Resident Evil 2 Remake Review: Survival horror masterpiece still sublime twenty years on (Pic: CAPCOM)
Twenty-one years after its original release, Resident Evil 2 is back for a second bite.
With the same storyline, undead monsters and Racoon City setting, the biggest changes are the implementation of stunning HD graphics and brand-new features.
The story is split into two main sections with separate playable characters whose stories run parallel to each other.
The game opens with rookie police officer – Leon Kennedy – arriving in Racoon City to a scene of zombie-infestation and wide-spread panic.
After finding a fellow survivor in motorcycle-riding Claire Redfield, the pair head deep into the city, each with their own personal mission to complete.
Claire is looking for her missing brother, Chris, and Leon crosses paths with a mysterious stranger named Ada Wong.
No matter which character you choose to play as, Claire and Leons stories progress similarly, sharing the same plot points with slight alterations and the odd exclusive area.
The puzzles you encounter are slightly different too. Key items cannot be found where the other character discovered them, and solutions must be arrived at in different ways.
Leon and Claire also have a slightly different weapon set, with Leon finding a shotgun early on and Claire favouring a grenade launcher.
Staying true to its origins, the remake of Resident Evil 2 is dedicated to survival horror in its purest form.
Whether youre exploring the eerie Racoon City Police Station or the dingy sewers, one thing always stays the same: Ammunition is hard to find, and health is even more scarce.
To combat the lack of recovery herbs and ammo, Capcom has integrated a simple crafting system into the inventory to give you a fighting chance of staying alive.
Seemingly useless items can be combined with others to create bullets, health products or even a new key object repurposed from an old item.
However, due to limited inventory space it can often be hard to decide which items to take and which to leave behind, creating the uneasy feeling of never being adequately prepared for the situation youre in.
And for the first major section of the game, you find yourself trapped inside an impressively large police station which essentially acts as one giant puzzle box.
“The stunning graphics, incredible survival horror combat and wonderfully eerie setting make picking up a copy of Resident Evil 2 a no-brainer”
Youll only be able to complete your main mission once all the smaller puzzles in the area have been completed, so manoeuvring around the tight corridors and searching every dusty shelf becomes essential.
Though puzzles are often simplistic, the sheer number of key items can often disorientate you, leaving you unsure of how to clear your next checkpoint.
Thankfully, opening the map will reveal which rooms youre yet to visit, which are not fully-cleared or and which have been completed.
This may be a small touch but cross-referencing objects in your inventory with each coloured room on the map often eradicates frustration.
Whilst your exploring, sound design in Resident Evil 2 is flawless and certainly contributes to the tension.
Guttural moans echo down corridors and wind whistles through broken windows. The score also soars into a panic-inducing crescendo during intense combat with bigger foes.
Throughout the indoor areas, cat and mouse chases are frequent and when youre faced with a maze of dark rooms and locked doors it quickly becomes impossible to stay calm and think rationally.
Out on the city streets, cars have been abandoned and corpses litter sidewalks. Thunder bellows above and rain hammers onto the tarmac at your feet, leaving your vision obscured and your hearing impaired.
Pair this with the new photorealistic graphics, as well as the modern over-the-shoulder third-person style, and this is a game that doesnt feel dated at all.
Even the most minute background details look incredibly realistic and, with a 60FPS framerate no matter the age or iteration of your console, the grotesque monsters youll encounter look more horrifying than ever before.
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