Resident Evil
Platforms: Playstation, Saturn, PC
Release Dates: 1996, 1997, 1997 (Respectively)
The survival horror game that started it all and no doubt gave gamers some of their first video game frights. While not being the first survival horror title ever, (that award goes to Alone in the Dark) Resident Evil introduced gamers to their worst nightmares, and literally pitted them to survive against flesh eating zombies and other horrendous creatures.
You played as Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, members of a special tactics force – S.T.A.R.S., who have been sent to investigate the disappearance of BRAVO team, in the outskirts of Racoon city forest. Upon arriving they are attacked by strange animals, intent in ripping them to shreds and decide to seek refuge in an abandoned mansion. What they find inside however, is the start of their nightmare as they encountered hungry zombies hell bent on taking a bite out of their living flesh.
Resident Evil forced players to survive the horrors of the mansion while collecting items and solving puzzles to advance. The game established a chilling atmosphere, which kept players on their toes, as they never knew what was behind the next door.
Resident Evil
Resident Evil: Director’s Cut
Platform: Playstation
Release Date: 1997
The Director’s Cut of the original Resident Evil. Featuring more gore than the original and having every item positioned in new places, the Director’s Cut gave the raw amounts of good ole blood splattering that the game desperately needed.
Resident Evil 2
Platforms: Playstation, Nintendo 64, PC, Dreamcast, Gamecube
Release Dates: 1997, 1999, 1999, 2000, 2003
Resident Evil 2 expanded the features that made the first game great and added a whole lot more. Playing over 2 discs, Resident Evil 2 was not only vastly longer than the original, but could also be played through multiple times, as the two characters featured in the game, Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield followed alternative paths and collected different weapons and items. Following its predecessor, Resident Evil 2 had players fighting hordes of undead, collecting convenient placed items, and solving a mass number of puzzles.
Taking place inside Racoon city police station, Resident Evil 2 introduced updated visuals, new enemies, (who can't forget the Licker sequence) a new array of weapons and, most importantly, a huge amount of gore. Resident Evil 2 is still regarded by some as the best game in the series and definitely was a huge update of the original.
Resident Evil 2
Resident Evil 2: Dual Shock Edition
Platform: Playstation
Release Date: 1998
Exactly the same as the original Resident Evil 2, except with the added feature to support dual shock controls. Indeed, it was worth bringing out another version of this game for this feature alone…
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis
platforms: Playstation, Dreamcast, PC, Gamecube
Release Dates: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003
Taking place twenty-four hours before the events of Resident Evil 2, and twenty-four hours after, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis placed you once again in role of Jill Valentine attempting to escape Racoon city once and for all. Establishing some new features such as the ability to create different types of ammunition out of gunpowder and giving Jill the capabilities to roll, sidestep and dodge from enemy attacks, Resident Evil 3 also introduced the Nemesis, a sickening, twisted creature that would stalk your every move and could appear for the kill at any moment.
The game played predominantly as the previous games in series, conserving ammo, collecting strangely placed items and solving puzzles (including the crate puzzle that you would come to expect by now) were all essential elements in the game. Although shorter than its precursor, Resident Evil 3 produced some of the best scares yet, and really was a true survivor-horror with the inclusion of the Nemesis.
Resident Evil: Survivor
Platforms: Playstation, PC
Release Dates: 2000, 2002
Resident Evil: Survivor became the first game in the series to forgo the third-person perspective and become a gun survival shooter. Unlike House of the Dead, Survivor was not a shooter on rails and regrettably the game suffered from serious control issues, as the player had to manage moving and firing at the same time, with the one gun. The game included the infamous enemies of the Resident Evil series and even had the collect-the-key-to-open-the-door puzzles, but ultimately this blend of gameplay fell short and Survivor became one game the series could have done without.
Resident Evil Code: Veronica (X)
Platforms: Dreamcast, Playstation 2, Gamecube
Release Dates: 2000, 2001, 2003
The first Resident Evil game to appear on a next generation console, Code: Veronica incorporated new revised visuals, and looked better than ever. Following the endeavours of Claire Redfield, Code: Veronica was a beast of a game, and was one of the longest yet. Favourite weapons from the pervious games were there for the taking, while new dual type weapons were introduced. The emergency dodge manoeuvres and ammo creation from Resident Evil 3: Nemesis however, was stripped from the gameplay. The plot of Code: Veronica was even more twisted then previous games and featured some very memorable characters. (Alfred anyone?)
Resident Evil Gaiden
Platform: Gameboy Colour
Release Date: 2001
The only Resident Evil title that ever appeared on the Gameboy Colour, Gaiden interestingly took place on a cruise ship. In this handheld incarnation, you played as Barry Burton sent to investigate the disappearance of Leon Kennedy, a former member of the Racoon Police Department and one of the two playable characters featured in Resident Evil 2. Eventually Barry and Leon meet up and have to survive the horrors of the ship. While being the first handheld version of Resident Evil, Gaiden became pretty much your straight action game on Gameboy that integrated story, enemy and item elements from the Resident Evil franchise. It was also ugly as hell too, but what did you expect from the Gameboy Colour…
Resident Evil Gaiden
Resident Evil (Remake)
Platform: Gamecube
Release Date: 2002
Unlike the ports of the other Resident Evil games, which simply envisaged improved graphics, Resident Evil for the Gamecube was a near complete make over. The game included a new shadow and lighting system, new story elements and twists, defensive weapons for both Chris and Jill and the introduction of the crimson head zombies, which were literally “super” zombies with the ability breathe acid. All the improved movement mechanics were also include such as the quick turn, however the gameplay elements mostly remained the same as the first game, which came out a good six years ago. Resident Evil for the Gamecube wasn’t just an outstanding remake, but also proved Nintendo could handle a mature game license.
For PALGN's review of Resident Evil, click here.
Resident Evil Remake
Resident Evil Zero
Platform: Gamecube
Release Date: 2002
Resident Evil Zero was the official prequel to the original game and included some new gameplay elements. In Zero, you played as Rebecca Chamber and the convict Billy Coen, who needed to work together to survive, (the original odd couple) and you, could switch between the two characters on the fly. Both characters had different skills and abilities, so switching between the two became a must through out the course of the game. The other new gameplay element was the capability to drop off items anywhere in the environment, instead of using the item chest.
For PALGN's review of Resident Evil Zero, click here.
Resident Evil Survivor 2: Code Veronica
Platform: Playstation 2
Release Date: 2002
The second light-gun shooting game to grace us and this time was based around Code: Veronica’s environments and timeline. Continuing with the first survivor’s theme and control method, Resident Evil Survivor 2: Code Veronica although an improvement over the original, still suffered from some control issues. Still, the updated graphics of the Playstation 2 helped immensely and the game become a mediocre shooter.
Resident Evil Survivor 2: Code Veronica
Resident Evil: Dead Aim
Platform: Playstation 2
Release Date: 2003
Resident Evil: Dead Aim, was the next light-gun shooter in the Resident Evil universe, and so far has been the best one yet. Similarly to Resident Evil Gaiden, Dead Aim takes place on a cruise ship with a horde of nasty zombies. The mechanics of the other gun survivor’s games was still included but this time around a small leap was made in the control mechanics. Dead Aim switched between first-person perspectives to third-person, when not firing your gun. While still not the outstanding shooter of the century, Dead Aim was actually playable this time around and was a great little shooting title, which Resident Evil fans could appreciate.
For PALGN's review of Resident Evil: Dead Aim, click here.
Resident Evil Outbreak
Platform: Playstation 2
Release Date: 2004
Capcom had a different idea with Resident Outbreak than your traditional Resident Evil game and decided to try to make an online experience where players had to work together and try to survive the nightmares of Racoon City. Allowing up to four players online, Outbreak followed the basic principles of the series, but allowed the player to choose one out of eight ordinary Racoon citizens. Offline, the artificial intelligence controlled your allies, while online you had to struggle with working together using nothing but in-game phrases (as there was no headset support) so in the end the game failed in creating a truly multi-player survival game. The control system also differed from the customary series, and for once you could simply push the analog stick in the direction you wanted to go, and because Outbreak was an online game, the action never paused even when you were stumbling around inside your inventory or checking through note files.
Resident Evil 4
Platform: Gamecube, Playstation 2
Release Date: 2005, 2005
The next big title in the Resident Evil series approaches and will be realeased on the Nintendo Gamecube, followed by the Playstation 2 sometime later next year. Resident Evil 4 looks like it may revolutionize the stale series and truly bring us something special to get us scared all over again. You’ll play as Leon Kennedy once again, but this time around the game world will be right open and the action can take place in three different perspectives - for ultimate camera control. Leon will also be able to shoot specific body parts of enemies, thanks to the new aiming system. Enemies will be human-like, and will now hunt Leon in packs.
For PALGN's preview of Resident Evil 4, click here.
Resident Evil 4
Resident Evil Outbreak File #2
Platform: Playstation 2
Release Date: 2005
Outbreak File #2 will follow the same route as its predecessor and pit eight ordinary everyday people in all new horrific scenarios. Resident Evil Outbreak File #2 will allow four players online, once again, and while offline you will pair up with two artificial intelligence-controlled characters. Outbreak #2 looks like it will follow the original Outbreak formula so expect more multi-player zombie action.
Resident Evil Timeline
Resident Evil: Playstation - 1996
Resident Evil: Saturn - 1997
Resident Evil: PC - 1997
Resident Evil: Director's Cut: Playstation - 1997
Resident Evil 2: Playstation - 1997
Resident Evil 2: Dual Shock Edition: Playstation - 1998
Resident Evil 2: PC - 1999
Resident Evil 2: Nintendo 64 - 1999
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis: Playstation - 1999
Resident Evil: Survivor: Playstation - 2000
Resident Evil 2: Dreamcast - 2000
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis: Dreamcast - 2000
Resident Evil Code: Veronica: Dreamcast - 2000
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis: PC - 2001
Resident Evil Code: Veronica X: Playstation 2 - 2001
Resident Evil Gaiden: Gameboy Colour - 2001
Resident Evil Survivor 2: Code Veronica: Playstation 2 - 2002
Resident Evil (Remake): Gamecube - 2002
Resident Evil 0: Gamecube - 2002
Resident Evil: Survivor: PC - 2002
Resident Evil 2: Gamecube - 2003
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis: Gamecube - 2003
Resident Evil Code: Veronica X: Gamecube - 2003
Resident Evil: Dead Aim: Playstation 2 - 2003
Resident Evil Outbreak: Playstation 2 - 2004
Resident Evil 4: Gamecube - 2005
Resident Evil Outbreak File #2: Playstation 2 - 2005
Resident Evil 4: Playstation 2 - 2005
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