While some things may get better with age - wine, cheese, and that jelly tot you left on that Action Man's head - sadly, the same often isn't true of games. Go back to many of the games you grew up playing now, and the chances are you'll come away feeling like someone stamped all over your rose tinted glasses - and your heart.
Originally released in 1996, chances are Resident Evil is a game a fair few of us grew up playing. A gripping trip into a scary mansion, where zombies had taken over, and you only had your pistol to help you survive, Resident Evil was a game that defined the horror genre, and was the inspiration for hundreds more games. So good it was, that it actually hasn't aged all that badly even now, some 20 years later (graphics, and the famously awful intro notwithstanding. Seriously though, this is well worth a watch before we carry on). That also probably explains why it's been one of the (mercifully) few games to have been re-released twice. A (pretty incredible) lick of paint was all it took to breathe life into the game's formerly rotting corpse, and let the gameplay shine once more on the GameCube in 2002 - and now that version has been given a higher resolution re-release on the PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC.
For those who're stepping back into the horror for a second, or third time, it's worth mentioning that the graphics are actually the only thing that's changed here - and even then, not by much. While the game now has widescreen support, 1080p graphics, and a 5.1 soundtrack, nothing else has changed with the gameplay since the heady days of the Gamecube in 2002. And that's not a bad thing.
I hope that this is not Chris' blood...
Set in the now infamous Raccoon City, Resident Evil follows the story of the S.T.A.R.S team (that's Special Tactics And Rescue Service to you and me), as they're sent in to investigate a series of bizarre murders in the town. As could probably be expected, nothing goes according to plan, and before you can shout "WESKEERRRRR", several of your team mates have died, your helicopter ride out of there has scarpered, and you're left stranded and alone in front of a giant, spooky looking mansion. Alone, that is, apart from the zombie dogs who're looking to tear you limb from limb. With no real choice in the matter, what's left of the S.T.A.R.S team - Chris "Tree Trunk Arms" Redfield, Jill "Sandwich" Valentine, the slightly creepy Albert Wesker, and man's man Barry Burton - sprint inside the mansion, only to find themselves caught up in a story much bigger, and much creepier than what they signed up for (clue - it includes zombies, and genetic engineering).
As a visual upgrade of one of the very first horror games, Resident Evil may initially feel a bit clunky to those who're only used to modern games - but everything here has been done for a reason. Instead of true 3D environments to explore, we have static, pre-rendered backgrounds, and fixed camera angles, which gives the game a director's touch over proceedings. Sprinting down the narrow corridor, you can't move the camera to see what's ahead, and can't peer round the corner, forcing you to rely on your ears, and instincts instead. It's a small enough change, but one that makes a big different to the tension, and atmosphere, as you can never be sure what's waiting for you.
It's not all mansion you have to explore - things soon take a turn for the bizarre. Look at the teeth on that thing beneath the bridge...
Helping make sure you're never anything less than on the very edge of your seat, there's a number of other tricks at play here too. Ammo is as limited as you'd expect, with clips scattered sparsely throughout the mansion, and zombies taking so many hits to kill you end up just running past the more convenient ones just to save on your ammo. To make things even more awkward, you can only carry a maximum of six items in your inventory, with your gun taking up one slot, and any extra clips of ammo taking up another (although thankfully, you can store loads of extra ammo in one slot). What this means is that the game ends up being a game of tough choices - if you're heading into a new part of the mansion, do you go with your weak, yet reliable pistol, with plentiful ammo, or do you opt for a more powerful shotgun that has fewer bullets, and may leave you stranded in another part of the mansion with only a combat knife to defend yourself? Trust us, the latter option never ends well.
The limited inventory's designed to make your life harder in another way too, as the mansion's full of puzzles. With most of the mansion's doors locked when you first start exploring, and dead ends, weird recesses and elaborate locks galore, figuring out how to open the doors, and how to reach the parts of the mansion you've yet to explore is as much of a challenge as anything else. Clear a room, solve a puzzle, and you might get given an item. Whether it's a dog whistle with a note that mentions something about a dog that's been seen near the second floor balcony, a golden arrow with a removable tip, or a strange pendant with a button on the back that turns it into an imitation key, everything you find has a place in the mansion - all you have to do is figure out where it goes. And find space in your inventory for it. Luckily, later in the game, you do have access to a storage box that can break the space time continuum, as anything you place in the one storage box can be withdrawn from any storage box in the mansion, but that's neither here nor there.
Make sure you set fire to any zombies you see lying around. Wouldn't want them to turn into re-animated "Crimson Heads" now, would you...
Still, it's incredibly rewarding when you put the pieces together, and finding an item that gives you access to a previously unexplored part of the mansion is exciting, even if it's your third time through (as it is ours). Boss fights, genetic experiments, and genuinely terrifying monsters await you as you delve further into the bowels of the Spencer Mansion, and the more you play, the weirder things get.
There are a few perhaps slightly disappointing aspects that you think probably should have been ironed out for the HD remake though. The game's awkward save system, using ink ribbons that you have to collect (and which take up space in your inventory) not only means you can only save in certain places, but also limits the number of times you can do it - as you'll need an ink ribbon if you want to use one of the save typewriters. That's fine for those who like their games tense, but beginners would likely prefer a slightly less stressful system. Similarly, with nothing in the way of auto aim, actually hitting your target can be a bit tricky too - something that's made all the more frustrating thanks to the very limited ammo.
But perhaps the only real downside to this is that it's all a bit familiar if you've played it before. If you already have the GameCube version, there's literally no reason to get this beyond the higher resolution (which doesn't make as much of a difference as you'd expect), with no changes to the gameplay, no extra bits and pieces, and only a range of unlockable trophies as the real additions. However, if this is your first time with Resident Evil, and you fancy an adventure that's more tense than scary, that intrigues rather than creeps you out, and that has a genuinely interesting story to follow, then this could be well worth a look. When it drops in price, anyway, as £16 is more than a little bit on the expensive side for an up-rezzed game.
Format Reviewed: Playstation 4
