so yeah im a little pissy pants the atmosphere of this game is amazing and really takes whatever modern shit we got to the next level and even towards the end of my plays i still got scared and jumped all the time to stuff id already seen happen because really the game is terrifying. the design of everything here is great, and it also does a good job of making everything a really tough risk when it comes down to it. however, after rpd everything after is just kinda meh? like from first stage g to third stage g it feels a little empty and just not as immersive as rpd was, but it picks up for a really cool end on the b side. speaking of which, i feel like they couldve added a little more variety between the a and b stories, we do get different plot details but gameplay wise its pretty much the same and i appreciate that they tried to do a little extra for us with a second playthrough but it kind of amounts to being almost the same playthrough just with a little more talent from my end. definitely still a fun experience minus a few of my nitpicks.

i really have nothing bad to say about this game, as i think every part of this game is masterfully done. the mental gymnastics you have to do to ration your supplies or whether or not to kill a zombie (fuck crimsons) is super immersive and really grasps the title of "survival horror". the camera angles and sound design add to the immersion of helplessness and grasping for lifelines, and the story may be predictable but it still hits when it comes down to it. nothing in this game comes cheap, and it takes a great deal of effort to get things done and it makes it all the more worth it when you get out of that crazy mansion. the map design is absolutely genius and its phenomenal to think something like this was designed all the way back in the 90s. i cant speak much to this game as a remake, but it definitely works amazingly as a survival horror masterpiece.

the second installment in the franchise definitely ups the game on pretty much all fronts. the graphics are substantially better, the sound effects are doubled down on and even more terrifying, and the game mechanics feel a little better too. i guess my only thing about the game is oftentimes i felt like i wasnt really a player in the game and i was merely watching multiple cutscenes strung together. the story is genuinely beautiful and really provocative, but i just wish that i felt like the player actually had more of an active role in the story. i suppose it is an overdone criticism, but the game feels too simple from the role as a player, oftentimes having clunky mechanics just as a means to reach an unfulfilling result gameplay wise. as a story its a 10/10, but as a video game it falters a bit. also might be the best video game soundtrack ever it is genuinely disturbing when it needs to be and also eerily beautiful when it needs to be praise you akira yamaoka.