Why is Days Gone a tired zombie premise in the minds of many when Resident Evil 2 is not?

[Crossing Eden]

For me it is, it is subjective afterall. Both praise and downplaying. In fact the most generic thing is the 'level design' argument, usually also tied to personal preferences.

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Here's the thing with contrarianism. The people who praise the level design as an example, they perfectly lay out how it all works incredible well and even where some areas have shortcomings compared to the rest of the package. When it comes to downplaying, it's usually down to reductionism and hyperbole.

Which again, refers back to my point about platform exclusivity being a main driver to that. Linear games were partly negatively looked down on by some because games like Uncharted, The Last of Us and Gears of War were all the rage.

The irony of course is that Resident Evil, which manages to escape much of these criticisms, is one of the most linear, cinematic and scripted games out there

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You need to stop the platform persecution complex. Tight corridors does not=linear and scripted. There are many dynamic elements in the game and you explore it at your own pace unlocking more and more paths and tools as you go along through this interconnected map. It's quite different from the last of us or uncharted. Then they pull a double whammy and remix the game's enemy and item placement, (leading to one of the most effective jump scares of the gen). Leading to four different playthroughs on top of multiple difficulties and extra fun modes. There's nothing like that in Uncharted. The closest is God of War and you spend a lot less time in RE2 doing things like climbing the side of mountains, helping characters up, or traveling through other obvious loading screens when you try to explore.

Re2 gets a pass because it is a zombie game that doesn't fall into the trappings of just being another zombie game. That is.. they don't let the zombies drive the game and call it a day. There are strong gameplay design decisions that make for an appealing package. Survival elements/inventory management. Emphasis on story. Interesting level design that utilizes back tracking to reward players who like to explore. Carefully placed scripted sequences. Even the little things like character movement speed are deliberate and add a small tactical layer to the gameplay. These things all come together to make for a polished and very complete package.

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Thank you.

 

[More_Badass]

RE2 remake graphics look great and the police station environment is so much more interesting that Days Gone which has a too similar art/ location to Last of Us (with part 2 being announced I feel most non casual gamers see this game as a mistake/ badly timed), though does have the bike to make it more unique.

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Trying to say Days Gone is redundant because Last of Us exists is some of the silliest logic I've seen in a while as criticism about games. They barely seem to overlap in terms of the kinds of gameplay they offer (linear stealth-focused action/horror vs open world exploration with a focus on hordes and systemic elements), and that logic seems to imply the notion that because one kind of things exists, then why bother with anything else with a similar setting/atmosphere/inspiration/etc. Which is just ridiculous

 

[biohazard_star]

For me, it has a lot to do with the core gameplay mechanics. REmake 2's zombies are slow, but they're hard to kill and you had to frequently manuever around them in claustrophobic environments. Rarely did the game ever throw more than 3-4 zombies against you, but each one felt like an actual threat you had to be careful in dealing with. It's a refreshing change from other games in the same genre that have a habit of chucking dozens of zombies at you like cannon fodder.

 

[electroaffe]

Open world stealth shooters are probably the most dominant genre right now and Days Gone seems to copy the Ubisoft formula. Resident Evil 2 on the other hand has a very unique game concept, that still feels fresh despite being a remake.

 

[Yautja_Warrior]

With all the "zombies are so over done" (even though Freakers are mutants, not zombies) and "the world / main character looks generic" comments, I look forward to all the same criticism for The Last of Us 2 as well........

 

[Deleted member 16876]

Trying to say Days Gone is redundant because Last of Us exists is some of the silliest logic I've seen in a while as criticism about games. They barely seem to overlap in terms of the kinds of gameplay they offer (linear stealth-focused action/horror vs open world exploration with a focus on hordes and systemic elements), and that logic seems to imply the notion that because one kind of things exists, then why bother with anything else with a similar setting/atmosphere/inspiration/etc. Which is just ridiculous

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Makes you think, would the people bringing up TLOU be happy if it went open world and was focused on having a huge horde after you?

I very much doubt that which shows how silly people bringing up TLOU as a justification for why this game shouldn't exist.

I guess Yoshi games shouldn't exist because Mario exists according to their logic.

 

[Edgar]

With all the "zombies are so over done" (even though Freakers are mutants, not zombies) and "the world / main character looks generic" comments, I look forward to all the same criticism for The Last of Us 2 as well........

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Are you seriously comparing last of us sequel to days gone?

 

[tzare]

Here's the thing with contrarianism. The people who praise the level design as an example, they perfectly lay out how it all works incredible well and even where some areas have shortcomings compared to the rest of the package. When it comes to downplaying, it's usually down to reductionism and hyperbole.


You need to stop the platform persecution complex. Tight corridors does not=linear and scripted. There are many dynamic elements in the game and you explore it at your own pace unlocking more and more paths and tools as you go along through this interconnected map. It's quite different from the last of us or uncharted. Then they pull a double whammy and remix the game's enemy and item placement, (leading to one of the most effective jump scares of the gen). Leading to four different playthroughs on top of multiple difficulties and extra fun modes. There's nothing like that in Uncharted. The closest is God of War and you spend a lot less time in RE2 doing things like climbing the side of mountains, helping characters up, or traveling through other obvious loading screens when you try to explore.


Thank you.

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Yet i haven't seen those level design explanations you point out, or if i have read them, don't seem anything extraordinary to me. Yet many of those that downplay , usually fail to explain. Just throw any 'generic' word, like.... surprise: generic, white dude, been there, fatigue. Some then compare to the game they consider has great 'level design', and here we are.

What's fun is that most of the time those games really don't belong to the same genre despite sharing something, in this case zombies ( despite both games having different enemie types).

 

[jph139]

I'll echo what a lot of people are saying - mechanics and setting. "Sprawling post-apocalyptic open world full of zombie hordes" is sort of been there, done that after Last of Us, Walking Dead, Dying Light, so on. (Not that all of those games/series are identical, or that they're all even open world settings, but the tropes they lean on are kind of samey.)

Resident Evil is more of a puzzle game with zombies as a backdrop, in a very tight, well-designed setting.

 

[Crossing Eden]

et i haven't seen those level design explanations you point out

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It's the whole package that makes it a phenomenally well designed game. As someone else said,

Resident Evil is more of a puzzle game with zombies as a backdrop, in a very tight, well-designed setting.

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^

This is what makes it fun, every element ends up being a piece of the puzzle from the inventory management to the limited resources to enemies that can't be killed like Mr. X. They all work incredibly well together.

 

[nib95]

You need to stop the platform persecution complex. Tight corridors does not=linear and scripted. There are many dynamic elements in the game and you explore it at your own pace unlocking more and more paths and tools as you go along through this interconnected map. It's quite different from the last of us or uncharted. Then they pull a double whammy and remix the game's enemy and item placement, (leading to one of the most effective jump scares of the gen). Leading to four different playthroughs on top of multiple difficulties and extra fun modes. There's nothing like that in Uncharted. The closest is God of War and you spend a lot less time in RE2 doing things like climbing the side of mountains, helping characters up, or traveling through other obvious loading screens when you try to explore.

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You're talking about subsequent play throughs, which by and large still end up playing and feeling similar.

With respect to linearity, I was mostly referring to the combat. Uncharted, Gears of War, TLOU etc all generally have far more dynamic combat encounters that allow for a lot more freedom of strategy, movement and options. It doesn't help that a majority of RE's enemies are brain dead and lack the AI creativity of these other games too, hence often time gameplay really does boil down to simply being a shooting gallery of sorts.

All these games have multiple paths and routes (TLOU, RE and UC4 far more than the others), and RE and TLOU unlockables too, but progression, encounter and level design is still ultimately linear, and most of RE's actual combat arenas and controls are actually far more limiting in nature. Now obviously part of that is intentional to invoke more forced tension or suspense, but the point still stands.

 

[Yautja_Warrior]

Are you seriously comparing last of us sequel to days gone?

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Well people are saying it looks generic, without even playing it. It has a similar theme, similar setting, similar characters (white male and female characters) they have zombie like enemies......

Obviously they are not the same but on the surface, they are similar. But I just wonder why Days Gone gets all that criticism, while a similar game doesn't ?

People really shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, that's the point. Days Gone looks decent, all the it's generic comments, is just lazy criticism imo.

 

[More_Badass]

I'll echo what a lot of people are saying - mechanics and setting. "Sprawling post-apocalyptic open world full of zombie hordes" is sort of been there, done that after Last of Us, Walking Dead, Dying Light, so on. (Not that all of those games/series are identical, or that they're all even open world settings, but the tropes they lean on are kind of samey.)

Resident Evil is more of a puzzle game with zombies as a backdrop, in a very tight, well-designed setting.

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Because they're all in the same genre at least narrative-wise. Same with The Road, The Book of Eli, Mad Max Fury Road, and Terminator Salvation. Or Hunger Games, Snowpiercer, Brazil, and V For Vendetta

 

[tzare]

I'll echo what a lot of people are saying - mechanics and setting. "Sprawling post-apocalyptic open world full of zombie hordes" is sort of been there, done that after Last of Us, Walking Dead, Dying Light, so on. (Not that all of those games/series are identical, or that they're all even open world settings, but the tropes they lean on are kind of samey.)

Resident Evil is more of a puzzle game with zombies as a backdrop, in a very tight, well-designed setting.

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I understand that people are tired of certain aesthetic , just like brown bald marine last gen, it is fine. But that has nothing to do with the quality or execution of any game . The wise thing imo, is skip it, and once that fatigue fades out, give it a go if it's a game you may enjoy.
For example many Nintendo games share a similar visual style, and world, yet people don't seem to complain, because each game may be different that the other.

 

[Leviathan]

It's a remake in a franchise that doesn't abuse its ability to do remakes, it was well-executed, and (main thing for me) RE has enjoyable and reliable lore. Days Gone hasn't done much to immediately establish itself as distinct.

 

[Border]

If the game seemed to offer something new and cool (in the same way that Dying Light had parkour), I think people would be more interested in it.

 

[Duderino]

I remember a time, not far ago, when linear games bored the people to death and complains about linear and scripted games where on many threads.Now it is open world it seems. Despite sales saying otherwise.
I guess gamers, at least the ones in forums, seem to enjoy highlighting the negatives of games they are not interested, instead of playing the ones they are.

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This.

I don't get the need some have to complain about another open world game when we just had this killer hot streak of highly regarded linear (by comparison) tittles with GOW, RE2, DMC2, KH, etc.

Feeling open world fatigue? Lay off the RDR2, Spiderman, or ACO for a while and go play what gaming you've missed in 2019.

 

[DontHateTheBacon]

It's nostalgia for Resident Evil 2. If it were Resident Evil 8, it would be interesting to see how it were being received.

But also I think people would still be more receptive to Resident Evil 8 than Days Gone.

 

[Edgar]

Well people are saying it looks generic, without even playing it. It has a similar theme, similar setting, similar characters (white male and female characters) they have zombie like enemies......

Obviously they are not the same but on the surface, they are similar. But I just wonder why Days Gone gets all that criticism, while a similar game doesn't ?

People really shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, that's the point. Days Gone looks decent, all the it's generic comments, is just lazy criticism imo.

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one is a sequel to last of us , one of the highest rated games of all time and is made by people who did uncharted games . The other is a game from Bend studios who did syphon philter for ps2 and uncharted for ps vita. People also said Arthur is generic white male from RDR2, and look how that turned out

 

[nib95]

Re2 gets a pass because it is a zombie game that doesn't fall into the trappings of just being another zombie game. That is.. they don't let the zombies drive the game and call it a day. There are strong gameplay design decisions that make for an appealing package. Survival elements/inventory management. Emphasis on story. Interesting level design that utilizes back tracking to reward players who like to explore. Carefully placed scripted sequences. Even the little things like character movement speed are deliberate and add a small tactical layer to the gameplay. These things all come together to make for a polished and very complete package.

Days Gone is unproven as of now. SIE Bend Studios does not have anything else in their portfolio for us to gauge their skill with except the Syphon Filter series and a couple of handheld ports. Not to say that's a bad thing at all -- those ports and psp games were solid. (I Liked them btw)

In a way, this comparison will never be fair: Capcom's Division 1 studio only had to remake a popular classic. The foundation for a great game was already there. But Sony Bend will have to start from scratch. People probably don't have faith in new IPs anymore.

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Literally all the bolded is in Days Gone, in fact it has even more gameplay elements that are not driven by the zombies, including dynamic gameplay affecting weather, a massive open world, vehicular traversal and its own set of upgrades, resource gathering, gameplay elements etc.

Then there's all the dynamic systems based gameplay and environmental interactivity, stuff like being able to set any wooden barn or building on fire to cook or draw out enemies inside, the use of physics, throwing stones at cars to set off alarms, using environmental obstacles and goods on zombies, be they logs, trucks, cannisters and so on. The world seems like more of a playground or sandbox compared to some other more curated zombie combat experiences.

Now I don't know if Days Gone will be a good game or not, it could end up being bad, but I'm just pointing out how these elements you're using to differentiate why RE looks better or is more appealing, or faces fewer criticisms, apply just as much to Days Gone if not more. If anything Days Gone is far more gameplay orientated, given it offers a much broader degree of freedom and options.

 

[Crossing Eden]

You're talking about subsequent play throughs, which by and large still end up playing and feeling very similar.

With respect to linearity, I was mostly referring to the combat. Uncharted, Gears of War, TLOU etc all generally have far more dynamic combat encounters that allow for a lot more freedom of strategy, movement and options.

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In RE2 combat is often not the optimal strategy, instead opting you to save ammo for boss encounters or mini bosses. That's what makes it good and memorable, is that the game doesn't drop you in a room, throw a hoard at you, and then won't let you progress until said hoard is dead. The enemy encounters are a LOT more deliberate.

It doesn't help that a majority of RE's enemies are brain dead and lack the AI creativity of these other games too, hence often time gameplay really does boil down to simply being a shooting gallery of sorts.

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Braindead because they're quite literally zombies, arguably the most convincing zombie enemy in a game to date, where even 1 in a tight space is a viable threat vs a dime a dozen horde.

All these games have multiple paths and routes (TLOU, RE and UC4 far more than the others), and RE and TLOU unlockables too, but progression, encounter and level design is still ultimately linear, and most of RE's actual combat arenas and controls are actually far more limiting in nature. Now obviously part of that is intentional to invoke more forced tension or suspense, but the point still stands.

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There is nowhere near as much exploration in TLOU or UC4 as there is in RE2, as RE2 is a metroidvania style game with a huge interconnected level. And everytime you start to feel comfortable the game throws something new at you the most notable thing being Mr. X who arrives at the exact moment the player is the most comfortable with the police station. When people talk about or decry linearity they don't mean linear in the literal sense. They're referring more to player agency and how some games don't give you that agency. There's other aspects as well, for example, the way cinematic and linear games like Uncharted handle downtime vs a game like RE2. Which literally has player driven downtime as the tension is only gone once you're in a safe room and more often than not you decide when it's time to visit one.

Well people are saying it looks generic, without even playing it. It has a similar theme, similar setting, similar characters (white male and female characters) they have zombie like enemies......

Obviously they are not the same but on the surface, they are similar. But I just wonder why Days Gone gets all that criticism, while a similar game doesn't ?

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The short demo of TLOU2 showcased a game that seemingly has a lot of dynamism with it's human encounters as well as some features that often aren't implemented in the TPS genre, for example, being able to dodge melee hits from enemies or even little things that could seemingly ruin aspects of other games like being able to go through any nook and cranny realistically.

 

[Exist 2 Inspire]

I feel like the systemic mechanics and world building at play in Days Gone is going to be the best of it's kind (in open world games) and is going to surprise a lot of people.

 

[Okabe]

It's Resident Evil. The OG. The godfather. We do it !

 

[Meg Cherry]

Well people are saying it looks generic, without even playing it. It has a similar theme, similar setting, similar characters (white male and female characters) they have zombie like enemies......

Obviously they are not the same but on the surface, they are similar. But I just wonder why Days Gone gets all that criticism, while a similar game doesn't ?

People really shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, that's the point. Days Gone looks decent, all the it's generic comments, is just lazy criticism imo.

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Honestly, the first TLoU is a perfect example of how you sell a zombie story as something original. From the offset, Sony focused on what made TLoU different from other zombie/post-apoc media (fungal virus & creature design, bleak/brutalistic violence) and emphasized the prestige status of Naughty Dog to sell the package. As a result, people got onboard. And unsurprisingly, people are excited for a sequel that evolves on that first game's unique elements.

Days Gone has mostly been marketed on factors that don't make it stand out from other games. The biggest selling point at the reveal was the 'horde' tech, which just never impressed the majority of people on this forum.

TLoU has always been positioned to stand out, while Days Gone always seems to blend in.

 

[Crossing Eden]

It's nostalgia for Resident Evil 2. If it were Resident Evil 8, it would be interesting to see how it were being received.

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RE2 is so good that it's literally not uncommon to hear that Capcom finally found the perfect template for a modern RE title and thus should iterate on RE2 for RE8.

 

[tzare]

It's the whole package that makes it a phenomenally well designed game. As someone else said,


^

This is what makes it fun, every element ends up being a piece of the puzzle from the inventory management to the limited resources to enemies that can't be killed like Mr. X. They all work incredibly well together.

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will watch later, since i haven't finished remake yet because i don't like the direction they took.
I guess we have different priorities, i won't say the game has bad design, because it doesn't, but its design is aimed to a certain audience, i am not in that audience, i enjoyed more the premise of the first RE, and RE2 too, less than the first though, 3 is bad on my book, and remake relies too much on what i dislike about 3.
For me original one was about a mysterious mansion, puzzles, mystery on what happened with the perfect balance with exploration, tension etc.
I enjoyed exploring the mansion once i cleared areas. It is fine to have some of them with occasional variations, but permanent enemies or mr.X like ones are not good design, for me!
But i won't call it cheap just because i don't like their desicion to make the game like that. But i will probably skip r3 remake.

 

[Crossing Eden]

We have different priorities, i won't say the game has bad design, because it doesn't, but its design is aimed to a certain audience, i am not in that audience, i enjoyed more the premise of the first RE, and RE2 too, less than the first though, 3 is bad on my book, and remake relies too much on what i dislike about 3.
For me original one was about a mysterious mansion, puzzles, mystery on what happened with the perfect balance with exploration, tension etc.
I enjoyed exploring the mansion once i cleared areas. It is fine to have some of them with occasional variations, but permanent enemies or mr.X like ones are not good design, for me!

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There are several areas where Mr. X doesn't appear though? Like the times he appears are very deliberate.

 

[Soj]

I don't know. RE2 Remake doesn't hold a candle to the original, while Days Gone actually looks pretty cool to me. Game gives me Far Cry 2 vibes, and hearing it's more of a survival game than people expect only makes me more excited to play it.

I feel like the systemic mechanics and world building at play in Days Gone is going to be the best of it's kind (in open world games) and is going to surprise a lot of people.

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This is exactly what I'm hoping.

 

[Fastidioso]

Unfortunately it's exactly my feeling. Hope to be wrong, probably I'll buy because I'm hungry of exclusives, but until now this game seems generic as hell. That scary me about the effective quality of the whole package. Hope to be wrong.

 

[How About No]

For me and RE2 it's not about the zombies, but the exploration of a tightly designed environment and learning about safe/dangerous paths to where I want to go

I barely know what Days Gone is. I'm sorry, it just doesn't look interesting at all to me

 

[Yautja_Warrior]

one is a sequel to last of us , one of the highest rated games of all time and is made by people who did uncharted games . The other is a game from Bend studios who did syphon philter for ps2 and uncharted for ps vita. People also said Arthur is generic white male from RDR2, and look how that turned out

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Exactly and Days Gone has the same chance of being really good, maybe even great.

Bend have good games under their belt, Syphon Filter series (PS1 & PSP) were great games, Resistance Retribution (PSP) and Uncharted (Vita) were also great games, so it's not like they don't know how to make really good games.

 

[tzare]

There are several areas where Mr. X doesn't appear though? Like the times he appears are very deliberate.

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Haven't finished it, because mr.X puts me off. I managed to finish 3 because i was a fan of the series, but that was 20 years ago, now i don't have the patience anymore.

 

[Phendrift]

Because RE2's premise is set already from 199-whatever and this was a new IP and thus a chance to not create a derivative setting

 

[nib95]

In RE2 combat is often not the optimal strategy, instead opting you to save ammo for boss encounters or mini bosses. That's what makes it good and memorable, is that the game doesn't drop you in a room, throw a hoard at you, and then won't let you progress until said hoard is dead. The enemy encounters are a LOT more deliberate.


Braindead because they're quite literally zombies, arguably the most convincing zombie enemy in a game to date, where even 1 in a tight space is a viable threat vs a dime a dozen horde.


There is nowhere near as much exploration in TLOU or UC4 as there is in RE2, as RE2 is a metroidvania style game with a huge interconnected level. And everytime you start to feel comfortable the game throws something new at you the most notable thing being Mr. X who arrives at the exact moment the player is the most comfortable with the police station. When people talk about or decry linearity they don't mean linear in the literal sense. They're referring more to player agency and how some games don't give you that agency. There's other aspects as well, for example, the way cinematic and linear games like Uncharted handle downtime vs a game like RE2. Which literally has player driven downtime as the tension is only gone once you're in a safe room and more often than not you decide when it's time to visit one.


The short demo of TLOU2 showcased a game that seemingly has a lot of dynamism with it's human encounters as well as some features that often aren't implemented in the TPS genre, for example, being able to dodge melee hits from enemies or even little things that could seemingly ruin aspects of other games like being able to go through any nook and cranny realistically.

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How would you know to save ammo for a boss fight unless you're on a repeat play through? You simply wouldn't, since you wouldn't know when the next boss fight even was. All you're describing is the conservation of ammo, which you might do in any horror or survival game really, and trying to avoid encounters is simply part of that.

Regarding a 1v1, I don't think any regular zombie is a real viable threat (dependant on the type of zombie, all these games have harder variants) in such a situation unless they throw one at you at a really close distance or you're extremely low on ammo, which arguably would be the case in most zombie games.

I personally felt I was exploring just as much in TLOU as I was in say, RE. The whole survival scavenging and looting elements are rife in both, it's just that RE has more backtracking and puzzle or unlock elements than say TLOU, which isn't necessarily a good or bad thing, just different. And regarding the whole "everytime you start to feel comfortable the game throws something new at you", again, I feel that applies to both. That's sort of just typical game design and pacing really, to keep up the tension, action, suspense etc, though perhaps all these games do it better than most (hence they're more acclaimed).

 

[Cow]

Pretty sure the negativity surrounding Days Gone has absolutely nothing to do with zombies and more to do with it looking like a typical AAA game formula with a white guy leading it all.

 

[ShroudOfFate]

As someone that's a VERY casual RE fan, it was kind of a big deal that RE was bringing zombies back after so long just having stuff like Las Plagas and Molded for so long. REmake2 not only brought them back but made their presence meaningful. Even a single zombie can ruin your day if you're not careful. Days Gone on the other hand is taking the WWZ approach where there's a million of them you get to chew through like nothing. It's something we've seen a lot in the last decade or so in games like L4D, Dead Rising etc.

Also, from a story standpoint (at least for me) REmake 2 has a much better hook. Seeing the apocalypse start and trying to get out of the city is much more interesting than another game set after the fact with the main character dealing with the baggage of how the world was before.

 

[Dusk Golem]

There's a ton of reasons, most of which need to have been cited here. But for some reason in the opening first page of results, it's not been mentioned that REmake 2's zombies are actually really unique in how they're handled in a sense each zombie is a challenge when you first play due to a unique gore system and how it's unclear if they're dead or not when they fall down. And they take a decent amount to bring down. This actually makes them unlike any other zombie out there in the current market. Days Gone does have some unique things in how their zombies can come into huge "swarms" mashed together like a swarm of piranhas, but even these two ideas drastically contrast the other, since one gives power and presence to the regular zombie, one shows the fear of zombie to be in ridiculously high number. REmake 2's zombies also both look and sound pretty terrifying. I don't think it's a push to say that REmake 2's rendition of the zombie is one of the most unique and scarier takes on zombies in years, which pushes against the growing zombie trend of zombies simply being canon-fodder staple enemies that have become "easy" enemies to plow down in large groups, which REmake 2 pushes against trends to remind that there's concepts about zombies that have been lost in the rise of zombies in video games and power fantasies.

Now I actually think Days Gone has a lot more going for it than many think and many are being needlessly hard on the game, I expect it's going to turn out very good. However, in many ways Days Gone is "AAA: The Video Game", it's following so many trends we've seen in recent years (but not that that's a bad thing). REmake 2 meanwhile outside of zombies didn't really follow many trends at all. It is through-and-through a survival-horror game, a genre often ignored by the mainstream. It's a short condensed linear experience while Days gone is Open World. REmake 2 focuses on simpler design with mechanical depth with focus on individual encounters, adventure game puzzle elements, and encounter design that's hand-crafted with enemies made to mix-and-match to create interesting scenarios. Days Gone is focused on dynamic scenarios in it's open world and giving the player a lot to do while exploring and open world and methods like your bike to travel long distances. Days Gone has things like crafting, while REmake 2 is more focused on limited inventory and item management.

I personally always liked Resident Evil being "more" than zombies, I like Resident Evil's crazy monsters and mutations. Days Gone I will say this has a big leg-up over many zombie games for me since it actually has zombie animals, which are incredibly rare in these sorta' games and I'm happy for it's inclusion. But Resident Evil always has been about crazy B.O.W. monsters created by a company trying to make monsters for combat. The Resident Evil world is literally insane and somewhat nonsensical, but in a very endearing way. Days Gone I think has some craziness but I doubt will go as far as RE in this regard.

There's a lot more that could be said and I bet has been said. Like obviously Resident Evil is like the king of horror game franchises that already has a lot of invested fans and this remake was long requested after the original Resident Evil REmake, a game many people think is one of the best remakes of all time (and REmake 2 seems to be cementing a lot of people's concept of how the series handles REmake being some of the best in the business). I think a big aspect of it too is simply Resident Evil 2 REmake is a lot more aesthetically pleasing, like the character design, the setting of RE2, all of it has an immediate charm that will strike with a lot of people even ignoring the nostalgia factor. I think many newcomers checked out RE2 simply because there's a certain aesthetic that RE2 has which is a bit striking and stylized (which you can see in the video below). Days Gone meanwhile I think suffers a bit because just looking at it on the surface, it's not that aesthetically pleasing or stylistic, it actually looks really generic at a glance (though I do know a lot more is going on in it). If one were to take a casual glance at Resident Evil 2 and Days Gone, I do think RE2 wins in the style department, and that can do a lot to get newcomers to check it out.

*RE2 spoilers*

 

[angelgrievous]

Resident Evil would be Resident Evil without the zombies.

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[LookAtMeGo]

Days Gone is one of my most anticipated games so I just dont share the sentiment.

 

[Crossing Eden]

Haven't finished it, because mr.X puts me off. I managed to finish 3 because i was a fan of the series, but that was 20 years ago, now i don't have the patience anymore.

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Sounds like a personal problem.

How would you know to save ammo for a boss fight unless you're on a repeat play through?

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Because it's a resident evil game.

You simply wouldn't, since you wouldn't know when the next boss fight even was. All you're describing is the conservation of ammo, which you might do in any horror or survival game really, and trying to avoid encounters is simply part of that.

Regarding a 1v1, I don't think any regular zombie is a real viable threat (dependant on the type of zombie, all these games have harder variants) in such a situation unless they throw one at you at a really close distance or you're extremely low on ammo, which arguably would be the case in most zombie games.

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The tight corridors make it so that 1 zombie can be a viable threat especially due to how long their reach is. That's why the defense items exist, sometimes you even have to decide whether or not to take a bite. It's incredibly well designed in this regard as you're constantly making decisions.

There's also the layer of strategy where you don't even have to kill them but rather disable them because of the incredibly detailed limb dismemberment system.

This are all unique design decisions for a 2019 AAA game. There's really nothing on the market like RE2 atm. That's why it's not a tired premise or just an example of nostalgia talking. Meanwhile, Days Gone as a 2019 title is quite derivative based on the premise and what they use to market the game. Like at the end of the day, that's the premise of this thread. It's not "oh woe with me people just hatin on muh exclusives for my favorite piece of plastic." It's just that RE2 is a very unique survival horror titled that modernized much older design elements.

 

[SamWilson]

I never felt that way about Days Gone.

And for RE2, unlike most here, I have no nostalgia goggles for it. Played it for the first time this year with the remake. Absolutely hated it.

 

[Legacy]

Days Gone just looks boring overall. RE2R is a remake of a classic and also one of the best games of 2019.

 

[Furisco]

Resident Evil isn't a zombie franchise even if zombies are a big part of the earlier games.

 

[nib95]

Sounds like a personal problem.


Because it's a resident evil game.


The tight corridors make it so that 1 zombie can be a viable threat especially due to how long their reach is. That's why the defense items exist, sometimes you even have to decide whether or not to take a bite. It's incredibly well designed in this regard as you're constantly making decisions.

There's also the layer of strategy where you don't even have to kill them but rather disable them because of the incredibly detailed limb dismemberment system.

This are all unique design decisions for a 2019 AAA game. There's really nothing on the market like RE2 atm. That's why it's not a tired premise or just an example of nostalgia talking. Meanwhile, Days Gone as a 2019 title is quite derivative based on the premise and what they use to market the game. Like at the end of the day, that's the premise of this thread. It's not "oh woe with me people just hatin on muh exclusives for my favorite piece of plastic." It's just that RE2 is a very unique survival horror titled that modernized much older design elements.

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As I said in my post, I think any zombie in most of these games would pose a tangible threat if it was that close to you in a super tight corridor. What RE's basic zombies have in lunge reach, other basic zombies have in running speed or in cases even jumping.

But I do think you touched on one key reason why I think RE is so revered for its combat and enjoyed by so many (including myself), and that is the extreme gore and violence. Often times there's little strategic use in wasting bullets to immobilise instead of simply kill (especially if you have proficient aim), but it's fun to do none-the-less because it's gory, superfluous and satisfying, as is the combat as a whole. I really do think that is one of the main reasons even the otherwise dull or limiting shooting gallery segments are fun, because of the violence and tension involved.

 

[WaffleTaco]

Resident Evil 2 isn't really a zombie game in the same way Days Gone is. That's probably why.

With all the "zombies are so over done" (even though Freakers are mutants, not zombies) and "the world / main character looks generic" comments, I look forward to all the same criticism for The Last of Us 2 as well........

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People don't care about The Last of Us 2 because of zombies, they care about the story/Ellie/Naughty Dog devs.

 

[Jedi2016]

RE2 established itself as a leader in the genre twenty years ago. It's good because it was always good. And it's good from a time before the whole "zombie thing" got old. The fact that it's a remake doesn't in any way make it a new game. People aren't playing it because they have a hankering for a new zombie experience, they're playing it because it's fucking RE2.

If the game had been released as anything other than RE2, it would have gotten the same response as Days Gone. Strip out the characters, RE story elements, and call it "ZombieTown USA", and it would have sold twelve copies.

Days Gone isn't doing anything new. It's looked boring as fuck from the very first reveal. No matter how much they try to hype it, my response is a yawn. Been there, done that.

 

[MetroidPrimeRib]

Uhhh, its Resident Evil? You kind of get a pass if you were there at the start (for games)

 

[tzare]

Sounds like a personal problem.

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Not really. It is preferences, tastes, expectations.
How Capcom approached this remake is not what i enjoy the most, and obviously other gamers, like you, will find it great. Nothing wrong with that.
It is like TLOU listening mode, it is optional, for some people out may be necessary to enjoy the game, for others the game is better without it, so forcing it would be bad design. Since is optional it caters both audiences.
As nib95 posted, there are many things that many games do in different ways, and none of them are necessarily better or worse, in the end that judgement, made by the player, is subjective.
I understand your explanation about remake design, i find great that they tailored the experience so much, but that doesn't make it great design per se..

 

[Dusk Golem]

RE2 established itself as a leader in the genre twenty years ago. It's good because it was always good. And it's good from a time before the whole "zombie thing" got old. The fact that it's a remake doesn't in any way make it a new game. People aren't playing it because they have a hankering for a new zombie experience, they're playing it because it's fucking RE2.

If the game had been released as anything other than RE2, it would have gotten the same response as Days Gone. Strip out the characters, RE story elements, and call it "ZombieTown USA", and it would have sold twelve copies.

Days Gone isn't doing anything new. It's looked boring as fuck from the very first reveal. No matter how much they try to hype it, my response is a yawn. Been there, done that.

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While I do believe you're partially right, I also am pretty certain Days Gone would be received differently if it was a shorter linear survival-horror game with item management, adventure game elements, and the like.

 

[Puffy]

Era bubble.