So, there's a new "new" version of Capcom's "Resident Evil" out known as "Resident Evil Remastered." This latest version is remake/update of the remake/update that came out for the almighty Gamecube in 2002. Sadly, I never played the Gamecube remake. I owned it, but I never got to play it. I was newly married at that time and we had four kids aged 11 to 4 between us, so my priorities were elsewhere at that time. As I recall, I let my son trade it in to get one of the newest Pokemon games that came out a few months later. That's what Dad's do in this day and age, I guess. They make video game sacrifices to the Pocket Monster gods.
The first "Resident Evil" (known as "Biohazard" in Japan) for the original PlayStation is a game that is near and dear to me. The year was 1996 when I bought it, and I was living in a rather large, suburban farmhouse with a couple friends while working at the local newspaper. My roommate Rob and I played the holy bejesus out of "Resident Evil" for the majority of '96. We had no idea what the hell "survival horror" was, but it sounded wicked, so we definitely wanted to take a crack at it being robust 20-somethings and all. We would take turns playing various parts: Rob would play the more exploratory/puzzle parts, and I would play the more action oriented/shooting parts. Rob could never really get the gist of the "human tank" control scheme (i.e. due the limitations of the original PS1 controller, the characters controlled like tanks, pivoting on fixed positions to aim and shoot) and became flustered when the faster moving creatures were lurking about trying their damnedest to rip our faces off, but he was excellent at solving the oddly obscure puzzles the game threw your way from time to time.
"Resident Evil" was state-of-the-art tech in 1996 and it would regularly draw crowds in my room when we would have people over for parties and the like. The six or seven rather intoxicated people that would gather 'round my (large for the time) 40" screen would cheer, jump, and scream along with us as we delved further and further into that accursed mansion. Those were good, good times.
And, as I recall, when Rob and I finished the game together for the first time we almost immediately started another game right back at the beginning...on the harder difficulty setting of course.
I must admit that I haven't really played a "Resident Evil" game since the superb "Resident Evil 4" came out for the Gamecube in 2005. "RE4"is one if my favorite games of all time, and I've already explained my affections for the original game, so you can understand my trepidation in giving this "Remastered" version a go. But strangely, I was drawn to it. Something was compelling me to buy it and play it...and no, it wasn't some strange T-virus infection.
So, I pulled the trigger and bought it the other day. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised how good this game is, just how damn beautiful it looks on the PC, and how much I am enjoying it all over again. The "refined" controls are still weird and take some time to get used to (and they are nowhere near as elegant as what Capcom came up with for "RE4") but, beyond that, I am truly enjoying my time back in Raccoon City. It's also rather amazing to me just how much I recall about the story and the puzzles. I mean, it all came back to me like a flash, and I'm kind of blowing through the game as I write this. I guess a game experience this awesome just sticks in your memory banks and refuses to leave even after 19 years.
There is one thing that I don't recall in the first game. It's this (kind of NSFW). I definitely don't recall Jill's polygonal breasts having that kind of...buoyancy... in the 1996 version. Times they are a changin'.
If you were a fan of the original "Resident Evil" or you just like quality, survival horror games in general, then check out "Resident Evil Remastered." It's only $20 and it's out now for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
