Should you play the classic Resident Evil games?

It’s clear that Resident Evil in a bit of a renaissance these days and, following Resident Evil Village’s release, there’s a swath of new fans that might be curious about the classic games. The original Resident Evil games were both a product of their time and the trilogy that popularized the classic survival horror genre.

The mechanics that have made them famous are what ultimately make or break the game for people; there are plenty of gamers that prefer the newer titles over the classic ones. There is something to be said about aging mechanics not appealing to modern audiences, but for the more adventurous players, is it worth it to players to try these classic games?

Evil Atmosphere (and camera angles, woooooo~)

If there’s one thing that classic Resident Evil does well, it’s that the atmosphere of every game is impeccable. Whether it’s the Spencer Mansion in Resident Evil 1, the R.P.D in Resident Evil 2, or Raccoon City itself in Resident Evil 3, each scene you run through is well detailed and purposefully designed. There’s nothing more creepy than familiarity being invaded by something unknowable, something that has no purpose other than destruction.

Chris Redfield running down the iconic dog hallway from the classic Resident Evil: Director's Cut.
Hot tip: Have a rabies shot handy.
Credit: Capcom

Those contrasts make for some unnerving scenes that can make you feel a bit of a chill. To amplify the chills, we also have fixed camera angles to contend with; from a gameplay perspective, they seem kind of annoying, but here they serve to use perspective to unnerve the player. Every camera angle is purposeful, as you are only given as much detail as you need at the moment.

READ MORE: Resident Evil Village is one of the best PS5 launches to date

This means that one angle might obscure what’s up ahead at any given moment. You might think to run down that hallway and immediately turn left, but there could be a zombie or two waiting for you around the corner. Sometimes camera angles add to the atmosphere by showing a seemingly lonely room that could have some items stored. Or it could have a zombie hiding underneath one of the beds. Or in the bathtub, you saw as you walked into the restroom.

Or it could be hiding behind the door you just closed.

Paranoia is fun huh?

This paranoia is wonderfully contrasted with the rooms where you’ll be able to store items and weapons, as well as save your progress. The save rooms have a strange, calming atmosphere where you’ll have gentle music and a well-lit room that won’t have any sudden surprises to contend with. It’s a moment to breathe as you figure out where to run to next, or decide what to take on your next major trek. Even though you’re in a much calmer state, the knowledge that you’re going to have to go outside sometime soon creates some stressful moments.

Move like a tank, tear like wet paper

Tank controls. Many don’t like them. In fact, many avoid games that have tank controls. Personally, I think it’s a shame more people don’t try more games that might have some weird controls, but that’s neither here nor there. Tank controls in classic Resident Evil invoke the awkward, tense, almost blundering reality of going up against the living dead. I’ve always likened this style of control in these games akin to feeling stress take over your body; like, you can’t even move properly when faced with an insane situation like a zombie apocalypse.

Leon from Resident Evil 2 clearing out some zombies.
Snack or survivor? You decide. Credit: Capcom

In addition to the old controls, your main character couldn’t take too many hits before being close to death. One bad bite from a zombie was enough to bring you close to half health; heaven forbid if you got bit twice in a row because of a congregation of zombies. If you were unlucky enough to get surrounded by a bunch of zombies (which can absolutely happen) there were few ways to get out that didn’t involve taking a bad hit or two.

It all serves to remind you, the player, that despite the main character being some sort of badass that knows how to use a gun, you weren’t shit against creatures that don’t care how much you maimed them with bullets. Going up against an uncaring, uncompromising force has never been more apparent than in the older Resident Evil titles.

So gameplay also involved taking stock of your items and making sure you had plenty of items, as well as ensuring you had space in your inventory for a key item you might pick up. Managing zombie attacks, inventory, and taking care not to enter the final boss fight with no healing items (which you can totally do, don’t ask how I know) is all part of the game’s plan to immerse you in the horror.

READ MORE: Resident Evil 4 VR announced for Quest 2

You know, the horror that you survive. There’s a term for that right?

Cheesier than stuffed crust pizza

So you’ve got good atmosphere, challenging gameplay, and a compelling story to top it all off right?

Carlos and Jill sharing a moment in Resident Evil 3.
There’s always a time and place to flirt, gentlemen. Learn from Carlos here.
Credit: Capcom

That really depends on how much you love cheese. Cause Resident Evil’s got plenty of it. The classic games are the perfect examples of ever-expanding absurdity over a prolonged period of time. Keep in mind, these games aren’t very long, so the 5-8 hours you spend have to hit a climax at a pretty decent clip. The journey of that climax is the key though, as each moment builds on the last with ever-growing cheese and craziness.

You’ll have a gun and a knife at the beginning of every game, there’s limited ammo, and zombies are at their most dangerous in the early game. Then some story beats happen and you kill a boss or two, find some more weapons, and slowly realize that you’re accumulating quite the arsenal. This is probably the thing that helps the aforementioned cheese on this spooky pizza: escalation.

The story ties into this as well, but you really feel it when things get progressively more nuts as the dangers become more pronounced and growly. Zombies give way to giant snakes, tarantulas, crazy fast lizard people, mutated dogs, and the list just goes on and on. The main villains are given similar treatment, as the faceless Umbrella corporation keeps sending the evilest of evil dudes to carry out their ludicrous plans of taking over the world. Both monsters and people.

Albert Wesker revealing himself to the player as the true antagonist of Resident Evil: Director's Cut.
The EVILEST dude around. Trust me, just look at those sunglasses.
Credit: Capcom

See, zombies and other monsters aren’t the only things to worry about in these games, because people show up to ruin your day in a million different ways. The most iconic of these villains being one Albert Wesker, who’s so absurd in his presentation as supervillain supreme in the earlier games that you can’t help but giggle whenever he’s on-screen.

The existential terror of dealing with the literal walking dead gives way to just sheer giggling lunacy as weird espionage plots make their way into all the spooky stuff. It makes for a tone that isn’t trying to take itself too seriously, as some lines have become popular memes in the community (Jill Sandwich anyone?), and have only galvanized everyone’s love for these silly, goofy, zombie games.

Permanent resident in our hearts

I can understand the various players who never want to touch any of the classic Resident Evil games, as the newer games have overshadowed them a little. But it’s because the newer games are successful that I feel that the classic titles are worth taking a look at, especially after playing the newest title, Village.

READ MORE: 6 Horror games to play while waiting for Resident Evil 8

My first ever Resident Evil game was the third entry, Nemesis; I expected it to be scary being that it was about zombies (and I was also like, nine years old) but found that the weird controls and slow-moving enemies weren’t all that bad. I didn’t play any of these games to completion until I was much older and it was there that I saw them for the glorious cheese fests they were.

The remakes have been great for the most part, and do a good job of combining both old and new to craft new experiences for the series. But there’s still something to be found in the original titles; much like reading something old like Frankenstein or Dracula, it’s worth it to go back to some classics to see how far we’ve come since then. Zombies are old hat by now, but they’re still charming to some degree, and if you wanna experience that charm, then borrow a friend’s PS3 (or a PS2), throw down some money, and do some good old ’90’s zombie blasting.

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