Wow, for the very first entry in the series this was so much better than I was expecting. The base gameplay structure, tone, and atmosphere of the whole series is laid out plainly here right at the start; it's not hard to see why this became an instant classic. In particular the ink ribbon system is fucking genius, and sorely missing from the modern RE games. Their scarcity in this game in particular really ratchets up the tension in a way that's impossible with an any-time save system . And while the remake is definitely the better game, there was a certain pace to the more compact level design here that I really enjoyed. This game is also famous for having some of the best voice acting and writing ever put to screen, and I have to agree with that assessment. The line delivery is just inspiring.
It's definitely rough around the edges, with a difficulty curve that peaks right at the beginning and right at the end and resource distribution that seems incredibly haphazard and unhelpful compared to later games. It's also not particularly tense compared to the other games in the original trilogy, and the use of camera angles isn't nearly as creative. Which, given that it was inventing an entire genre back in 1996, isn't particularly surprising. It's still an iconic game almost 25 years later, and worth checking out even after playing the remake in my opinion.