If we’re going to look at the horror genre, of course we have to start with the one that started it all.
I know right away that old school purists are going to call me out over the first sentence, citing that Alone in the Dark was technically the first survival horror game released. And even older school purists will say they’re wrong and that the first survival horror game was Sweet Home for the NES. Regardless, as Capcom changed the action genre with Devil May Cry, the same is true for survival horror with Resident Evil.
When Resident Evil was released in 1996, it blew everyone’s mind with what a video game could achieve. Even though the graphics weren’t exactly picturesque, they managed to instill a feeling of dread and solitude to the player. Resident Evil was the first time that gamers effectively had a horror movie they could play, with cheesy dialogue included.
The amazing part about Resident Evil was that not only did it give designers a blue print for survival horror for years to come, but that it managed to provide unique hooks that stand alone from the rest of the genre. Both Resident Evil 1 and 2 featured a dual story for each of its protagonists. What’s interesting is how each game took this concept in a different direction. In the first one, each character had a different story and path through the game, along with character specific puzzles. While in # 2, the first play-through each person has the same path with slight deviations, and then the player could replay the game with the other character in a completely different path.
Resident Evil 1 out of all the Resident Evil games to be made played closest to Alone in the Dark in its non linearity. Both games were technically linear in the fact that players had to solve specific events to beat the game. But they were also free to explore the environment and could do several sections out of order.
Resident Evil is an unusual franchise in the way that it has changed dramatically over the course of the series with new mechanics and design. For example: Nemesis in Resident Evil 3, to the first person shooter spin offs and the online multiplayer games. Let’s not forget that little known iteration known as Resident Evil 4, which dramatically changed the franchise.
Looking at the series we can basically split it between the pre Resident Evil 4 era, and the post era. Even though Resident Evil 4 is one of my all time favorite games, in terms of the survival horror genre itself, my favorite Resident Evil would have to be the Game cube remake of Resident Evil 1.
Resident Evil Remake took the original game and updated it. A new graphics engine makes it in my opinion one of the best looking games for that console generation. But it’s the changes and additions to the gameplay that make it stand out for me.
The basic premise of the original remained: you have two characters each with their own path and puzzles. Now, the mansion has been expanded with more rooms, new enemies and situations. The most jarring would have to be crimson head zombies. Previously, you killed a zombie and they were dead… again. Now, to actually finish them, you had to light them on fire to dispose of the body. Any zombies that weren’t finished this way would return a few minutes later as crimson heads. Crimson heads were faster, stronger and took more punishment before dropping for a final time.
Flammable weapons and items were few and far between, like the ink ribbons used to save. This added a small rogue-like element to the game. Challenging players to decide what zombies they should completely take out of the picture and which ones they’ll have to fight again.
I really enjoyed this new mechanic and it helped elevate the Resident Evil remake as much more than just a new coat of paint. I’m actually surprised that it wasn’t used in later Resident Evil games or just from the genre as a whole. There were plans at some point to remake Resident 2 and 3 either in this vein or from Resident Evil 4’s design, but nothing ever came from it sadly.
Resident Evil was a new start for the survival horror genre, and it’s most likely the culprit for the zombie related nightmares I’ve have over the years. Even though Resident Evil 4 has spoiled me over the old way of playing the series, the remake of Resident Evil one still stands as a great survival horror game.
Up Next: Where Radios Fear to Tread.
