I'm playing all the Resident Evils for the first time in release order

Jinroh · May 7, 2018

RE0 is solid, it's just that item management is a nightmare. You constantly have to go back and forth to pick up some items from one place and drop them in another place in order to not leave them behind as you advance through the game. You start to really hate the lack of inventory space.

Charlouie Jonesman · May 7, 2018

RE0 is boring imo, but at least it's nowhere near as big as CV was.

The n00b Avenger · May 7, 2018

It's the only classic RE game I couldn't finish so I guess I can't really say anything about the overall package.

What I played I disliked enough to drop which is more than I can say for all the others.

Deleted member 543 · May 7, 2018

Zero is shorter than CV but it's still an absolute slog to get through. If it had played exactly like the older games it probably would have been more fun, but everything they added to try to distinguish it diminishes the experience.

Dreamboum · May 7, 2018

Zero is far more of a slog than CV because nothing worthwhile happens after the train and you still get to backtrack the fuck up.

Jackpot · May 7, 2018

Zero showers you in pistol ammo and ink ribbons because of the lack of item chests. You'll end up dumping them in nexus points - usually the same room as a typewriter - just like where you would put an item chest.

Kromeo · May 7, 2018

0 I always use the main hall as an item room then move them to the other end of the facility when you leave it, I like the game but that was such a shit design

Blade24070 · May 7, 2018

I thoroughly enjoyed RE0 though the train was kind of the peak in terms of areas. Not to diminish the rest of the game which is gorgeous (my favorite being the chapel), but the train was the most original and inventive area.

As for REmake, I played it and was blown away by the aquatic ring. So I looked up the original game out of curiosity and laughed, so lame in the original. Probably the biggest improvement over the original imo.

Pixel Grotto · May 8, 2018

Started RE Zero. I'm approaching this one with a careful amount of trepidation, mostly due to the mixed opinions I've seen on here. However, my initial impressions are quite positive! (Though I also felt that way about Code Veronica, so we'll see how things go.)

First off I'm happy to play as Rebecca, since I find her cute, and I think I'm more forgiving of prequels than most people. (I have a much higher tolerance of Star Wars episodes 1-3 than anyone else I know.) So I'm sorta looking forward to seeing how this game manages to portray some big crazy adventure that Rebecca apparently had before Spencer Mansion and didn't tell anyone about, and I wanna know more about those poor Bravo team guys, who really got the short end of the stick. Also, I'm surprised by how much I like Billy. He reminds me of Steve from Code Veronica if Steve weren't such a schmuck, and his vibe with Rebecca is fun... But since this is a prequel and he doesn't show up anywhere else I'm already worried about his final fate. =(

I will say this - even if the rest of this game falls to shit, the train segment at the beginning is PHENOMENAL. I honestly found the layout of the cars and the puzzle design downright perfect, and I was sad when it ended. If it were up to me, the whole game would take place on a train, or maybe on separate trains. (If any of ya'll have played The Last Express, a 1997 adventure game by Broderbund, then that's what I'm talking about.) I've just always liked the look and feel of old Orient Express locomotives, and I feel like there's just so much you can do with that kind of setting in a survival horror game. RE Zero accomplishes a lot of that in its beginning hours, and I loved facing zombies who were popping up from seats, dressed in conductor outfits, emerging from train dining car refrigerators, etc etc. Also, the puzzles involving the hookshot and climbing atop the train roof? Excellent! So excellent I can easily overlook the big mutated crab/scorpion, which seemed a tad out of place!

The final puzzle before stopping the train, where both Rebecca and Billy have to split up to use breaks in opposite cars, was also great. The music helped, as well as the fact that I suck at math and had to do calculations (simple ones I know, shhh) under timer pressure. It's right up there with the aqua ring in REmake as one of my tensest moments in the series so far.

As for the lack of item boxes and the partner system... Well, I can see item management potentially becoming a nightmare later down the line, but I've decided to treat any area with a typewriter as a dumping zone for stuff, so we'll see how well that works after a few hours. I do think the partner system is cool mostly because it's been clear from the very first RE that this franchise, despite its origins in creepy survival horror, has always wanted to be a buddy affair. Now, it finally is, so while managing two sets of inventories and a partner's AI is a little much to take in (Billy died at one point because I couldn't switch to him fast enough), I certainly like the idea.

Last but not least I enjoy the soundtrack in Zero very much - the save theme here is my favorite in the series. It's a ridiculously simple piano melody but it kinda fills me with a sense of warmth and lonely calm, which is the right kind of emotion to feel when you're playing these games and stumble into a room with an antique typewriter. Also, I was partially inspired to embark upon this whole Resident Evil series playthrough after I started listening to a compilation of all of the games' save themes on YouTube (I think an ERA thread might have led me to this video, thankya ERA), and Zero's was the first on there.

Anyhow, I've made it into the Training Facility. Perhaps it'll all be downhill from here, but I hope not. Man, that train was so good tho.

Jinroh · May 8, 2018

Outside of item management, I've always loved this game, it looks incredible and even thought the bestiary focuses too much on mutated animals and insects it's still varied and unique. This game is underrated in my opinion. Glad you're having fun with it.

Blade24070 · May 8, 2018

Eliminators are the devil. Leech men too.

Deleted member 18347 · May 8, 2018

rude said:
Objectively best save room music

Man this one theme I can never forget. It's hopeful yet sad... perfect for that purpose.

Also the best intro, other than RE3's Nemesis one, is definitely Outbreak's.

Deleted member 18347 · May 8, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
Started RE Zero. I'm approaching this one with a careful amount of trepidation, mostly due to the mixed opinions I've seen on here. However, my initial impressions are quite positive! (Though I also felt that way about Code Veronica, so we'll see how things go.)

Ignore all opinions about the game. I enjoyed Zero even with all its flaws, but I also enjoyed Code Vernoica so yeah lol.

Going through this thread is such a nostalgia trip. Love the way you're chronicling your journey. Very enjoyable read.

BasilZero · May 8, 2018

I am planning to do something similar except for the fact that I already started with re0 and 5 lol

Gonna do a refresher on those as well

Blade24070 · May 8, 2018

What are you using for screenshots, if you don't mind me asking?

Curufinwe · May 8, 2018

I liked Zero on GC, but not enough to buy the remaster.

Pixel Grotto · May 8, 2018

Blade24070 said:
What are you using for screenshots, if you don't mind me asking?

For the PS1 games, I used Mednafen to take screenshots and for Code Veronica I used Dolphin. All of the other games I'm playing on Steam, so just using the regular screenshot function there.

Resident Evie · May 8, 2018

OP, if you like the train stuff, and you're ever hungry for more of these types of game, you might be interested in checking out Chase The Express, known as Covert Ops: Nuclear Dawn in the US. It's a Playstation 1 Resident Evil clone set entirely on a train, with fixed cameras and lots of backtracking. It's not a *great* game but there's fun to be had if you enjoyed Resident Evil 1-2-3-CV-0 which I think applies to you! There's a few other PSone RE clones worth playing: Countdown Vampires is probably the most egregious in terms of ripping off content, (Barry's voice actor also plays a role!) but I enjoyed it.

Pixel Grotto · May 8, 2018

Resident Evie said:
OP, if you like the train stuff, and you're ever hungry for more of these types of game, you might be interested in checking out Chase The Express, known as Covert Ops: Nuclear Dawn in the US. It's a Playstation 1 Resident Evil clone set entirely on a train, with fixed cameras and lots of backtracking. It's not a *great* game but there's fun to be had if you enjoyed Resident Evil 1-2-3-CV-0 which I think applies to you! There's a few other PSone RE clones worth playing: Countdown Vampires is probably the most egregious in terms of ripping off content, (Barry's voice actor also plays a role!) but I enjoyed it.

Thank you! I see that the Covert Ops train is a modern one, not an antique one (alas!) but I'll research and watch some videos on both today. As far as other RE clones go, I'm also kinda interested in Deep Fear for the Sega Saturn, though I dunno if I'll ever get around to playing it.

Jinroh · May 9, 2018

OP, if you like the train section and enjoy the classic games, you're going to like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dcKEHt9htA

Pixel Grotto · May 9, 2018

Jinroh said:
OP, if you like the train section and enjoy the classic games, you're going to like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dcKEHt9htA

Woahhhhh this is awesome

I had to go on Unseen 64 and do some research... Really interesting that this was supposed to be an N64 exclusive, specifically to support the partner swapping mechanic!

I'm glad that they pushed it onto the Gamecube since the graphics are astounding and I do like how they changed the aesthetic of the train from modern to a little more Gothic. But it's fun to see that an actual "demake" of this existed at one point. I'm assuming the ROM's never been leaked?

This makes we want to go back and dig through my old issues of Nintendo Power to see if there was any mention of this. I feel like there was but I glossed over it at the time.

Superbearded · May 9, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
Thanks to these frustrations, by the time I reached the re-creation of the Spencer Mansion, what I assume was supposed to be a nostalgic moment kinda just washed over me. I was just like, "Oh, okay, it looks like RE1... Meh." It felt sort of pandering, especially when I saw the statue of the woman drawing water.

?
Wait, what? I don't remember this... I'm starting to think I may have missed half a game when I first played RE:CV 10 years ago...
I need to check my savefile.

Jinroh · May 9, 2018

Yeah sadly the build never leaked. But this video shows that Capcom has some builds, the quality seems too good to be old footage.

Pixel Grotto · May 9, 2018

Superbearded said:
?
Wait, what? I don't remember this... I'm starting to think I may have missed half a game when I first played RE:CV 10 years ago...
I need to check my savefile.

Yeah, it's called the "Residence" in the game and is the Ashford home at the top of the prison island where you start at. When you enter it, everything looks like the Spencer Mansion and one room is the exact same with a statue of a woman drawing water. If you push it into a hole, the statue collapses and you can get a map of the area. There are also throwbacks to the tiger statue with the multi-colored eyes in Resident Evil 1, and Claire is even stuck behind the stairs in the lobby of the mansion.

Squaresoft · May 9, 2018

Great project man!

Keep going!

Maybe you can put your scores of each game in the op? Or do you even give scores?

I really wonder how someone now playing all of them in a marathon will rate them

But can you maybe also give some information about your gaming history?
Are you a third person games gamer, have you played other horror survival games like Silent Hill etc

Then we can better place your opinion

Anyway, good job

Pixel Grotto · May 10, 2018

Squaresoft said:
Great project man!

Keep going!

Maybe you can put your scores of each game in the op? Or do you even give scores?

I really wonder how someone now playing all of them in a marathon will rate them

But can you maybe also give some information about your gaming history?
Are you a third person games gamer, have you played other horror survival games like Silent Hill etc

Then we can better place your opinion

Anyway, good job

I don't really like giving scores (which is why I link to my "final thoughts" in the OP instead) but I might do a ranking once I've beaten all the main games, since I believe it'll take some time for me to digest and properly consider which ones I enjoyed the most. So far, though, I like REmake and RE2 the best (about equally, though this may change the more I think about them) then RE1, RE3 and Code Veronica in that order.

As far as my history goes, I like third person games a lot. Big into RPGs and point 'n click adventure games, so it kind of makes sense that I would enjoy survival horror games, but I stayed away from them growing up because horror movies had me shook. That's changed recently, though, so here I am.

Actually the first survival horror franchise I probably beat completely and enjoyed was Parasite Eve, probably because those were also RPGs. I really like those games - even The 3rd Birthday, though the story gets nonsensical.

Interestingly, I'm not much of an FPS person, but that's because I'm more susceptible to motion sickness than many people. It depends on the game - but I suspect that Resident Evil 7, when I get to it, will probably be the most "physically demanding" entry in the series for me.

I haven't played the Silent Hills yet but I plan to once I'm done the Resident Evils :)

Resident Evie · May 10, 2018

OP, please consider making another thread like this for when you play the Silent Hill games! As a lifelong survival horror fan it's fascinating to revisit these games again from someone else's fresh perspective!

Goron2000 · May 10, 2018

I'm enjoying this thread a lot OP and I'm going to be very interested in your opinion on 4. It's a very different game and I'm curious if it holds up for someone that didn't play it when it released. Silent Hill thread would be amazing.

Jinroh · May 10, 2018

OP, if you have time/motivation, maybe once you're done with the main series, give Resident Evil Director's Cut a try with the character you haven't played yet. This remix is RE1 is really good and it would be a solid "nostalgia" trip.

Jackpot · May 10, 2018

Oh yeah, I'd forgotten the train rooftop being used as a graphical bar in the GC era.

Dreamboum · May 10, 2018

Interesting u found Zero save theme to be the best one I feel it to be SO grating especially after the greatness of CV's save theme

Fancy Clown · May 10, 2018

I was never crazy about the train section myself. The atmosphere is cool and the ending puzzle is really good, but I found it to be too tutorialized, and running into a door animation ever 10 feet was kinda annoying.

The best part of zero is the training facility imo. It's a little like a less interesting spencer mansion sure, but that kind of level design is where the classic games shine. It's got a nice grimy baroque atmosphere too, and you don't have to deal with some of the annoying shit that comes with the later areas.

The save theme is definitely one of my favorites as well.

Spinky · May 10, 2018

RE0 totally failed to grab my attention. To this day I've only played about two hours. It's the only one that I haven't gotten into.

daninthemix · May 10, 2018

I've just played through 1, 2 and am on 3 now. I'm reminded how very much I prefer these to the modern ones (4, 5, 6 - haven't played 7). Same thing with Tomb Raider actually.

Pixel Grotto · May 10, 2018

Resident Evie said:
OP, please consider making another thread like this for when you play the Silent Hill games! As a lifelong survival horror fan it's fascinating to revisit these games again from someone else's fresh perspective!

This is the plan, yes! There are a few other Japanese horror franchises I also want to dive into - Clock Tower, Fatal Frame, Dino Crisis and The Evil Within are the priorities. But Silent Hill before all of those first.

Dreamboum said:
Interesting u found Zero save theme to be the best one I feel it to be SO grating especially after the greatness of CV's save theme

I do like the CV theme too, though something about it almost felt too "cheerful" for me when I first heard it. I understand how the Zero theme can be grating since it's basically just 12 piano keys repeated over and over again, but there's a certain underlying melancholy to the notes that resonated with me, I suppose.

Fancy Clown said:
I was never crazy about the train section myself. The atmosphere is cool and the ending puzzle is really good, but I found it to be too tutorialized, and running into a door animation ever 10 feet was kinda annoying.

The best part of zero is the training facility imo. It's a little like a less interesting spencer mansion sure, but that kind of level design is where the classic games shine. It's got a nice grimy baroque atmosphere too, and you don't have to deal with some of the annoying shit that comes with the later areas.

The save theme is definitely one of my favorites as well.

That's good to hear. I'm a little meh on areas that seem like they're already been done in this series, and giant houses filled with puzzles and underground laboratories make up the backbone of RE1, RE2 and Code Veronica, so the train was like a nice breath of fresh air. I agree that the puzzles do work well in these sorts of settings, but just as I've always felt that Zelda dungeons don't have to be all labyrinth temples (one of the most memorable in the series to me has always been Jabu Jabu's Belly, which is in the gut of a giant fish), I feel like RE doesn't necessarily have to be confined to a mansion.

Linkura · May 10, 2018

Oh my god dude, I definitely can't wait to see you play Silent Hill as well. :)

TwistedChemical · May 10, 2018

Resident Evil was the video game that shook my world of video games in general and the first 3 games are easily some of my favorite experiences as my friends and I was just take turns trying to solve puzzles and get through the game as best to our ability.

For me, Resident Evil 0 is when I started to fall off. I remember being surprised Xplay reviewed it 2/5 (if I remember right) and I understood it after playing it. It was around this time I started to think "How on earth are they going to make Wesker with his Matrix powers and interesting boss with this gameplay?"

Resident Evil 2 was and forever will be my favorite game. The familiarity of the streets and the dead city shook me like no other...and the music, the music really fucked with me. I remember not having a memory card and I just blew up the wall to get to the chief. After the cutscene with him I shut the game off because it was too much for me.

Sometimes I'll go on youtube and watch people play these games blind to see if they have the same reactions I had at certain parts but the graphics and gameplay are so dated now that it doesn't do much for people as it did for me when I was younger. To me, it looked like I was in a real world playing a movie. Now, it looks like polygons and muddled messes.

I still love it though. I can't wait to see if the Remake of 2 gets made. Escape from the Lab was such a good song in two. Capcom always had the best end game music moments. Megaman Legends Main Gate music is probably next up.

eXistor · May 10, 2018

I've had 0 since release and literally never even tried to play it. I should make it a point to at least try the game at some point in my life.

werezompire · May 10, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
This is the plan, yes! There are a few other Japanese horror franchises I also want to dive into - Clock Tower, Fatal Frame, Dino Crisis and The Evil Within are the priorities. But Silent Hill before all of those first.

Might I suggest the Siren series as well? It was created by the creator of Silent Hill & is the best of the old-school survival-horror series around IMO. It's a little tough to play the entire series though - Siren 1 is available on PS2 or PS4, the Siren 1 re-imagining is on PS3, but Siren 2 is only available on PS2 and not in all regions (just Asia & Europe, though it'll work on an emulator if you import a disk). Also, it's quite difficult, although they tone things down as the series progresses.

Linkura · May 10, 2018

werezompire said:
Might I suggest the Siren series as well? It was created by the creator of Silent Hill & is the best of the old-school survival-horror series around IMO. It's a little tough to play the entire series though - Siren 1 is available on PS2 or PS4, the Siren 1 re-imagining is on PS3, but Siren 2 is only available on PS2 and not in all regions (just Asia & Europe, though it'll work on an emulator if you import a disk). Also, it's quite difficult, although they tone things down as the series progresses.

After watching supergreatfriend's LP of the original Siren... ehhh, I'm good just watching the LP. Blood Curse was a lot easier to get into. 1 is absurdly obtuse and I'm not sure how you'd get through without a guide without losing your sanity.

Pixel Grotto · May 14, 2018

Was low on time this past week and could only play an hour here and there, but I finally made it through the training facility.

As many of you have said, it kind of is like a wannabe Spencer Mansion and it's certainly a step down from the train IMO as far as interesting environments go. (I have a lot of thoughts on how Capcom kinda fell into a pattern of reusing the same environments in their survival horror games, but I'll get to those in another post.) But I did like how the area was relatively compact and the puzzle design tight, and I continue to like Rebecca and Billy, so overall I'm enjoying the game more than I thought I would.
I really do hate those leech men enemies, though. I wanna call them "Urinal Men" since the first one I met was the one in the "unspeakably filthy" bathroom and they resemble walking masses of sludge poo. They take up a ton of ammo, do a shitload of damage and seem to respawn every time I re-enter an area so whenever I see one I pretty much just run.

Thoughts on other monsters in this game - as ya'll have said, there seem to be way more mutated animals and bugs, and all of them, aside from the leech men - still look kind of "normal" as opposed to the charred and rotting dobermans that are the hellhounds. I don't mind too much since Umbrella was in the business of bioweapons, and it makes sense that their experiments would result in freakish monkeys and giant centipedes. After dealing with all the big spiders and moths of the previous games I can roll with it.

Speaking of the monkeys, I continue to enjoy the partner system and the "two people are required for this" puzzles even though I died as Billy three times when trying to save Rebecca from falling. I forgot where the boiler room was and kept running into the basement room where Rebecca had fallen and those DAMN BABOONS kept gangbanging my face.

The lack of item boxes in Zero is an...odd choice so far. It's not bothering me that much since the backtracking is bearable so far and I'm leaving everything in the same place, but I'm not really sure what the developers' intent was? Perhaps they wanted to encourage swapping junk between your characters via the partner system but I feel like players would have done that just as much if item boxes were around. This is a shot of one section of my training facility lobby, which quickly turned into a dumping ground for stuff. I was also flabbergasted when I was told that I "could not place more items in this area." REALLY?

And as far as the puzzles to get the Umbrella tablets... I was amused at the return of the piano puzzle (Rebecca can't play but Billy can, what a cultured young man who apparently inspired her) and continue to find it funny that BATTERIES are hidden behind walls and treated as sacred objects in all of Racoon City. The animal statue puzzle was one that I had to look up online, btw - dunno if I missed a note somewhere hinting at its solution.

Onwards to the chapel, where I hear there's a giant bat waiting.

Pixel Grotto · May 18, 2018

Finished RE Zero!

I had a good time, moreso than most folks here did, though I do think Capcom dropped the ball in some ways that I'll get into in a bit.

First off, this giant bat boss was something of a pain. The whole encounter - especially because it takes place in a church - reminded me of Castlevania, which I liked, but I also died four or five times because the damn smaller bats that he'd split off into kept screwing up my aim. Finally I killed him with five or fix napalm blasts, and when he was finally dead I had to go and grab all my crap from the training facility and turn the church floor into a dumping ground.

This leads me to, once again, a discussion on the lack of item boxes. I was looking up some details and found that the developers specifically wanted to make this game harder by going directly back to Sweet Home, which utilized the exact same item dropping system. But the problem is, any player who's familiar with the series (and even newbies, who are likely to figure things out quite quickly) is going to start transporting and tossing all of their items in and around typewriter rooms, effectively transforming those into makeshift item boxes. So while the developers may have intended to make things "harder," they really only succeeded in creating housekeeping for their audience. The correct way to do things would have been to allow players to drop stuff AND given them the item boxes, and it appears that the devs unfortunately had a "we'll give you the freedom to put stuff wherever, but that means WE MUST TAKE AWAY A FREEDOM AS WELL" mentality.
Coming from someone who played Sweet Home and thought that the item dropping there was the worst part of the game, I do wish the devs had picked a better lesson from that Famicom classic. More interesting environments would have been a good one, since I feel like none of the areas in Zero manage to match the design and memorable factor of the Ecliptic Express in the game's first hour. Sweet Home has one section where you have to navigate a swamp via boat, and something like that would have been a cool inclusion here. Just some more outdoors environments would have been a good change of pace, especially since Rebecca and Billy are stuck in the Arklay Mountains. Unfortunately, Capcom fell back on the standard trope of "mansion, underground lab, industrial complex" that they've used for most of these classic RE games, and I wish they'd stretched their wings a bit.
All that said, while I felt like the game's environments fell down a steady slope after the train, there were still several moments WITHIN these environments that I enjoyed, like the appearance of proto-Tyrant (in my game, Becca had to fight him in her teeny clubbing outfit) and all of Rebecca's interactions with Billy.

I really do like Rebecca and Billy - perhaps it's because the partner zapping system requires them to always travel together as a unit, giving us a chance to see more moments of camaraderie and chemistry than the other female + male RE protagonists, or maybe I'm just in a shipping mentality when it comes to these two. Either way, I do think that I would've enjoyed this game less if it had starred a different pair of heroes, which goes to show how much you can forgive in a game (like the lack of item boxes) if it has enjoyable leads.
Big antagonist leech man Marcus I have more mixed feelings on. Lots of people seem to say that the plot of Zero makes no sense but actually it seemed fairly simple to me - Marcus is one of the original Umbrella founders, gets screwed by Spencer, Wesker and Birkin and the leeches he's created essentially absorb his memories, resurrect him and give him a chance at revenge. Okay, not bad. But the main thing is...was anyone really asking for a game detailing the industrial espionage and backstabbing that plagued Umbrella's founders? I felt like Zero was advertised as telling the story of Bravo team, but actually, they're barely around. It's mostly just Rebecca, Billy (which is fine), and lots of details on old man Marcus. It feels like gaiden material, not necessarily a prequel that NEEDED to be told.
I did like fighting the Queen Leech at the end though, and defeating it with the power of teamwork. When Billy got off the last shot it was dope.

I'm really glad that nothing bad happened to Billy in the finale. Because this was a prequel and there didn't seem to be any mention of him in the later games, I felt afraid that he'd bite the bullet or transform into a nutty monster like STEVE. But no, him and Rebecca simply part ways respectfully with a salute. I'm gonna miss these two, honest.
I found out on the RE Wiki that Umbrella Chronicles retells their story and fleshes out more of the details about what happened to Rebecca after she walked down the hill and entered the mansion. (Apparently she actually got some SLEEP, wow!) I feel like THIS is the sort of stuff that fans probably wanted to see in an actual prequel of the events before Resident Evil 1, not the whole thing with Marcus and the leeches. I'll have to play Umbrella Chronicles now - when I'm done with the mainline games, I'll add it to my list of side games to check out!

I tried Wesker Mode for fifteen minutes or so. Hoooo boy is it some stupid shit, lol. Wesker has all of Billy's dialogue (and even his voice) during cutscenes and HIS MATRIX POWERS ARE SO DUMB, holy crap. When he dashes across the screen and makes zombie heads burst I just wanna laugh out loud. Anyway, it seems like a pretty barebones and silly mode, but I do like Becca's all black outfit...if not her creepy red eyes.

Here are the notes I took while playing. Wrote down a decent amount because there were a fair number of tricky puzzles.

Anyhoo, I did find Zero to be a fun game, largely thanks to two lovable main characters, a great first section and the partner system. I'd actually put it above RE3 and Code Veronica in my rankings. The problems it does have are largely due to the missing item boxes, some "same old, same old" environment design (aside from the train) and an issue that most prologues face - the question of "does this story really need to be told?" And I'm not so sure that the tale of Marcus and his leeches passes that litmus test, especially when it might have been more interesting to delve into the adventures of the actual Bravo members more. I heard that Wesker was originally supposed to be the main antagonist in Zero's pre-planning stages, and he would have hunted down each Bravo member and killed them executioner style. Him doing that (possibly with proto-Tyrant alongside him) would've been more compelling than exploring an old Umbrella training facility, IMO.

I'll write up my final thoughts tomorrow, along with some analysis on the classic Resident Evil formula as a whole and my ranking of the first six games.

GoodMorninPluto · May 18, 2018

OP, for that animal statues puzzle you had to light them in the food chain order, there were some hints if you inspect statues.
Glad you enjoyed the game, it was definitely better than CV, but dunno about RE3. The lack of item boxes really hurts the game instead of adding anything interesting to the table.

Deleted member 27938 · May 18, 2018

I'm back. I haven't played RE0 yet so I scrolled past PG's posts, will read them after I've beaten the game myself. I had a 6 hour flight and decided to play Resident Evil: Gaiden. I have mixed feelings on it but the first thing I want to say is, it's better than I was expecting. If I had this game back in the GBC days I would have absolutely loved it. With the mindset that it's a damn gameboy color game, so scale your expectations accordingly, I enjoyed it and am surprised myself, tbh. The reason I say I have mixed feelings is because of the ammo situation. I'm quite capable with RE games, I have just RE0 and 7 left before I've beaten them all on normal difficulty. I'm not doing knife runs but I'm well capable of beating the games without cheating. I made it 90% through Gaiden but ran out of ammo. The way the final few boss fights work, you have to shoot an enemy away from you to win. So he gets close, you can knife him if needed, but when he staggers to mid and far distance, you have to shoot him. I honestly did not have ammo of any kind at this point so it literally could not be beat, regardless of skill. I went back a few saves to scrounge for ammo, but sometimes you have to spend ammo to get a chance on getting some (shoot zombies, hope the body drops it) or find it in the wild. The thing is ammo doesn't sparkle and isn't even visible on screen. You have to walk close enough and an icon will show on the screen that you can interact. I used a guide to see where to go to get ammo but it still wasn't enough. My aim with the combat system is pretty good, it's rhythm based, but I still ended up not having enough to beat the final 2 boss fights. The game isn't good enough for me to start over so I just watched the final 10 min on youtube. Heh, non-canon indeed.

I then fired up Dino Crisis 1 and played about 90 min. Game is fine but I just don't feel like playing it, I can't explain why so I quit. I'm in the middle of playing Life is Strange: Before the Storm now and will fire up RE0 after I finish that.

I Wanna Be The Guy · May 18, 2018

Resident Evil 0 is just a chore to play because it the item drop mechanic without an item box. Inventory management is hell and it straight up ruins the game.

Linkura · May 18, 2018

Sweet Home is an awesome game. JRPG and horror, my favorite two genres, mashed up, with elements that make it way ahead of its time.

Yeah, I'm with you there on the story of 0. It makes sense and all, but it's in no way a prequel. It's much more of a gaiden, even more so than 3. Completely pointless to the overarching RE story.

deepFlaw · May 18, 2018

Maybe it's already been suggested, but you should end with Sweet Home and see what it really started from.

EDIT: WHOOPS I really should have looked past the OP; I guess people already covered that, hah!

Corvidae · May 18, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
I really do like Rebecca and Billy - perhaps it's because the partner zapping system requires them to always travel together as a unit, giving us a chance to see more moments of camaraderie and chemistry than the other female + male RE protagonists, or maybe I'm just in a shipping mentality when it comes to these two. Either way, I do think that I would've enjoyed this game less if it had starred a different pair of heroes, which goes to show how much you can forgive in a game (like the lack of item boxes) if it has enjoyable leads.

I hated to delete the majority of your post when quoting you, but I wanted to single out two things: Despite the negativity surrounding this game's history in the overall series, I also appreciated the chemistry between the two leads in Zero; there's an added layer of co-dependency between the pair that never really comes across as unnecessary given the circumstance. Both characters coming to grips with the insanity around them without the story devolving into a rote tacked on romance subplot or generic action movie quote-fest is really refreshing and feels natural. I'd have lost interest in the game myself after a certain point if they weren't so great together.

I tried Wesker Mode for fifteen minutes or so. Hoooo boy is it some stupid shit, lol. Wesker has all of Billy's dialogue (and even his voice) during cutscenes and HIS MATRIX POWERS ARE SO DUMB, holy crap. When he dashes across the screen and makes zombie heads burst I just wanna laugh out loud. Anyway, it seems like a pretty barebones and silly mode, but I do like Becca's all black outfit...if not her creepy red eyes.

I kept the shot above because it sells the optional mode without really needing a description behind it. Wesker mode is a bit hokey on paper, especially given the serious tone of both REmake and Zero, but it's a lot more fun in practice. Especially when you've got this treasure trove of trash talking (and other clips) from Marvel vs Capcom 3 in mind when playing him.

There are no spoilers, I promise.

"Mortals are so weak. You are NOTHING to me!"

God bless D.C. Douglas. With that in mind, I also wish they had gone with the original plan with Wesker being the main antagonist instead of the Marcus leech plot we got instead. Would've been an excellent way to get more time with the fallen Bravo Team and more wacky funtime with Albert is never a bad thing in my eyes.

Looking forward to your final thoughts and how you rank what you've played so far!

Linkura · May 18, 2018

Yeah, the Rebecca/Billy pairing was great. Forgot to mention that in my previous post.

Pixel Grotto · May 18, 2018

UpperCaseN said:
I'm back. I haven't played RE0 yet so I scrolled past PG's posts, will read them after I've beaten the game myself. I had a 6 hour flight and decided to play Resident Evil: Gaiden. I have mixed feelings on it but the first thing I want to say is, it's better than I was expecting. If I had this game back in the GBC days I would have absolutely loved it. With the mindset that it's a damn gameboy color game, so scale your expectations accordingly, I enjoyed it and am surprised myself, tbh. The reason I say I have mixed feelings is because of the ammo situation. I'm quite capable with RE games, I have just RE0 and 7 left before I've beaten them all on normal difficulty. I'm not doing knife runs but I'm well capable of beating the games without cheating. I made it 90% through Gaiden but ran out of ammo. The way the final few boss fights work, you have to shoot an enemy away from you to win. So he gets close, you can knife him if needed, but when he staggers to mid and far distance, you have to shoot him. I honestly did not have ammo of any kind at this point so it literally could not be beat, regardless of skill. I went back a few saves to scrounge for ammo, but sometimes you have to spend ammo to get a chance on getting some (shoot zombies, hope the body drops it) or find it in the wild. The thing is ammo doesn't sparkle and isn't even visible on screen. You have to walk close enough and an icon will show on the screen that you can interact. I used a guide to see where to go to get ammo but it still wasn't enough. My aim with the combat system is pretty good, it's rhythm based, but I still ended up not having enough to beat the final 2 boss fights. The game isn't good enough for me to start over so I just watched the final 10 min on youtube. Heh, non-canon indeed.

I then fired up Dino Crisis 1 and played about 90 min. Game is fine but I just don't feel like playing it, I can't explain why so I quit. I'm in the middle of playing Life is Strange: Before the Storm now and will fire up RE0 after I finish that.

Thanks for your thoughts and words of warning on Gaiden! This is probably going to be one of the first side games I'll try out along with the leak of Resident Evil 1.5. Just really interested in seeing how Capcom transitioned everything to 2D.

Dino Crisis I wanna get into...maybe after I watch the new Jurassic World movie, since it basically looks like a straight up Dino Crisis adaptation by this point

I'm playing all the Resident Evils for the first time in release order

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