I started with the Resident Evil series back in 2005, with the release of RE4. Since then, I've played every new mainline installment: RE5, Revelations, RE6, Revelations 2. I've also played REmake and Zero, and several spinoffs (the Chronicles games and Mercenaries 3D).
But this left a few gaping holes in my history most notably RE2. I watched my friend play it on the N64, back in the day, but I hadn't gotten around to playing it myself until now. To be honest, I was skeptical I'd enjoy it. I thought it would feel unbearably dated, and part of me doubted the fans could be trusted. Surely they were blinded by nostalgia!
Then the PSN sale came along. At the urging of RE-GAF ("Best fans ever!"), I picked up RE2 and decided to finally give it a shot. Ironically, it was the RE2 scenario in a spinoff title (Darkside Chronicles) that had me intrigued. I also picked up RE3: Nemesis, which I hope to play next, and Code Veronica X.
So how does this 1998 PSX title hold up in 2015 for a first-timer with no nostalgia?
The answer: Extremely well! In fact, this is one of my new favorite titles. I beat Claire Scenario A and then Leon Scenario B. I enjoyed every second.
I think there are several factors that make this game timeless to the point that I didn't even think of its age while playing:
1) Punchy arcade quality: Man, this game has zip! The characters move with a nimbleness that just wasn't there in REmake or Zero. Despite the lack of a 180-degree quick turn, you can skirt around enemies with relative ease.
Better yet, the game gives you abundant ammo so you can stand your ground and shoot every enemy you meet. By the end of each scenario, I had killed nearly every enemy in the game, with plenty of ammo to spare. Shooting enemies is super-satisfying, too. There's great feedback, with the pixelated bits of flesh and blood scattering everywhere, or fire enveloping zombies, or legs exploding into meaty chunks, leaving upper torsos to crawl after you. To my surprise, this feels like an action title not far removed from modern-day RE titles.
The game also gives you an abundance of herbs/first aid kits, and ink ribbons to save your game. I beat the game with a surplus of each. In REmake, I reached a point where I ran out of ribbons and had to go through an hour's worth of new areas before finding another ribbon, but in RE2 I beat each scenario with 10+ ribbons remaining and around 20 saves. This is on Normal, the hardest difficulty available at the start.
All of the above means the game isn't very challenging or scary. In fact, I'd say there are moments in RE4/RE5/RE6 that are tougher or scarier than anything in RE2. But the flip side is RE2 has a great sense of forward momentum. It's irresistible to play and nearly impossible to put down since it's SO FUN uncovering new areas and fighting the monsters therein.
2) Super-tight design and perfect pacing: Of course, you still have limited inventory space, and you rely on magic boxes to store extra items. Thankfully, you never have to backtrack far to reach one of these boxes. And these boxes are often near a typewriter, which means you don't have to backtrack far to save, either. This ensures that the game never becomes tedious. Everything feels purposely placed for optimal flow, including a variety of shortcuts.
The game is framed around a series of satisfying tasks, in a maze-like setting that opens up as you collect key items. The game strikes the perfect balance where I can organize everything neatly in my mind: Where I've been and what I've seen; where I can go next, and what I can do there.
At any time, I had one, two, or three routes to explore, so simple process of elimination would reveal the way forward. And items of interest are spaced out just right, so that I could remember them for later. All of this made for brisk pacing, unraveling the police department and other locations like clockwork.
The half-dozen or so puzzles were simple, but satisfying. The real joy, however, is running back and forth, figuring out what goes where, opening new areas, laying waste to enemies and scavenging for supplies. I almost always knew where I needed to take each item, and I was driven by curiosity of what was next. Now that I know all of the game's secrets, I'm thinking of how I could go through the game more efficiently. This is a hallmark of great design.
3) Strong art direction and sound design: It goes without saying that the low-resolution backdrops look soft on an HDTV. However, the benefit of fixed camera angles and pre-rendered environments is the artist can frame the composition of each scene for maximum impact. There's a lot of detail crammed into each scene, especially the exterior environments with their litter and graffiti.
I must also commend the game's vibrant use of color. The game has a neon-saturated look that pops off the screen. For example, the red brick walls in the back alleys contrast against the green fire escapes and bright yellow graffiti. I can vividly remember every area in the game equal parts familiarity after visiting them so many times, and art direction that creates a strong sense of place with its color and attention to detail.
The sound design is also impressive. The breathy moans of a licker offscreen; the shuffling feet of a zombie; the skittering legs of spiders; long stretches of silence, and the sounds of the night distant inhuman cries mixed with the howling wind when you step outside.
I was also surprised by the strong soundtrack. The music here feels like something out of a classic monster movie, especially the main theme, associated with Birkin and the lobby of the RPD: "DOO, da DOO / do da do da / DOO, da DOO." Other favorites are the theme that plays during Mr. X's final form, and the save room theme.
The FMV cutscenes are probably the most dated element, with characters that look odd. Claire's wooden face, and Leon's sharp cheekbones and puckered lips always make me laugh. Endearingly bad!
The in-game models look primitive, but they're clean and colorful and convey a fair bit with body language. They're quite detailed, especially for the time, which I imagine is made possible by the use of pre-rendered backdrops freeing up resources.
Oh, and the voice acting is amateur hour stuff, eliciting laughs at every cutscene. It added to my enjoyment in a Tommy Wiseau sort of way. ;-)
All that being said, I found the tale engrossing. You have two monsters that appear at scripted moments the ever-evolving G, and Mr. X as well as characters like Sherry and Ada that come and go. Taking control of those characters at key moments, and occasionally escorting them mixed things up nicely. It was also intriguing to see how decisions in the first scenario affected the second scenario. And going through the RPD in reverse order was fantastic.
In short, I adore this game. Man, between this, Ocarina of Time, Metal Gear Solid, Half-Life and more, 1998 was one hell of a year for games, wasn't it?
Onwards to RE3!
