resident evil 2 review
TEST of Resident Evil 2: The second youth of a mythFruit of a development to say the least hectic and following the legendary Resident Evil, this second episode has, by its history, its structure, its music and its gameplay, managed to be among the favorite episodes of fans of the series. This is why his remake has for years been the most demanded by fans. 21 years after the release of the original game, Capcom finally offers its new version of the adventures of Leon and Claire. Did the Japanese publisher do as well as when it recreated the original Resident Evil on GameCube? This is what we will see.
Even if we no longer present Resident Evil 2, a reminder of its scenario is essential. After the events told in the first Resident Evil, things degenerate and the virus spreads in the city of Raccoon City. Like the original version, Resident Evil 2 features two heroes: Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield. Leon is a young Raccoon City police recruit on his way to his new assignment when he realizes that an unprecedented disaster has occurred. Claire is the younger sister of Chris Redfield, one of the heroes of the first Resident Evil, which she has not heard from for a while. In order to try to find her trace, she goes to Raccoon City, city in which the latter works in a special police unit. The two young people quickly got to know each other and decided to help each other. But fate means that they are separated upon their arrival in downtown Raccoon City.
Travel on familiar ground
Resident Evil forces, their respective affairs will go from bad to worse. And it will be necessary for them to face nameless horrors to manage to flee, and incidentally understand what happened. For people who played the original game, it is obvious that it is a remake. Most of the key scenes are there, even if they are not always where they are expected, and the story is very much that of the original Resident Evil 2. However, if the game respects the plot of the Resident Evil 2 of 1998, certain elements, such as the sequence with the Chief of Police Brian Irons and the daughter of the mayor Warren have been put aside in this new version Game.As we told you in our last preview, Resident Evil 2 does offer new footage. If some of them logically stage the two heroes of the game, others allow to play the supporting roles, Ada Wong and Sherry Birkin. If the presence of these sequences is appreciable, no addition made here by Capcom really has an impact on the narrative as a whole. Even if some unpublished scenes are particularly successful, such as the passage to the Kendo Gun Shop, it is regrettable that the Japanese editor did not manage to integrate into the intrigue a new element as striking as was Lisa Trevor in the remake of the very first Resident Evil.
The BA of Survival Horror
In the interviews given by the producers of Resident Evil 2 after the presentation of the game at E3 2018, including in the interview with your servant, the latter had assured that the remake campaign would not take up the Leon A- structure Claire B and Claire A-Leon B that used the original Resident Evil 2. This is not entirely true. During the first part on this remake, the game actually asks to choose between Leon and Claire. But once the campaign has ended for the first time, the player then has the option of going through a "Bis" campaign with the character he did not choose the first time.During the latter, which starts much faster than the initial part, the order of events is significantly changed and some scenes are replaced by others. To see the full end of Resident Evil 2, and to get the full experience offered by the game, it is necessary to complete the main scenario as well as the "Bis" scenario. If the idea is good and generally well exploited, it is unfortunately possible to note small inconsistencies during the transition from the main scenario to the scenario "Bis," such as the need to redo certain puzzles for example. It absolutely does not spoil the fun but deserved to be emphasized.
A player accustomed to Resident Evil will take less than seven hours to complete the main scenario during his first game in "Normal" difficulty mode. The "Bis" campaign will require an hour less. In addition, this remake performs automatic backups in "Normal" and allows to save at will. In "Extreme" difficulty, the automatic backups disappear and the ink ribbons limiting the number of possible backups are back (in addition to increasing the resistance of the zombies). Fans of the series who wish to live an even more authentic and arduous experience therefore have every interest in playing in "Extreme". As screenshots and trailers shown by Capcom have shown, Hunk and Tofu are also back and offer a tough challenge to those who want to face an ever-increasing challenge.
That being said, even in the absence of these bonuses, the game cannot be put away so easily. One of the strengths of Resident Evil 2 is that it leaves the player with a strong desire to start the adventure again as soon as it has been completed for the first time. The traditional end-of-game classification system and the desire to start again by optimizing your movements and your management of clashes / objects to grab a few minutes of the final completion time make Resident Evil 2 suitable for repeated games. And this, without any feeling of redundancy. Like the original episodes, this remake makes you want to do speedrun even for players who are not at all interested in this practice.
Between tradition and modernity
When the development of this Resident Evil 2 remake was confirmed by Capcom, the question of the choice of the type of gameplay was logically immediately raised by the players. Coming out of Resident Evil 7 and its first-person view, it made sense to wonder what the Japanese publisher was going to choose for this long-overdue redesign. As everyone now knows, Capcom has chosen the third-person view with camera over the shoulder. For those who are used to this type of view, getting started with Resident Evil 2 is done very quickly. The automatisms are created in the first minutes, and the gameplay should not disturb the players.The arrival of modern TPS-style gameplay in Resident Evil 2 made some fear the simplification of the game. To compensate for this, Capcom has revised the aggression and resistance of enemies upward, while limiting the ammunition made available to the hero . Suffice to say right away, a person who intends to cross the game (in Normal or Extreme) by shooting in the heap may not go very far. Even taking care to aim at the heads of enemies and avoiding combat if possible, it is not uncommon to find yourself running out of ammunition. Traditional zombies, once weak and clumsy, have become extremely resilient and particularly hungry. Even when aiming correctly, emptying a magazine onto a single zombie is a situation that can occur frequently in this remake. And the story of doing it right, the slightest attack from zombies, dogs, Lickers, etc. does considerable damage.
It's good to have the balls
Basically, the feeling of permanent danger is definitely there in Resident Evil 2. And things only get worse when the awesome Tyrant T-103, more commonly known as Mr. X, comes in, massive enemy sent by Umbrella to eliminate all witnesses to the disaster. While it was originally confined to scenarios B in the original Resident Evil 2, it is present here in all versions of the plot. Extremely resistant and powerful, this latter tracks Leon and Claire during the whole adventure like a steamroller in raincoat and hat and with a silent charisma all his own. This does not matter the situations or the possible presence of other enemies. By its look, its behavior, and the staging it benefits from (more information on this subject below in the test), Mr. X is one of the big strengths of the 2019 version of Resident Evil 2. His Screen presence is obviously dreaded, and it doesn't make the player's life easier. But if it had not been there, the game would not have been as successful.To finish with the gameplay, it should be noted that its modernization is not total. To face enemies much more surly and resistant than in the past, as well as Mr. X, Capcom could have added a dodge button similar to that of Resident Evil 3. That said, it is quite the editor may have deliberately refrained from adding this movement in order not to oversimplify the players' task. For its part, the possibility of making a quick U-turn is always present. And in terms of the management of objects and puzzles, fans of the original title should be on familiar ground despite the addition of elements from episodes released after the latter (such as powder mixtures to create ammunition for example). From a joystick experience point of view, Resident Evil 2 is a real success for early Survival Horror fans. Upon its initial discovery, the game is scary, stressful, and should not be viewed as a third-person shooter. Capcom has shown here that it can reproduce an old-fashioned experience, with the sensations that go with it, while modernizing the gameplay.
The sublimated horror
Besides the respect given to the intrigue of the original work and the modifications made to the gameplay, the realization is the other element closely watched as soon as there is question of a game remake. In the case of Resident Evil 2 , Capcom has done things very well. Its RE Engine will delight the universe imagined by Hideki Kamiya and company in the late 90s. The environments are, despite the changes made for the needs of the remake, both recognizable at first glance and magnified (just watch a video of the original game after playing this remake to be convinced). These decorations are also greatly helped by the work carried out by Capcom in terms of brightness, atmosphere and effects. The shaded areas requiring the use of a flashlight to see a little brighter, the light that filters from the outside through windows, the pouring rain of footage outside or the fire of incendiary grenades are just some of the visual successes of Resident Evil 2. During the first minutes of play in the police station, the deliberately reduced visibility and the sound environment push the player to grope for fear of what may be other side of a door.As for the characters, the work done is also successful there. The RE Engine allows more realistic modeling of the protagonists and the game clearly benefits. And it may be strange to say, but Resident Evil 2 certainly benefits from the most beautiful zombies seen so far in a video game. Absolutely horrible, they suffer localized damage and see their condition deteriorate as they are attacked by the hero. And what about the absolute gore of their bites. After years of interchangeable generic zombies, Resident Evil 2 gives back their nobility to the video game undead. Obviously, the other enemies of the game benefit from an equally careful modeling. Special mention to the zombie plants that are as painful as they are disgusting.
To quibble, it is not incongruous to say that certain facial expressions (those of Claire in particular) can place the characters in the uncanny valley. In addition, a small flicker can sometimes be perceived on certain environments and on water. And this, including on PS4 Pro. It is also strange to see that the animations of enemies distant from the player are jerky and become fluid when they are close to the hero. But overall, Resident Evil 2 is a real visual success that transported this game from the end of the 20th century with flying colors.
Discreet music
Sound has always played an essential role in Resident Evil. It is therefore essential to stop at this element of the game, starting with the dialogues. As fans of the first hour remember, the Resident Evil of the beginnings did not benefit from particularly neat dubbing. On this side, there is clearly the best in this remake (some useless vulgarities and Sherry replicas aside). In addition, the game was entitled, unlike the original, to a dubbing in French, which is always good for people allergic to subtitles. The zombies and other creatures make noises and other cries to them which contribute to making the atmosphere not particularly warm. But when it comes to music, there are other things to say.Like its illustrious predecessor, the original Resident Evil 2 had tracks that, 20 years later, still resonate in the heads of fans of the series. Unfortunately, the music of the remake is not as striking and is more discreet than were their illustrious elders. In the original Resident Evil 2, the music corresponded to specific places and situations. Here, they mainly serve to accentuate punctual situations. Backup rooms, for example, no longer have dedicated music. The musical theme that starts when you first arrive in the police station hall is also absent. And for fans of the series, this absence is felt.
The only sound element that really stands out, and in a good sense of the term, here is the treatment given to the sound accompaniment of the passages in which Mr. X appears. When the latter approaches the room in which he is located the hero, it is possible to hear heavy footsteps through the walls. The arrival of the Tyrant in the immediate vicinity of the player is itself systematically accompanied by the start of a special musical theme to say the least scary. These two elements contribute to accentuate the tension and the feeling of danger of the situation. Overall, the treatment given to this enemy is top notch and makes you dream about what Capcom could do with the Nemesis ...
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