Resident Evil 20th Anniversary: Looking Back
Ah.. Resident Evil, or Biohazard as it's known in Japan, the
godfather of survival horror. Resident Evil has seen many twists over its 20-year
life-span, from a highly successful series to spin-offs, movies, and an endless
supplies of merchandise. Through buying a GameCube and having a subscription to
Official Nintendo Magazine I was 11-years old when I got into gaming. I had had
many memories with PlayStation beforehand too but it was only when I got a Wii,
I noticed the presence of what would be one of my favorite games ever.
Resident Evil 4 was released in 2004 on the GameCube and in
2007 it was ported to the Wii. I had gotten a 2nd hand copy, from the now
missed Gamestation, and I was first introduced to survival horror. I had never
played a game quite like it and with the motion controls (open for debate) made
for what I consider the most streamlined version of the classic. I found the
atmosphere so overwhelming that I had to stop playing, I was genuinely scared every
time I heard the dead mechanical beating footsteps of the village folk
ominously heading my way.
Eventually, I was drawn back to the game with morbid
curiosity, determined to face my fears and uncover what lay hidden further into
the game. The chainsaw wielding sack men, the parasite bursting villagers, the
creepy chants from the priests to name a few, painted a picture for me. I've
always had a love for horror films and seeing different aspects of the genre
come to life was exciting! It was unlike any game I had ever played. There's so
much I could say about the game but I couldn't do it justice, but it makes me
happy every time I replay through Resi 4 and can still have a blast with it
years later.
I had moved on after unlocking every character on Mercenaries
mode and playing it countless times and went to another shop which sadly isn't
around anymore, Chips. I bought the Resident Evil remake on GameCube which I
was always aware of but couldn't find a copy; this was before I was internet
savvy and able to purchase things online. I had previously read about its tank-like
controls, scary Crimson Heads and beautiful pre-rendered backgrounds. I had a knowledge
and great respect to the series' characters, despite never playing the games,
so I felt more confident when I got into it.
"Two discs? No way!", I thought when I first
opened it up, I hadn’t seen a multi-disc game since Final Fantasy VII on the
PS1! I felt like this was going to be a massive game that would take ages to
beat. But when I started playing, it took me a while to get used to the
controls, and being an impatient teen at the time, the novelty started to wear
off the more I kept backtracking not knowing what to do next. This isn't to say
I didn't like the game, I loved it, I just didn't realize how much of a leap
Resident Evil had made to the action-focused gameplay of Resi 4.
I still can't remember to this day, but I eventually stopped
playing it, probably due to school or other games I bought which interested me
more. Months later, I got back to it. However, I realized a great flaw with its
design; you can't leave Resident Evil game for too long or you will forget what
you were doing in the first place. I still have fond memories of it don’t get
me wrong, how satisfying it was to get a head-shot or unlocking a new section of
the Spencer Estate, they were good times. I even dabbled with Code: Veronica X
on the PS2 but felt really lost and unsure what to do even in its early stages.
It is said that it's early game is harder compared to the later game but I've
yet to get back into it. Maybe someday...
Among playing Resi 4 and Remake, I remember seeing the
first Resident Evil film and I'll keep it brief since someone I know very much
likes it and happens to be working on this website. I bloody hate it. Sure, you
could say it stands up as a competent action horror by itself but it's called
Resident Evil. I might do a video about why I don't like them as a Resi fan one
day but these are just mere opinions.
A few years passed and I've expanded my games collection and
overall knowledge for various series’ and one day a friend offered to buy me
Resident Evil 5. I wasn't keen at first after hearing about its flawed buddy
system and wider criticism but I accepted the offer. He just needed a co-op
partner, it turns out… Typical. And so I was player two, having my hand held
all the way through the campaign. I eventually grew to like it and wasn't
bothered by its emphasis on action or daft plot since I was playing a game with
a buddy and we were laughing at its stupidity. I enjoyed playing with him so
much, I ended up buying the Gold Edition with all the added DLC to play the
extra bits and bobs.
I'm probably the 0.00001% of people who actually likes the
Wii and found Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles 2nd hand (every game I bought
at the time was 2nd hand come to think of it), and really enjoyed it. This was
the game that introduced me to the story lines of 0 and 3, with 2 being used for
Darkside Chronicles which I've yet to play. It was an on-rails shooter which
was much deeper than your standard arcade. You can upgrade weapons, had
branching paths and most importantly, kept most of the assets of the Resi
series mixed in with extra zombies and gunfire. I highly recommend it to any
fan or anyone who particularly likes on-rail shooters.
So I'll admit, I didn't follow the series too closely, I
didn’t play them in order, I didn’t play them all, but its still had an impact
on me through enjoying my favorite genre of film in video game form. I
remember playing Dead Space 1 and 2 over and over to relive that familiar
happiness I had with Resi 4. I went into
a craze of buying PS1 games in the end though, setting out to get the original
trilogy and finally play them and It wasn't long before I did.
Many thanks to OctoberHaywire for sharing their experiences
with the Resident Evil franchise, on this, Resident Evil’s 20th
anniversary.
