Resident Evil 2

I can't review this game based on nostalgia for the original game, because I was too busy being a toddler when the original Resident Evil 2 came out. So, based on what I've played now, I can definitely say that it's been an enjoyable ride. Maybe I initially thought there was too much running around and backtracking to do, but once I (mostly) remembered the locations of the items required to progress, it was doable. Besides, if you're remaking an old game, you can't really change the whole formula of the original. I like how the campaigns are short so you can just knock them out in one session. Me, I was mostly interested in the characters and story, since I only played Resident Evil 5 and 6 before this, and I got exactly what I wanted. I got to know more about Leon, Ada, Claire and Sherry which is nice to know moving forward. I played Leon's campaign first, then Claire's, and I liked how (even though Leon and Claire didn't interact much with each other) the campaigns complimented each other well. While in Leon's campaign I was too busy thinking about shooting everything and everyone up, Claire's campaign definitely gave it a bit more emotional weight and got me thinking that maybe not everything's black and white. I definitely enjoyed shooting all the limbs off of zombies. (I don't know what that says about me.) There is something quite creepy about a zombie not having arms or legs and still crawling towards you. I was also pleased with the performance on my machine, getting a solid 120 FPS at pretty much all time. I did have the game freeze on me two times when I Alt + Tabbed a bit too much for the game's liking, but I can't be too mad about that since I squeezed all the hours you see in this review in only a handful of days. One thing that did really bother me is the giant pop up I would occasionally have crying about how I don't have internet connection (I do, I'm guessing it had something to do with the fact that I did not consent to sharing my data). Fortunately that giant pop up didn't happen much in my single player games, and usually only occurs when I start playing or during the extra modes. All in all, I'm glad I can tick this off my backlog. Satisfied with how the game performed on my machine, but now I'm going to play something more lighthearted to forget about how the sound of Mr X's footsteps did bad things to my heart.

Resident Evil 2 Remake will always be among my favorite RE games (although I’m not a fan of the series and I don’t care about where it’s heading anymore. There are however still a few games that I enjoy) So, replaying it truly brought me back to the days when I first played it at release, and I’m Claire’s simp. ALWAYSS <3

[h1]Resident Evil 2, somehow a police station became one of horror gaming’s best mazes[/h1] [i]Resident Evil 2[/i] understands something I love about survival horror: killing everything should usually be a bad financial decision. Ammo is limited, healing matters, inventory space disappears faster than expected, and that zombie lying on the floor might be dead... or might be waiting for you to walk past it again ten minutes later. It is a remake that looks modern and controls modern, but underneath all of that is still classic Resident Evil. Explore carefully, remember locked doors, manage what you carry, and never assume a hallway is permanently safe. [hr][/hr] [h2]The RPD is basically one enormous puzzle box[/h2] The Raccoon Police Department is easily my favorite part of the game. At first it feels huge and confusing. Locked doors everywhere, strange keys, blocked passages, missing medallions, safes you cannot open yet, and items that clearly have a purpose you have not discovered. Then slowly the whole building starts making sense. You unlock shortcuts. You memorize staircases. You remember where you left something three rooms ago. A hallway that terrified you an hour earlier becomes part of your regular route. And then the game finds a way to make that familiar route terrifying again. [quote=Me, opening the map for the 40th time] Okay. Through here, upstairs, past the zombie, left at the Licker... Why do I hear footsteps? [/quote] [hr][/hr] [h2]Zombies are finally allowed to be dangerous again[/h2] I love how stubborn the zombies are here. A clean headshot does not automatically solve the problem, and putting someone on the floor does not necessarily mean they are staying there. That makes even basic enemies part of the resource management. [list] [*][b]Shoot them:[/b] safer right now, fewer bullets later. [*][b]Take out a leg:[/b] often enough to create a route without wasting an entire magazine. [*][b]Run around them:[/b] efficient, until you need that same hallway five more times. [*][b]Board the windows:[/b] not exciting at first, incredibly satisfying when you realize how much future trouble you prevented. [/list] Lickers make this even better. Suddenly the game that trained you to run away from problems asks you to slow down and stay quiet instead. [hr][/hr] [h2]Mr. X turns map knowledge into panic[/h2] Mr. X is probably the mechanic I remember most. He does not need some elaborate entrance every five minutes. Sometimes all it takes is hearing those heavy footsteps somewhere above you. [b]THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.[/b] Now that simple trip to an item box becomes a tactical operation. Do I use the short hallway with enemies still inside? Take the longer route? Hide somewhere and wait? Just run and hope the enormous coat wearing problem behind me loses interest? The clever part is that Mr. X attacks your confidence. By the time he becomes a major threat, you already know the RPD fairly well. He takes that knowledge and forces you to rethink it under pressure. I do think he eventually becomes more annoying than frightening in some sections, especially when you are simply trying to solve something and he refuses to give you breathing room. But when the system works, it creates incredible unscripted tension. [hr][/hr] [h2]Leon and Claire make a second playthrough worth doing[/h2] Leon Kennedy arrives for possibly the worst first day in police history, while Claire Redfield enters Raccoon City looking for her brother Chris. Both campaigns travel through many of the same locations, but their weapons, supporting characters, story scenes, and certain areas differ. I like both for different reasons. Leon has that rookie cop thrown completely out of his depth energy, while Claire's story becomes more personal through her relationship with Sherry. Finishing once also opens the [b]Second Run[/b], remixing parts of the route, puzzles, item and enemy placements while giving you the other side of the story. My biggest disappointment is that Leon and Claire's scenarios do not connect as neatly as I wanted. There is enough overlap that certain major events can feel like they happened twice instead of two stories perfectly fitting together. The original concept had so much potential here, and the remake gets close without fully delivering on it. [hr][/hr] [h2]The RE Engine makes everything appropriately disgusting[/h2] This game still looks fantastic. The lighting is especially important because so much of the RPD is illuminated by a flashlight, emergency lights, or whatever weak source happens to be nearby. And the gore is not just there for shock value. Enemies visibly react to damage, which actually helps you read a fight. Zombies get torn apart, clothing gets damaged, limbs can be removed, and every shotgun blast looks like it had an argument with the person standing in front of it. The sound does just as much work. A zombie behind a door, a Licker somewhere nearby, rain outside the station, Mr. X stomping around on another floor, all of it makes the building feel occupied even when you cannot see the threat. [hr][/hr] [h2]Where it loses a little momentum[/h2] The RPD sets such a high standard that the later areas have trouble matching it. The sewers and laboratory are not bad, and both have memorable moments, but I never enjoyed navigating them as much as the police station. [table] [tr] [th]What I loved[/th] [th]What holds it back[/th] [/tr] [tr] [td]RPD exploration and shortcut design[/td] [td]Later areas never quite match the police station[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td]Excellent resource pressure[/td] [td]Mr. X can cross from scary into irritating[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td]Zombies remain threatening throughout[/td] [td]Leon and Claire's stories overlap more than they should[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td]Fantastic lighting, audio, and gore[/td] [td]Some boss fights are less interesting than normal exploration[/td] [/tr] [/table] [hr][/hr] [h2]Verdict[/h2] [i]Resident Evil 2[/i] is exactly the kind of remake I want. It modernizes the camera, controls, visuals, and combat without throwing away the strange puzzle box design and resource anxiety that made classic Resident Evil special. The RPD is the star. Learning it, surviving it, and eventually having Mr. X stomp through all of your carefully planned routes is survival horror at its best. The campaign structure could have done more with Leon and Claire's overlapping stories, and the game loses a little magic after leaving the police station, but those problems never erase how good the core experience is. [b]Rating: 8/10[/b]