Resident Evil 2 Remake (Steam) Review

Remakes come in many different forms and they have varied in quality throughout the history of gaming. However, one franchise in particular, tends to get stellar remakes, reimagining what those games could attain with modern technology and design. That series is Capcom’s flagship Resident Evil franchise. Following a series revival with Resident Evil 7, Capcom took the framework established in Resident Evil 2 and created a truly excellent, content-rich horror game.

Resident Evil 2 Remake is a complete overhaul of the original title. The game’s camera now operates in a 3rd person view, similar in a way to what was done in Resident Evil 6 with full rotation. This allows players to take in their surroundings more easily, even though the original game’s fixed, cinematic camera angles helped define that title. Another immediate change in this remake is the inclusion of dark areas, forcing Claire and Leon to carefully make their way by flashlight. These moments provide tension that elevates a horror game and they can be rather challenging.

Of course, the Resident Evil 2 remake sports a new graphical style (although one can download free skins that make the heroes look like they did in 1998) using the impressive RE Engine that was used in RE7 and Devil May Cry 5. This gives the character models a lot of life, particularly in their faces with hair modeling akin to something Square Enix would do in the Final Fantasy series. This, coupled with excellent lighting, makes the RE2 Remake a sight to behold and on PC there are plenty of options to dial graphics back or push them further.

Personally, I was excited when this remake was announced but I didn’t pick it up until way after release. I did have some recent history with the original game; I played through an A and B run but didn’t do much else. Even for the time, RE2 on the PSX was packed with extras and reasons to keep playing. I found that the original held up extremely well and enjoyed it thoroughly on the PS3. It would have been amazing to see the original also release alongside the remake as a pack-in or something but there are plenty of additional modes to challenge players and test them to their absolute limits.

I can easily recommend to most players RE2 Remake, at least the story modes. Some of the additional modes can get annoyingly tough but the story modes are enjoyable through 90% of the game. There are a couple of spots that feel like trial and error; one particular encounter with a sewer gator just felt like quick-time events had come back. That and some segments when trying to navigate around Mr. X can be frustrating; he’s a powerful enemy that will not go down so fighting him is always a waste of resources except in the direst situations.

Each enemy feels threatening from Mr. X to the common zombie with extremely gruesome modeling and gut-wrenching sound effects. Zombies are center stage and they have lots of minute behaviors that can make them tough to get a good shot on. They lull oddly when they walk, their heads roll from side to side, and they almost always are accompanied by more zombies. Enemy placement throughout the game is brilliant and can make for some exciting scares. Sometimes they’ll be perfectly waiting in an alcove or a tougher enemy will slink into view from afar. There are lots of little moments spread throughout the game that makes it feel that much more frightening, especially the first time through.

Even though the enemies are much of the focus of the gameplay, either through dispatching or by avoiding them, where Resident Evil 2 Remake shines is the level design and the puzzle box elements at work. This is a type of design that’s also prevalent in the Legend of Zelda series but essentially a puzzle box level is an area with lots of keys and items that open up other areas without necessarily being linear in nature. Much of RE2 Remake has a flow to it that makes it hard to ever feel lost but a lot of things can be done in various orders. I loved picking apart the map and steadily unlocking the police station and its many connected levels. It helps that there are hardly any loading screens aside from a death or a cutscene that briefly interrupts the gameplay. The puzzle box is why I also enjoyed Resident Evil 1 so much. I think this type of design is the strongest facet of the franchise and I hope to see it further explored in future titles.

While the narrative was certainly entertaining in the original game, the remake expands upon a lot of moments and makes things more dramatic with the cast of characters. Cutscenes are well-written with good pacing, often giving minor characters a larger role. Overall, the improvements to the game’s story make the plot way more enjoyable and easier to understand. I still think that the overall sequence of events in the Resident Evil franchise is a bit messy but with each remake, we get a more cohesive mess.

The RE2 Remake is packed with extras. Even just beating the various paths in the story is expanded upon with more unlockable weapons and a handy chart to keep track of times and ranks. Some of the harder difficulty levels really ask a lot of players but getting super-powered weapons as a reward to overcoming those tasks allows for moments of absolute cathartic glee. Classic modes starring Hunk and the weird Tofu dude return as well with expanded elements. For those that struggle with meeting the unlock requirements, there is a $5 USD option for purchase.

Aside from what people were hoping from a remake as extensive as this, players also get four extra missions with their own list of unlockable cosmetics. These Ghost Survivor stories star side characters and go through fun “What if?” scenarios. I especially liked the first one starring Robert Kendo, owner of the gun shop. His story takes a much darker turn this time around and it's fun to strike out and leave Racoon City for a bit of closure on the character. While these episodes are fun, they can be frustratingly tough. While I do enjoy overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds, some segments just seem like less-considered designs. I hate it when games just add too many enemies to make things harder, which is why I loved Dead Space 2 until the final act, souring the overall game for me. I am infinitely impressed by the players that make these modes seem so effortless. Speedrunners, in particular, have a lot of options in Resident Evil 2 Remake.

Aside from extra modes, there are a lot of achievements to unlock, the type that can keep one busy for hours upon hours. There’s also a lot of concept art to earn and models for both items and characters. Some of these creatures look utterly nightmarish and I would love to have a statue of the G Virus beast’s third form.

This remake is so damn impressive from the smallest of details, the continuous messing with player expectations (something Capcom has been doing in this franchise since the outset), and the extremely long list of options to play. There is something here for every type of horror player: those that just want the story and thrills that that pertains, those looking to make their mark on the leaderboards, or those that just want to run around as a Rambo-esque Tofu. I am blown away that all of this is in the game and I am beyond excited to see other games in the franchise get a similar treatment.

Following an announcement during a recent State of Play video from PlayStation, Resident Evil 3 is next for the remake treatment but I would also love to see something similar done to Code Veronica, Dino Crisis, or even Onimusha (a series I quickly fell in love with). While I love these remakes, I do hope we get to see something brand new from Capcom soon. Their franchises are strong but their sense of design could definitely lead to whole new excellence.

All in all, Resident Evil 2 is one of the best horror games I’ve ever played.

More information about Resident Evil 2 Remake can be found on the official website. A Steam copy was purchased by the reviewer. Screenshots were captured through Steam; the graphical quality can vary based on settings.

SCORES

GAMEPLAY - 9/10

VISUALS - 10/10

SOUND - 10/10

CONTROLS - 10/10

REPLAY VALUE - 10/10

OVERALL - 9.8/10