good games came out for it and the Playstation 2 and Gamecube were better, but the little white box of Sega-based joy will always have a place in my heart. The main reason behind this of course Code Veronica
Code Veronica broke from Resi’s traditions to craft its own take on the game, and it regularly tops gamers lists of favourite games in the series. It was the first true 3D game of the Resi series, replacing the static, pre-rendered backdrops with full, glorious 3D. This new technology allowed Capcom to really use Camera work really evoke fear, as opposed to the static cameras used beforehand. Capcom had always feared that the jump to 3D would make the game sterile or non-atmospheric, however these fear were unfounded. The game still looks spectacular today even alongside the 7th Generation consoles and their obsession with HD this and Blu-Ray that. The powerful processor at the heart of the Dreamcast allowed Capcom to really push the boat out in terms of size and presentation, and ranks as a visual high-point in the entire series
The story began with Claire raiding a research facility in France for evidence,
the facility belonging to Umbrella. This instantly distanced the game from the previous titles as no longer were you confined to the claustrophobic Arklay area, Code Veronica was Worldwide. Claire is kidnapped and taken to a prison facility on an undisclosed island, before (of course) all Hell breaks loose in the form of another (deeply surprising) Zombie Outbreak. Meanwhile (on the Death Star…sorry) Chris has become aware of Claire’s disappearance and is out looking for her, being drawn to the same island. Both of them are locked in a struggle against not only the monsters of the island, the island itself and recurring force of evil; Wesker but were also pitted against two of the series most memorable (and downright bizarre) characters ever; The Ashford Twins.
Now for all the fans who kept on top of the story, the Name Ashford has grave connotations. Lord Ashford was one of the three original founders of Umbrella, and therefore is public enemy no. one. Not being content with simply discovering the evil, soulless company EA…err, I mean Umbrella, Ashford also put his genius daughter on the Payroll. Alexia Ashford was a child prodigy, and took her Father’s original theories on the T-Virus and expanded upon it, creating the T-Veronica Strain. She was also a sadistic mentalist with less than pure impulses towards her twin brother, Alfred. Alfred is truly the runt of the litter, being in no way ingenious, beautiful nor useful in any way. He is however utterly dedicated to his barmy sister, has a penchant for cross-dressing and one of the MOST irritating laughs you will ever hear. The lovely pair spends their days torturing insects, shooting serfs with Alfred’s elephant gun, bonking like crazy and furthering the research of the T-Veronica virus. When it eventually came to experimenting on a living subject, the lovely siblings injected their father, dooming him to an existence of horrific pain and tentacle based weirdness. After the Veronica strain is injected into series mainstay Lisa Trevor, Alexia decides to incubate the Veronica X strain in herself. During this period of extended isolation, Alfred goes slightly barmy and starts dressing in his sisters clothes to alleviate his loneliness (you can’t make this stuff up I tell you)
It is unfortunate for both Claire and Chris that they end up the same island as the Ashford’s familial Mansion. To confound things further, Wesker reappears in Chris’ sections apparently with his legs intact and now with super human strength, lickety speed and control over sea creatures (“Hey Zoidberg get in here!” – “Screw You!”). Also, he has developed a horrific case of pink eye but maintains his Johnny Bravo dress sense. This furthers the plotline of Wesker (which has now become almost legendary), and Code Veronica really is the springboard from which the Wesker Mythos comes from.
Gameplay wise, Code Veronica feels very much like a Resi game, but thanks to the 3D animation and refined control system, it feels less stuffy than Resi 3. You play in the 3rd person as usual; however the game feels more fluid as now the camera will pan around the character as opposed to switching to a separate position. Also, the application of a first person view, while not useful from a gameplay perspective, allowed the player to take stock of their location and admire the wonderful modelling that had gone into the game. You fight monsters, collect items and solve puzzles as usual, but somehow the game feels like a breath of fresh air. It could just be that it’s on a different system, or that the game has had an overhaul in the old visual department, but Code Veronica feels like a new dawning for the series.
However, not everything was rosey in the game. There was the reliance on old forms, such as the Island going into a self destruct countdown toward it’s completion (much like the first three titles), the reliance on some of the older battles (fighting Hunters in long corridors, fighting a Tyrant in a very small room) and the return of Resi’s trademark; awful acting. Now both Chris and Claire have always had the lesser of Resi’s script-based evils, but a particular new character introduced is unbearably aggravating, badly acted with a voice that never drops below grating and is in fact the single most irritating character in the whole series; Steve Burnside.
You have no idea how much I wanted to strangle the squeaky voiced miscreant throughout the game. There he was, being unbearably ginger, withholding weapons that should rightfully be Claire’s. When we eventually found his Father (who had become zombified) and Steve breaks down after killing him, I laughed at the floppy-haired ginger nonce. Then he had the audacity to become infatuated with Claire, becoming doubly more annoying than usual. Then when he finally does mutate into a huge purple monster (keeping in line with what happens to almost all major Resi characters) instead of flee from the beast (which your supposed to, not being able to bring yourself to hurt poor old Steve) I stood and emptied all my ammo into the bastard three times over, purely out of spite. Some sources suggest that Steve is alive and well, and is due to make a surprising reappearance in Resi 5 in a truly Raiden-esque comeback. However unlike Raiden, I can guarantee you that Steve will remain a girlish, whiney pussy who will only cause me to control Chris into throttling the scrawny runt (unlike Raiden, who will be reappearing in MGS4, now with bad ass synthetic blood, a cybernetic body and no lower jaw – BONUS!)
However, one character cannot spoil an entire game, no matter how annoying, so Code Veronica stands as a brilliant example of Resident Evil done well. The game was later converted to the PS2 with improved graphics and controls and also the Gamecube, and still stands as a fine example of the series. However, for the true experience, dust down your old Dreamcast and give it a spin! 10/10
Resident Evil Zero (2002)
Now timeline wise in the story, this game actually happens first, however, we’ll go by release date. Released exclusively on the Nintendo Gamecube, Zero was a true return to form for the Resi series after the disappointing Gamecube Remake of the original Resident Evil. Taking the lessons learned from the Gamecube Resi Remake and also Code Veronica, Capcom crafted a more gothic, more atmosphere-laden title and beefed up the back story to breaking point. It also filled out Rebecca, both in term of story and (ahem) figure. Did phenomenally well in Japan because of Rebecca’s popularity in old Nippon.
Resident Evil Zero is the prequel to the Resident Evil series, essentially Year Zero in the timeline. It concentrates on the failed investigation attempt by the Alpha Team in the original game, with you playing as the sole survivor Rebecca Chambers. It turns out that the Alpha’s happened upon a luxury Train that appears to have malfunctioned whilst travelling to the Spencer Mansion in the Arklay Mountains (sound familiar). When they board it, they find it infested with heinous Zombies and strange leeches. Rebecca is separated from them and eventually happens upon the games second playable character, Billy Coen. Billy is an escaped Military Convict, and the two characters find it hard to trust one another at first, but eventually flow into the buddy system that seems to work for the rest of the series.
So first things first, what’s the same? Well, pretty much everything, the combat, the items, the herbs, the terrible acting, the statutory big monster boss battles, the unrequited love between the female and male leads. However, the system ahs been honed down to as sharp a point as possible, making Zero feel like an entirely new and fresh game. And it benefits from being fully 3D much like it’s two predecessors (Code Veronica and the Resi remake) with first person views and reactive scenery. Now this would score 8/10, however where it really succeeds is the Story and encounters featured throughout.
Now for most easy going gamers, this is simply a fantastic game, but for the hardened Resident Evil fanbase (like myself) Zero filled in many of the holes that the other games had merrily picked in the overarching plot before looking rather sheepish when it’s discovered that they’d broken it. Zero reveals exactly how Wesker and Birkin came to be the sick little puppies that they are, and also introduces one of the fantastic founders of Umbrella, Dr Marcus. This beefing up of plot was most welcome, as some people felt that while Code Veronica’s change of scene was welcome, and the Gamecube Resi’s rehashing of old ground was lazy, the original plot hadn’t received all the attention it deserved.
It is revealed that in a hostile takeover, Wesker and Birkin have Dr Marcus murdered. Marcus was working on his T-Queen Leech program, in which he was using the T-Virus to mutate simple leeches into more advanced form. Wesker and Birkin became impatient with his tinkering and decided to have him eliminated. However, like most classic Resi bad guys, his Leeches revive Marcus and himself becomes the Leech Hive Mind. He gets his revenge on Oswald, Wesker and Birkin by causing the meltdown and outbreak at the Mansion (which leads to Resi 1). This all leads nicely into the series, and feels right when placed alongside the story thus far.
Marcus is more than just a clever plot device as well, as all the leeches in the game are controlled by him (and in fact act as his body and physical presence). Single leeches fall on the character and suck their blood, groups try to smother the characters and if enough of them group together they actually form up into a humanoid shape that resembles Marcus and can cause horrific damage to the character if they get in close. So whenever a leech is spotted, panic sets in as you try to kill the little bastards before they can form up. And these Leech zones could happen anywhere and at anytime, keeping the player on edge. The oppression of Resi 3 seeps through Zero in bucket loads. The AI was loosely based on the AI used for Nemesis to give the Marcus/Leech-men greater awareness and attack coordination and made them very difficult to counteract.
However, while the Leeches and Leech-man monsters were inspired ideas for enemies, there was two very lazy creations; I speak of the Giant Scorpion and Giant Bat bosses. Now Resi has always had an affinity for huge mutated animal monsters (Just check out the Zoo section in Outbreak #2) but these two just smacked of cliché. The giant Scorpion (Codenamed: Stinger…haw haw haw) was fought in the Train section, and I get that story-wise Marcus would have used smaller animals like Scorpions for his experiments, but when you spend every bloody game fighting Giant bloody spiders it gets slightly bloody infuriating. The bat fell along similar lines, replacing the Crow enemies with another winged monster that was given gross gigantism in a bid to be scary, but comes off as clichéd. However, I should mention the excellent Eliminators: Crazy apes infected with the Progenitor Virus (the T-Viruses parent in all respects), which are fast, terrifyingly strong and utterly enraged. They appear frequently and make a change to the usual Zombie masses.
There’s not much else to be said for Zero, being a prequel we know how it ends, and also being a sequel it will always be scrutinised for its likeness to the first game. However, it can hold its head up high knowing that whole it isn’t a true breakaway from the mould it is an utter refinement of what makes Resi special. 9/10, a must for any fan!
Resident Evil 4 (2004)
You know Batman Begins broke away from the conventions set down by the previous Batman movies, carving itself a niche and standing as a solitary shining beacon in the Batman film franchise. Well that’s sorta what Resident Evil 4 is for the Resi saga. Resi 4 laughed at the conventions set down by the previous titles and decided to become a hardcore, 3rd person blastathon, doing away with Umbrella, zombies, Raccoon City, hell it got rid of all the previous monsters. And you know what, Resi 4 is the best game in the whole series.
The player reprises their role as Leon “Floppy Locks” Kennedy, now in the employ of the US government (seems his previous actions shutting down Umbrella attracted the attention of the President…a fictional president, not the dribbling piss-stain that currently resides in ye’ olde White House). He has been tasked with tracking down the Presidents daughter Ashley, who has been kidnapped whilst holidaying in Spain. So you think “No big deal, I’ve fought horrific monsters aplenty, some crazy terrorists/kidnappers should be a piece of piss, Right?”
WRONG!. Upon arriving to an isolated village, Leon is immediately greeted by hostile inhabitants. Actually, "hostile" doesn't exactly fit the description. How does insanely violent and unbelievably bloodthirsty grab you? Yep, the recognizable Resident Evil formula is back. Or is it??? Crazy hobo’s wielding scythes, crazy beggar women wielding axes, a guy with a bag on his head wielding a freaking chainsaw that WILL kill you in a single swipe!. Panic-stricken, the player frantically reaches for his firearm, and starts blowing European nut jobs a new anus. Used to the slow monsters of the previous games, Resi 4 goes straight for the jugular, defiantly screaming “Oh you think you know me? Well have an axe in the FACE!!!”
The gameplay mechanics and the overall design of Resi 4 break entirely away from the originals, which while possessing the same ingredients (Shooting, Running, Puzzling, screaming for the bad man to stop hurting you) are fed to you differently, making this feel like an entirely different game. The game is faced-paced and always keeps you on the edge of your seat, which is probably the one thing I like most about it (I am in fact a total Fear-junkie!!!). You shoot your way through hordes of monsters until the ammo gouge on the right reads "Empty." And you are filled with dread at your impending pwning (either that or your pants are filled with something other than dread…) When it comes down to that, players must rely on their handy combat knife (a Resi staple), with the knife surprisingly not sucking in this game (oh for a COD4 knife…) However, while I do like hacking things up (ask Kenny’s ex-gerbil), you should probably try locate some ammo caches, which are either scattered throughout the levels or may be picked up from fallen foes (surprisingly frequently for this being Rural Spain…it all gets a little Hot Fuzz tbh).
The new and improved inventory system allows you to combine all your items & objects into various orders so you can fit more in your pack. This makes a pleasant change from screaming “What do you mean I can’t take the key??? I’m only carrying plants for god’s sake!” and then sulking off to locate a magical trans-dimensional chest (although the chests still feature). As always, you are also able to mix red, yellow and green herbs in order to heal, and you will be healing a lot because this game is hard...very hard…like being raped by Hulk Hogan after he’s had an iron cactus installed were his penor used to be…I need help. When the going gets tough, players simply access their inventory and heal themselves without any hindrances. It's straightforward and much easier to use than the previous titles (so easy, even Kenny could do it :D)
Now, if your like me (and I can guarantee you I am) then you'll find yourself wanting more destructive weaponry by your side, as more and more monsters keep seeking your blood (both in RL and in-game). With the help of a detailed map (which pleasingly isn’t yet another series of rooms and rectangles), which gives you ample info on the surrounding area, players may easily locate key spots where they may recuperate, re-arm or save their progresses. The well-known typewriter routine is still there, and that means you cannot save at any time (games like that are too easy anyway, try completing the whole thing without saving! Can you do it? I can, because I have no life. And you cannot kill that which has no life). This is a good thing mind you, since it increases the challenge and makes you think carefully about the actions you're about to take. Running into the brilliant cockney nut-job Weapons Merchant, who has more weapons on him than all of the US military, Al’Qaida and myself, is also a neat addition to the gameplay. Occasionally, he offers you a chance to practice with diverse weapons on a handy shooting range, continuing Resi’s fantastic eye for addictive mini-games.
Another thing that struck me with a rusty axe about this game is the brilliant artwork and monster design. I literarily gasped a few times after seeing some of those monstrosities. Although I had played all the games thus far (and I mean all of them, no life you see) I was overjoyed by the originality of the creatures I was facing. The villagers don’t look like zombies, and they bleed a hell of a lot more when you shotgun their faces (I do need help). On many occasions, you will pull off a well-placed headshot. The head of your unsuspecting foe will burst (satisfyingly) into pieces and a hideous parasite will most likely emerge out of its neck, and lunge at you like Lyndsay Lohan on crack (only the parasite will be marginally more attractive) This happens more frequently at the night time sections, and will scare the crap out of you every single time.
There's not much I can say about the AI in this game, being a Resi game. Most of the opponents are mindless grunts, frequently appearing in bunches and relying on sheer numbers rather than wit. That may sound bad, but believe me, even though their pretty thick, their a challenge when your ammo is limited. And the later stage monsters, while appearing in fewer numbers, are scarily hard to beat (I still shudder at the Iron Maidens) Making another appearance is the classic Resi Huge Boss Monster sections, which are some of the highlights of the game. Whether it’s fighting the chainsaw-wielding mentalist in the village, the huge lizard/fish/whale monster in the river or even when the village leader mutates into something that looks like it got vomited out of The Thing, the battles are frequently cool and engaging. Another intriguing aspect of Resident Evil 4 is that it keeps players in suspense with constant unexpected twists in the plot. And, each level was designed in a unique way, so it never feels repetitive or boring (a welcome break from the drab Raccoon environments) the graphics are the best the series had yet seen (and possibly the best the Gamecube has EVER seen) and has been so highly regarded it has got a special Wii edition. So there’s no excuse not to own it. 10/10, an utter classic!!!
Resident Evil 5 (Late 2008)
And so we come to the forthcoming Resi 5, the next game in the canon series. All I can say so far "OMFG IT PWNZ ME GLAAARGH!" in as much as I am very looking forward to this game, yes? English be escaping me...
ahem Anyway, bask in the glory that is the new trailer for Resident Evil 5 which should be out late 2008 on the PS3 (and possibly the X-Box 360) But not the Wii (narf narf narf):
“What about the Survivor games?”
Ok, I’ll admit it, I’m no fan of the Survivor games. They seem like cheap, unintuitive cash-ins on the popularity of the Canon Series. Replacing Resi’s well known 3rd person formula with a first person light-gun based UI should’ve been great, however, the creation of the games were rushed and thus were released to average responses and reviews.
What’s really sad is why Capcom decided to dabble in the dark arts of light gun arcade games. The same year that the original Resident Evil was released, a fantastic little game was released to arcades world-wide known as House of the Dead. It’s story played shockingly similarly to Resi’s; Laboratory experiment gone wrong, turns unwitting populace into ravenous zombies, male and female protagonists must fight their way out stopping every so often to fight huge monsters with silly names. Then in 1998, the sequel, House of the Dead II was released to universal praise, so Capcom decided to get themselves a piece of the pie.
House of the Dead started purely as a Coinop, later converted to console because it’s what people wanted. It had years in Arcades to get to know what players would like or dislike. Capcom jumped the first part, and released the first Survivor game on the Psone. Unfortunately, because the world was used to the tight controls and adrenaline based action of HOTD, Survivor couldn’t really meet it’s standard. It was rife with bugs, had terrible light-based collision detection, was no fun to play with a controller (as opposed to say Die Hard Trilogy) and was just uninspired in the face of not only HOTD, but also the Canon Resi series.
A further two shoddy sequels were to follow (Survivor 2 and Dead Aim) which while improving vastly on the previous games mediocrity, were still outshined by the HOTD games (House of the Dead III in particular is fantastic, and is still doing the rounds in most European, American and Japanese arcades). However, the Survivor series isn’t totally without hope…
“Is The Umbrella Chronicles any good?”
Yes! Yes it it! Ignore the naysayers of the Interweb. TUC is the latest instalment in the Survivor series, but don’t go running for the bomb shelter just yet, because TUC is awesome, just simply awesome.
Essentially it is a crash-course in Resi history, playing through the back catalogue (or at least the Nintendo catalogue, old Ninty being unusually hardass in the face of the other games on other consoles) of Resi 0, Resi 1, Resi 3 (which was converted to the Gamecube) and a final new chapter about the eventual assault on Umbrella’s main base in Europe. Where it differs from the previous Survivor drivel is in it’s presentation (which is flawless, being based on Resi 0’s graphics engine) it’s fantastic arcade gameplay (thanks no doubt to the Wii’s fantastic infrared set-up) and it’s blazing hardcore difficulty and utterly entertaining co-op mode. The game is so damn good it even got Kenny (an unbeliever) hooked.
And it’s HUGE, the whole game is long and has a literal troth-full of unlockable extras. New levels, new weapons, data files on Resi history, new characters, new FMV’s and everything narrated by the smooth, silky tones of Albert Wesker Esq. Kenny and myself played the co-op through the first two scenarios (0 & 1) and soon found ourselves having played for 4 hours on just the regular levels, not including the prodigious amount of stuff we unlocked with our ‘splodey ways.
Admittedly, stepping back into the old story feels a bit of a jip after Resi 4’s total abandonment of convention. However, TUC totally beefs out the existing stories, and feels like a photo-album of all the great times you had in the previous games (Kenny was literally stunned that I knew the route the game would take through The Mansion Incident, I even shocked myself considering I hadn’t played the original for at least a few years) and as an Arcade style shooter, is fantastic. It even blows poor old HOTD out of the water.
Played with either the Wiimote or the Wii-Zapper, the game is intuitive and snappy, and everything zooms around at a merry old pace. This is an instant improvement on the sluggish mechanics of the previous Survivor games. And it’s really HARD. You may have figured that Kenny and myself are utter gluttons for game-based punishment, and TUC certainly delivers on it’s hardcore promise (The sections in Zero featuring the Eliminators is particularly hardcore
The Umbrella Chronicles is a fantastic game and deserves ranking among the canon series. It also blows the “Wii…Pffft, that’s a console for kiddies” out of the water. It’s gory, scary, adrenaline-fuelled and hard as a concrete turtle in a tank. 9/10 from me!
“Where do the Outbreak games fit in?”
You have no idea how much I was looking forward to Resident Evil: Outbreak. Resi fans rejoiced when it was announced late 2001, as here was our chance to play one of our favourite games alongside each other. It promised dynamic character cooperation, intelligent enemies, a tension-filled outbreak system and a tense, totally new plot. Unfortunately, many of these features weren’t implemented fully or not at all. Although the online features were in the Japanese and US releases of the game, for some galling reason Capcom decided that Europe would be happy without the online features. Instead, we got a single player version of the game, with all the other characters being led by AI programs usually reserved to represent suicidal retards in other games. This was incredibly frustrating, as the online modes apparently made up for the games other failings.
And these failings were quite major. The game played almost exactly like Resident Evil 2 in terms of controls and location (albeit with far superior graphics) and felt slightly archaic compared to the more recent Canon releases. The game was incredibly short, with almost no replay value unless you went online, which wasn’t an option for us unfortunate Europeans. The Outbreak feature were players would become a zombie if killed and be allowed to terrorise their former allies was removed completely. And the AI of the game was shocking, both for the monsters and your computer controlled allies. I had played on the BETA servers, so I was fully aware of how awesome the game could have been, however due to greediness on Capcom’s part, the game was rushed and released far too early, receiving a swathe of poor reviews.
A good feature however was the Limited Communication System (The LCS as it known to players). Essentially the ability to communicate with other players via headset or keyboard was removed, and replaced with a series of preset phrases. These ranges from “Help!” to “Out of ammo”, to nicer phrases such as “Thanks!” and shouting the names of your comrades. This maintained tension in the game because you wouldn’t have some 1337K1D yelling over the system about what noobs you were. Also, because of the terse communication, a well-trained group actually felt like a cohesive unit, and upon successful completion of a scenario the sense of achievement was vast. Another point as well is Outbreak didn’t play like the other games in one long trek, instead being broken up into smaller scenarios that could be played in any order, so Teams could play the levels they liked best as opposed to the whole thing.
And the characters that you could play as were some of the best and most realistic featured in a Resi game thus far. From wise-ass cop Kevin who would serve in the same unit as Leon if the events of Resident Evil 2 hadn’t came to pass or Vietnam Veteran Mark who no works as a security guard, the characters were likeable and functioned well together. Surprisingly the character system had more in common with most modern MMORPG’s than Survival-Horror with the bigger characters taking the brunt of the damage and fighting, while lighter, faster went for necessary items and switches. The AI of the game however was nothing to laugh about, as it was dreadful and took none of the character innate abilities into consideration. Also it would seize items from you, stand taking damage without equipping its weapon and generally react stupidly to every situation imaginable. So online play was pretty much your best bet at having any fun from the game.
Now I had a Japanese login, so I could play online, however I had played the European version and it was completely unacceptable for Capcom to release the game without online features. The entire selling point was the fact that you’d be able to play with your friends online. I had to play with various people who apparently didn’t understand the English phrases in the game and also at crazy times of the day just to get a go of the bloody thing. Capcom realised it’s galling error however, and released Outbreak File #2 which was a standalone expansion. Released universally with the online features, Europeans could finally get online with a smoother UI, better AI and far more interesting scenarios (The entire Zoo scenario is still one of Resi’s finest moments). However, this was too little too late, as the popularity of the series waned, and all the servers for the game were eventually shut down. Although it is still possible to LAN play the online modes, the actual online game has effectively vanished off the face of the Earth. Tragically short lived and infuriatingly error-ridden, Resident Evil: Outbreak should have been a classic, but due to Capcom’s greedy money grubbing, became something of an embarrassment in the Resi Saga.
“So, is Resident Evil: Gaiden part of the canon series then?”
Well yes and no. Gaiden was released on the Gameboy Colour in 2001, but not released by Capcom/. Although Capcom of course had their say in it, it was actually created by a smaller company known as 4D. Of course, being on the 8-bit GBC, Gaiden wouldn’t be able to emulate what the previous titles did. It solved this by developing a whole new style of gameplay and a whole new storyline. This made it one of the most interesting (and one of the most infuriating) Resi releases to date.
The story has you playing as Barry Burton (who Resi fans had been dying to have his own game, if only for his terrible dialogue), Leon Kennedy and a mysterious young girl (and yet another squeeze for Leon) Lucia. They are all stuck on a luxury cruiser that has become infected by the T-Virus changing the passengers into zombies and unleashing horrific BOW’s all over the ship. The story for this game is riveting throughout and because it uses text boxes instead of voice acting, the dialogue is incredibly compelling. There are twists and turns, and Leon reveals much about his feelings during Resi 2. However, although the story fits seamlessly into the story arch (better than any of the dreadful Survivor games) because it is by an outsourced company, Capcom decided it wasn’t canon, cruelly labelling it Gaiden (which is Japanese for an anecdotal story or mythic event, not to be taken literally) where the original title was to be Resident Evil: Ocean Outbreak.
However, the gameplay was a shambles, and the only reason I persevered through it was because the story was so good. The top down view while charming gets repetitive, the combat is messy being similar to reaction tests you get on crappy mobile phones, and the only puzzles (a Resi staple I feel) is locating keys to unlock doors which in turn lead to yet more doors. Also, there was no fear in the game, mainly because it’s difficult to be afraid of a small zombie made entirely of pixelly squares (although Kenny shat himself constantly through the original Doom lol). This was because Capcom put pressure on the release to get it out early so it wouldn’t impact on the popularity of the Capcom-crafted Zero the following year. It does seem that when Capcom rush the Resi releases ( Gaiden, Outbreak, Survivor et al) they are generally considered rubbish. So Gaiden, interesting concept, terrible game, fantastic story! A good one for completists.
“Where does Dino Crisis Fit in?”
Now some people will of course claim that the Dino Crisis series doesn’t link to the Resident Evil series at all, that the two games are completely separate entities. Well to those people I say bollocks. The Dino Crisis series (particularly the first game) totally fit in with the Resi saga.
For starters, the original Crisis game, you find multiple packaging crates sprayed with the famous UMB logo (Umbrella’s shipping logo), and also find various chemicals in the lab sections, one bearing the title V-Jolt (also known as UMB No. 16, a serum developed by Umbrella to neutralise hostile plants and fungi) and the Female lead character, Regina, could actually unlock Jill’s outfit from Resi 1 as an Easter egg. Also, the weapon similarities are quite stunning, as is the general gameplay style. Dino Crisis could quite easily be Resident Evil’s smaller, dumber sibling and therefore warrants a mention in the saga. Not only that, but it also got it’s own horrible Survivor spin-off much like its parent titles. Not as good as Resi, but worth a look for the true series completist.
“Where does the Resident Evil Movies Fit In?”
The quick and easy answer is that they don’t, full stop! As well as being the Cinema equivalent of nutty excrement, they also take the mythos that the series had crafted thus far, and watered it down to the point it was translucent. It genuinely is the sound of Company bigwigs rubbing their hands together over the amount of money they know they are going to siphon out of the nu-metal kiddies who make up the Resi movies fanbase. Now I know it’s no big thing saying that Resident Evil as a whole is guilty of some of the worse script-based crimes known to man, but the story, acting and production of these three films is utterly laughable. Characters fro the games would pop up randomly, and despite the fact that we know they can handle themselves, become arm-flailing retards that need saving from Milla “I’m the freaking genetic messiah and a serious actress” Johovovich. She’s an ex-Umbrella drone, oh and one of their most powerful BOW weapons, oh and also she has hardcore military training, oh and she is essential to the survival of mankind…Resi has made some outrageous story leaps, but this just takes the proverbial biscuits and shoves it up the fan’s asses. Utter garbage! In fact, they would have been better done like this;
However, not all visual media and film linked to the Resi series is as poor as the major motion pictures. Released only in Japan is the fantastic Resident Evil Executor 4D, a fantastic mini-feature composed entirely in CGI. Unlike the films, it links perfectly into the existing story arc and is gory, violent, a bit disturbing and tension-filled (all the things that the Resi movies weren’t, despite featuring the vaginal fuzz of Milla Johovovich)> Now as most folk haven’t seen it before, I have included the whole thing here for you all to watch (cause I’m nice like that) in two parts. Because it’s from You Tube there is a slight overlap in the sequences, but still thoroughly enjoyable! Have a watch;
Resident Evil: Executor Part 1
Resident Evil: Executor Part 2
Now for something really special! Capcom have decided to produce an entirely CGI motion picture based on the actual story arc (w00t) featuring Leon and Claire after the events of Resident Evil 2. This actually gave me a seizure when I saw it I was that excited. So, without further stalling for time, I give you the trailer for Resident Evil: Degeneration:
DUDE YOUR PAGE IS AWESOME, ITZ ABOUT TIME SOMEONE MADE A PAGE FOR SURVIVAL HORROR GAMERS INSTEAD JUST THOSE OTHER GAMES (HALO, GEARS OF WAR ETC.) GLAD TO SEE I MADE THE TOPS LIST ILL RETURN THE FAVOR
I know it probably doesn't mean much coming from me but I think this is absoultely staggeringly awsome, and it's incredible just how much knowledge you packed into it. Seriously, it makes me want to play the first few resident evil games even though I ALREADY KNOW I HATE THEM!
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