Resident Evil

Resident Evil

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It was hard to pin down exactly what Resident Evil was when I first saw it on display in a Target store kiosk. The intro movie hinted at an unholy possibility, almost as if someone were trying to revive the Full Motion Video genre. Equally chilling was the game's questionable voice acting and hamfisted dialogue. Given the quality of the intro, I half expected the game to make a winking reference to its title shortly after the start screen...

Wesker: There it is, Spencer Mansion. There's a legend about this place being cursed...

Jill: What?! Are you suggesting there's some kind of resident evil in those old walls?

Dun DUN DUNNNNNNNN

Astonishingly, this love letter to B-movie plots managed to produce one of the most memorable games of the 32-bit, CD-driven generation. Scooby Doo this was not. Filled with a slew of seemingly harmless (but usually fatal) traps and some top notch cutscenes, Resident Evil enticed players to bear with tedious fetch-a-part puzzles to unravel the secret behind the gloomy old manor. Oh, and I guess a few people out there kind of cared about finding the remains of the BRAVO team and rescuing the rest of the STARS members.

But really, this game is remembered for its ability to toss actual fright into the heart of rugged gamers everywhere. Case in point, the infamous hallway dog scene, where a quiet corridor turns into a mad dash for safety as rabid zombie dogs come crashing through some conveniently placed windows. (Yes, I played that part in front of the Target kiosk I mentioned earlier, and yes, I jumped like a little girl. In public.)

While the original may be dated and blocky, the Gamecube Remake is a fantastic bit of work that really expands on the strength of the old Resident Evil storyline and gameplay. One of the biggest differences between it and the PSone game? It's actually dark. Pick it up, if only to learn about the RE-universe's greatest tragedy: the story of Lisa Trevor

A certain spooky time of the year has descended upon us - a time when wind whistles through the dead of night and homes creak ominously in the dark. For this reason Resident Evil, a bio-shockingly good scare, is our Classic Game of the Week! Fire it up, if you dare, and marvel at how far production values have come.

Comments

I'm a Silent Hill man, myself. I prefer the creeping dread, psychological horror and the subtle wrongness of the monster animations. The second one is actually the best of the series.

Hans

I'm so cool, I owned this game in the original PSX long box:

IMAGE(http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2006/08/residentevillongbox.jpg)

I'm always glad when people remember to note that this was a B-movie send up. In that light, I'm willing to forgive the dialog and voice acting; it was, at least originally, SUPPOSED to be cheesy. (I think. I hope.)

I am really cheesed that none of the Resident Evil GameCube remakes removed the need for typewriter ribbons to save the game. As someone who has to play in short spurts sometimes, it's the only thing that has kept me from playing them all.

*Legion* wrote:

I'm so cool, I owned this game in the original PSX long box:

IMAGE(http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2006/08/residentevillongbox.jpg)

Ah, those original boxes bring back some good memories.

"Wesker!"

Resident Evil was an awesome game for its time. One of those games that you just never forget.

That game sold me on PS. Throw in FF7 and Soul Blade(Edge) and you have why my grades were so bad that year!

I bought the RE remake for the Gamecube to see what the fuss was all about. After playing a chunk of it, I still don't know what the fuss is all about.

The problem, I think, was my inability to get over my own gaming hangups. When I see enemies, my first inclination is to kill them, not to run away. But the fact that you get something like 12 bullets for the whole game mean you can't kill much of anything, and anyway they just get back up when you leave the room. For some reason I couldn't make the "set fire to them" thing work. They just woke up when I knelt down to burn them, and I had to spend a knife-- which you can only use once!-- to get away.

The controls really thwarted me too. It's difficult to run away from zombie dobermans when you steer like a Reanult FT dipped in crazy glue.

There's no denying it's a creepy game, with plenty of atmosphere and "boo!" moments. But it just wouldn't click for me. Maybe I'm just not cut out for survival/horror games.

"Barry? Where's Barry?"

doubtingthomas396 wrote:

The controls really thwarted me too. It's difficult to run away from zombie dobermans when you steer like a Reanult FT dipped in crazy glue.

That was roughly my experience. I tried to like the remake on the GC, but the tank controls for the player were just terrible. Combined with fixed camera angles that never actually showed anything useful, I never lasted more than 30 minutes before giving up in frutration.

Resident Evil 4 is one of my favourite games of all time, though.

beeporama wrote:

I am really cheesed that none of the Resident Evil GameCube remakes removed the need for typewriter ribbons to save the game. As someone who has to play in short spurts sometimes, it's the only thing that has kept me from playing them all.

? The GC remake of Resident Evil required typewriter ribbons. I remember, because I'd be down to one or two for a long stretches of the game, and frantically hoping I wouldn't die.

I've only ever played the GC remake. Genuinely scary stuff - the dog hallway, definitely, but how about the first time you meet a Crimson Head? Yikes. The later installments just can't compare.

"Here, take this lock pick. I'm sure that you, the master of unlocking, will make use of it."

Mystic Violet wrote:

"Barry? Where's Barry?"

Ah, I've been beaten to my favorite quote. The delivery on those lines was so awful it moves right on over the border into awesome.

When PS1 first came out in the UK I got one along with this, Demolition Derby and Tomb Raider. Adored all 3, this the most tho. I recently played (and completed!) the DS version.

I am playing through this for the first time on my DS and I am enjoying it immensely. I wish that they would port RE 2.

There is a british comedy show called Spaced that has a episode that features RE, bad dialog and all. Simon Pegg was the star of the show and Edgar White was the head writer. The episode in question was the seed for Shawn of the Dead.

I remember cracking up with the sheer number of times the line "what is it?" was used...

Scary game though.

"What is it?"

KaterinLHC wrote:
beeporama wrote:

I am really cheesed that none of the Resident Evil GameCube remakes removed the need for typewriter ribbons to save the game. As someone who has to play in short spurts sometimes, it's the only thing that has kept me from playing them all.

? The GC remake of Resident Evil required typewriter ribbons.

Sorry, confusing double negative on my part. I know typewriter ribbons were required, AND I HATED IT.

Dead Space has shown me that a game can be scary and entertaining enough with just the threat of being sent back a few minutes. Give me unlimited saves. Leave in a "hardcore mode" with the ribbons, if you must.

Hmm, I wonder if there's some kind of GameCube cheat device...