The original Resident Evil is a great game, but it is a little rough around the edges. Although it has aged rather well, a remake was warranted. However, how does one remake Resident Evil, especially after a relatively short period? You hire Shinji Mikami as director, of course. After all, who would know more about Resident Evil than the original's director? Capcom intended for REmake to be a darker, scarier, and overall more realistic interpretation of the original, and I'd say they leaped above and beyond expectations, creating what I'd argue is the best survival horror game of all time.
The plot, originally written by Kenichi Iwao and Yasuyuki Saga, is relatively unchanged, so I won't be going into specific details. If you've played the original, you know what to expect here. The original game had quite a good story, but it was marred by haphazard execution. Said execution is mostly improved here. Plot reveals are set up much better and character motivations are explored in more detail. There is a genuinely interesting mystery here and if you're not familiar with the original you'll find yourself invested. Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield are still somewhat flat protagonists, but it's more than made up for by the supporting cast. Barry Burton, Rebecca Chambers (my favorite), and Albert Wesker are all great additions to the cast and remain memorable over two decades later. The only outright new plot element is Lisa Trevor, and while I will not spoil the mystery surrounding her, she adds to the story's emotional core in an effective way.
While the central narrative involving the STARS members is certainly good, I found the environmental storytelling much more interesting. The bottles of alcohol lining a scientist's bedroom. The swaying zombie corpse hung from the banister. The letter to a lover, pleading her to forgive him. It feels like you've stepped into a world where you don't belong, that you're intruding on the personal lives of everyone who used to be here. It feels like this whole area used to be filled with people, but they all just up and left. It helps to flesh out the world in a masterful way.
Capcom was not simply content with remaking Resident Evil with better graphics and narrative tweaks. Instead, the entire game has been redesigned from a gameplay perspective, forming the ultimate survival horror experience. Not only do you have to struggle with limited health and ammunition, but also kerosene. In REmake, zombies do not die. When defeated, their corpses will reanimate later on as a crimson head, which is faster and stronger than the average shambling husk. To prevent this, the player must burn the corpses using kerosene. However, there isn't much of it, and not every corpse can be burned. In addition to carefully planning which zombies are worth killing, one now has to consider the potential dangers of doing so, which adds yet another layer of strategy to a game already so mechanically complex. The game is also incredibly difficult but in a way that comes off as ridiculously satisfying. When I died, it is because I had poorly planned a run rather than Capcom pulling out some unperceivable trick. You can't take very much damage, and enemies deal a lot, which helps make every encounter terrifying as even the lowliest zombie can end potentially 20 minutes of progress. If you play your cards right, and properly plan for any potential encounters, you will eventually become a survival machine that can handle any encounter, though the game does not lose its difficulty even then. Puzzles are also moderately improved. While they may not be particularly challenging they are creative and are satisfying to complete. They add to the sense that you are not just exploring the Spencer Mansion but slowly unwrapping its layers.
Another thing I enjoy is the playable characters. Unlike most games, where choosing a protagonist tends to only affect the story, there is an inherent gameplay difference between Jill and Chris. Jill may be more of a glass cannon, but she has two extra inventory slots, which goes a long way. Chris on the other hand is a bit tankier, but he is missing two slots and this makes backtracking to safe rooms a more frequent endeavor. Jill also has a lockpick which can be used to open simple locks throughout the mansion. Instead, Chris has to locate a limited number of old keys to open these doors, putting additional strain on your resource management. Chris, needless to say, is the game's hard mode and should be reserved for second playthroughs. Nevertheless, I still find his campaign particularly rewarding and I enjoy how Capcom went out of their way to make sure each character played differently.
REmake is a visual masterpiece. From the art direction down to the technical elements, every single visual element of this game works perfectly within intention. The dark, cobwebbed corridors of the mansion are beautifully rendered via pre-rendered backgrounds, providing significantly more detail than the GameCube's hardware could ever hope to provide in real-time. The backgrounds are impressively dynamic and layered, too. Dynamic lighting bounces off the walls and 3D models pass beneath pre-rendered elements. Even when rendered at 1440p, the effect remains convincing. Character models are detailed and while facial animation isn't mindblowing it's better than a lot of games at the time. Monsters are realized with disgusting fidelity and remain disturbing even today. REmake is probably the best-looking game on the GameCube and reaches levels of realism unparalleled by even other 6th generation visual masterworks like Silent Hill 3.
The soundtrack, rearranged by Shusaku Uchiyama, features the same songs from the original game redone to better fit the tone. Although I don't exactly know if I'd say they're better than the originals, they're more fitting for Mikami's differing vision. It adds to the more realistic atmosphere while still keeping the musical themes that made the original's score so iconic. Which one is overall better will be up to personal taste, but I find REmake's score to be at least on par and a perfect complement to the visuals.
The original game's voice acting is infamous for being hilariously bad, ruining a lot of the tension in cutscenes. Naturally, REmake being a more realistic interpretation of RE1, redubbed the voice lines to be more natural. The voice acting in REmake is still not great, though it is an improvement. There is not a single line of dialog that is nearly as bad as the original's, but it can still be spotty at points. Joe Whyte, Ed Smaron, and Hope Levy do a decent job with their roles despite occasional iffy line delivery. I found that Heidi Anderson-Swan, Jill's actress, was the least convincing with her performance. I wouldn't call her bad necessarily but she could have been cast better. Peter Jessop gives the game's best performance, portraying Wesker as a truly manipulative and evil man. Overall, not bad, but not fantastic either.
The only major criticism I have isn't of the game itself, but rather, the PC port of the HD Remaster. It's a bit of a mess. Firstly, the port is unnecessarily demanding on lower to mid-end hardware, leading to an inconsistent framerate on those machines. Secondly, despite supporting 120 FPS, the game forces your monitor to output in 60 hertz in fullscreen mode, causing screen-tearing. The game also has no borderless fullscreen mode, meaning that when alt-tabbing, the game has to not only defocus the game but also change the refresh rate back to your monitor's default. This is incredibly inconvenient. Some music tracks even play faster than they're supposed to. These issues can all be fixed with relative ease, but shouldn't exist in the first place. Nevertheless, the PC port is the only way you can currently experience this game in 60 FPS or greater, so it's worth it if you're willing to spend 20 minutes downloading some fixes.
Shinji Mikami's Resident Evil Remake is a survival horror masterpiece. Everything that matters in this game is done perfectly. From the atmosphere to game design, to horror, to visuals, it accomplishes it all. It even expands on the story in a meaningful way, which I greatly appreciate. Insanely difficult, incredibly terrifying, and unfathomably gorgeous, REmake is a game everyone needs to play.
The plot, originally written by Kenichi Iwao and Yasuyuki Saga, is relatively unchanged, so I won't be going into specific details. If you've played the original, you know what to expect here. The original game had quite a good story, but it was marred by haphazard execution. Said execution is mostly improved here. Plot reveals are set up much better and character motivations are explored in more detail. There is a genuinely interesting mystery here and if you're not familiar with the original you'll find yourself invested. Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield are still somewhat flat protagonists, but it's more than made up for by the supporting cast. Barry Burton, Rebecca Chambers (my favorite), and Albert Wesker are all great additions to the cast and remain memorable over two decades later. The only outright new plot element is Lisa Trevor, and while I will not spoil the mystery surrounding her, she adds to the story's emotional core in an effective way.
While the central narrative involving the STARS members is certainly good, I found the environmental storytelling much more interesting. The bottles of alcohol lining a scientist's bedroom. The swaying zombie corpse hung from the banister. The letter to a lover, pleading her to forgive him. It feels like you've stepped into a world where you don't belong, that you're intruding on the personal lives of everyone who used to be here. It feels like this whole area used to be filled with people, but they all just up and left. It helps to flesh out the world in a masterful way.
Capcom was not simply content with remaking Resident Evil with better graphics and narrative tweaks. Instead, the entire game has been redesigned from a gameplay perspective, forming the ultimate survival horror experience. Not only do you have to struggle with limited health and ammunition, but also kerosene. In REmake, zombies do not die. When defeated, their corpses will reanimate later on as a crimson head, which is faster and stronger than the average shambling husk. To prevent this, the player must burn the corpses using kerosene. However, there isn't much of it, and not every corpse can be burned. In addition to carefully planning which zombies are worth killing, one now has to consider the potential dangers of doing so, which adds yet another layer of strategy to a game already so mechanically complex. The game is also incredibly difficult but in a way that comes off as ridiculously satisfying. When I died, it is because I had poorly planned a run rather than Capcom pulling out some unperceivable trick. You can't take very much damage, and enemies deal a lot, which helps make every encounter terrifying as even the lowliest zombie can end potentially 20 minutes of progress. If you play your cards right, and properly plan for any potential encounters, you will eventually become a survival machine that can handle any encounter, though the game does not lose its difficulty even then. Puzzles are also moderately improved. While they may not be particularly challenging they are creative and are satisfying to complete. They add to the sense that you are not just exploring the Spencer Mansion but slowly unwrapping its layers.
Another thing I enjoy is the playable characters. Unlike most games, where choosing a protagonist tends to only affect the story, there is an inherent gameplay difference between Jill and Chris. Jill may be more of a glass cannon, but she has two extra inventory slots, which goes a long way. Chris on the other hand is a bit tankier, but he is missing two slots and this makes backtracking to safe rooms a more frequent endeavor. Jill also has a lockpick which can be used to open simple locks throughout the mansion. Instead, Chris has to locate a limited number of old keys to open these doors, putting additional strain on your resource management. Chris, needless to say, is the game's hard mode and should be reserved for second playthroughs. Nevertheless, I still find his campaign particularly rewarding and I enjoy how Capcom went out of their way to make sure each character played differently.
REmake is a visual masterpiece. From the art direction down to the technical elements, every single visual element of this game works perfectly within intention. The dark, cobwebbed corridors of the mansion are beautifully rendered via pre-rendered backgrounds, providing significantly more detail than the GameCube's hardware could ever hope to provide in real-time. The backgrounds are impressively dynamic and layered, too. Dynamic lighting bounces off the walls and 3D models pass beneath pre-rendered elements. Even when rendered at 1440p, the effect remains convincing. Character models are detailed and while facial animation isn't mindblowing it's better than a lot of games at the time. Monsters are realized with disgusting fidelity and remain disturbing even today. REmake is probably the best-looking game on the GameCube and reaches levels of realism unparalleled by even other 6th generation visual masterworks like Silent Hill 3.
The soundtrack, rearranged by Shusaku Uchiyama, features the same songs from the original game redone to better fit the tone. Although I don't exactly know if I'd say they're better than the originals, they're more fitting for Mikami's differing vision. It adds to the more realistic atmosphere while still keeping the musical themes that made the original's score so iconic. Which one is overall better will be up to personal taste, but I find REmake's score to be at least on par and a perfect complement to the visuals.
The original game's voice acting is infamous for being hilariously bad, ruining a lot of the tension in cutscenes. Naturally, REmake being a more realistic interpretation of RE1, redubbed the voice lines to be more natural. The voice acting in REmake is still not great, though it is an improvement. There is not a single line of dialog that is nearly as bad as the original's, but it can still be spotty at points. Joe Whyte, Ed Smaron, and Hope Levy do a decent job with their roles despite occasional iffy line delivery. I found that Heidi Anderson-Swan, Jill's actress, was the least convincing with her performance. I wouldn't call her bad necessarily but she could have been cast better. Peter Jessop gives the game's best performance, portraying Wesker as a truly manipulative and evil man. Overall, not bad, but not fantastic either.
The only major criticism I have isn't of the game itself, but rather, the PC port of the HD Remaster. It's a bit of a mess. Firstly, the port is unnecessarily demanding on lower to mid-end hardware, leading to an inconsistent framerate on those machines. Secondly, despite supporting 120 FPS, the game forces your monitor to output in 60 hertz in fullscreen mode, causing screen-tearing. The game also has no borderless fullscreen mode, meaning that when alt-tabbing, the game has to not only defocus the game but also change the refresh rate back to your monitor's default. This is incredibly inconvenient. Some music tracks even play faster than they're supposed to. These issues can all be fixed with relative ease, but shouldn't exist in the first place. Nevertheless, the PC port is the only way you can currently experience this game in 60 FPS or greater, so it's worth it if you're willing to spend 20 minutes downloading some fixes.
Shinji Mikami's Resident Evil Remake is a survival horror masterpiece. Everything that matters in this game is done perfectly. From the atmosphere to game design, to horror, to visuals, it accomplishes it all. It even expands on the story in a meaningful way, which I greatly appreciate. Insanely difficult, incredibly terrifying, and unfathomably gorgeous, REmake is a game everyone needs to play.