Opinion Blog: Ranking the Resident Evils

 Class photo!  Everybody pout and brandish firearms!

This likely surprises no-one after the kicking I gave the last movie but I loooove Resident Evil.  Love love love it, through thick and thin, for almost as long as I've been gaming.  These are the places and monsters that creeped me out as a kid the way a Freddy Krueger or Jason Voorhees might have done for past generations, and I've been meaning to do more about the series on the blog for a while now.

So, while I'm in the midst of playing through all the games I've got laying around here again, I'm going to start by explaining where on the scale of...goodness?...each individual game stands, as not all Resis are created equal.

(Note: This post will strictly concern itself with the 'core' Resident Evil titles, ignoring rail shooters, mobile games, Gaiden and the various online-focused multiplayer games.)

#10: RESIDENT EVIL CODE: VERONICA

What happens?

Claire Redfield, still tracking down her brother, is captured by Umbrella forces and locked up on the remote Rockfort Island.  Shortly after, Rockfort is attacked by forces unknown, and Claire - along with fellow prisoner Steve Burnside - goes to make a break for it, but meets resistance from both the undead victims of the inevitable T-Virus outbreak, and the island's reclusive lunatic commander, Alfred Ashford.

Why here?

Uggghh.  Of all these games, only the lowest two are so poor I can never be bothered to give them another chance, and at least #9 has an obvious excuse.  Code: Veronica might have one of the most interesting stories in the entire series, but it is such a slog.  The environments are breathtakingly dull in design and filtered through some of the shoddiest graphics the series has ever had, the voice acting (save for Alyson Court, reliably great as Claire) does its best to torpedo all the nuance from the script, the boss encounters are dull and/or frustrating in the extreme, there's no pleasing pattern to how you unlock new areas, and the whole thing feels twice as long as it needs to be.  Really, what does the player actually gain by dragging Chris around the ruins of Rockfort, other than confirming Wesker is alive (something you already knew by that point in the 'X' version)?  Praise the singularity for Darkside Chronicles, so you can play through this story quickly without getting bored out of your mind.

Best bit?

Steve's goodbye is legitimately moving enough to overcome all the irritance surrounding the character, and even his Sonic the Hedgehog voice doesn't ruin the moment.

Worst bit?

Take your pick from any of the additional Wesker scenes added for the 'X' version.  Yes, yes, Wesker's cool now, we get it.  He doesn't have to show up every half-hour to run up walls or strangle someone just to prove it.

Legacy effect?

By which I mean the most unfortunate trait passed onto subsequent titles from this one...although honestly, I don't know how well it applies to Code: Veronica.  There's very little new or distinct about how the game plays.  The one thing it definitely started was the use of Wesker as the series' biggest supervillain; that character had been dead since Resi 1 with no implication of survival, but then he's here and, thanks to the 'Wesker's Report' video released in Japan, was rapidly built up into a clandestine master of puppets who's orchestrated more of the series than anyone could've guessed.  Whether that's bad or not depends on your personal opinion, though sometimes I do think the series became more obsessed about creating ridiculous continuity fixes than actually telling stories.

~+~

#9: RESIDENT EVIL (ORIGINAL/DIRECTOR'S CUT)

What happens?

The Alpha Team of the Raccoon City S.T.A.R.S (Special Tactics and Rescue Squad) head into the Arklay Forest to find out why there Bravo Team associates have dropped off the map.  Upon arrival, they're beset by undead hounds, and their helicopter takes off without them; the survivors take refuge in a long-forgotten, creepy mansion which turns out to have working electricity (yay!) and be full to the brim with zombies and monsters (less yay).  As Jill Valentine and/or Chris Redfield look for a way out, the truth behind the mansion's grotesque inhabitants slowly comes into focus...

Why here?

In another circumstance, I might be kinder to Resi 1.  It is, of course, the father of the whole series, with every following game learning from its example, so the fact that it's one of the wonkiest to play shouldn't really surprise anyone, nor should the ham-fisted script or amateur voicework.  Unfortunately, as we'll go into detail later, it's been superceded very directly, and trying to go back to this one now after being spoiled by more recent titles is an exercise of frustration.  It's not nearly as duff as Code:Veronica - if nothing else, it's shorter - and sometimes the kitsch value amuses me, but if you must know what happened in 'the Mansion incident', there are better options easily available.  Also, when are we going to stop calling this 'the Mansion incident'?  There's like six dozen mansions in this series.

Best bit?

Jill sandwich.  Not just for the stupid line, but the 'descending ceiling' trap is expertly set up and played, especially with Jill when you can't open either door and really start to panic.

Worst bit?

The lab area.  The graphics sadly weren't up to the task of making this bit look quite grisly enough to be chilling, and the Chimeras are a pretty weak-sauce adversary.

Legacy effect?

Man, what hasn't been taken from this one?  Resi 1 had plenty of problems, but it established how the series should play, how the controls worked, how the music should sound, etc.  There's not a whole lot that got left behind, except maybe for legendarily terrible voice acting (and arguably, Code: Veronica brought that back in style).

~+~

#8: RESIDENT EVIL 5

What happens?

It's 2009 and Umbrella is long gone, but its many viruses and B.O.Ws are now hot commodities on the black market.  A tip-off leads Chris Redfield, now an agent of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, to the Kijuju Autonomous Zone in Africa, where he and new partner Sheva Alomar encounter a new offshoot of the Las Plagas parasites and the return of Albert Wesker, who finally steps from the shadows to implement his endgame for the human race.

Why here?

Resi 5 is the death knell for this series being termed 'survival horror'.  Sure, in some situations it's still very easy to die, and the monsters are still a freakish lot, but there's almost no attempt at horror-movie pacing, nor any attempt to build an atmosphere of dread; the game's too busy shouting and throwing explosions at you to worry about a little thing like that.  I've only just recently tried playing it again, and it's not nearly as hateful as I remember; only the fiddly, limited inventory system is getting on my nerves.  Also, I respect the efforts made to wrap-up the whole Umbrella arc, with the deaths of Wesker and Spencer and the nifty 'History of Resi' file that finally cements a single timeline for the whole series and lets us know which retcons actually count going forwards.  Even so, all of that is built on game mechanics designed by committee, with the co-op and cover system both being out of place and utterly draining whatever tension their might have been left in the game, and the first 3-4 hours of the campaign just feels like a greatest hits compilation of Resi 4.

Best bit?

Walking slowly past the caged Lickers was and is the only section of game where genuine terror starts to creep into proceedings, doubly so when you realise you can't stop yourself from making noise to leave the room.

Worst bit?

That whole stage of you charging through a mud-hut village slaughtering jabbering locals who dance in grass skirts and throw spears, because JESUS CHRIST CAPCOM WHAT WERE YOU THINKING.

Legacy effect?

Unfortunately, Resi 5's financial success was enough to convince Capcom that online multiplayer was the way forward for the series and it's looking unlikely we'll be shot of it anytime soon.  The fact that this was the impetus for the dreadful Operation Raccoon City doesn't seem to have dissuaded them even slightly.

~+~

#7: RESIDENT EVIL 6

What happens?

*deep breath* The appearance of the new C-Virus in Eastern Europe sends hidden forces within the US government on the hunt for Jake Muller, a merc whose blood may hold the key to a vaccine.  Meanwhile Chris loses a squad to the machinations of Ada Wong and subsequently disappears to go crawl inside a bottle.  Months later, Jake and his goverment handler Sherry Birkin escape from terrorist confinement, Chris' second-in-command Piers Nivans drags his boss back into action, and a zombie outbreak kills the President and brings Leon S. Kennedy into the mix, accompanied by secret service agent Helena Harper.  They all proceed to China and trip over each others' feet while, behind the scenes, Ada Wong gets to the real heart of the matter.

Why here?

On balance, I like Resi 6 a bunch more than Resi 5, even though it's making a lot of the same mistakes.  The stages are getting ever more linear, it's still in co-op, the cover system is somehow even more of a faff and the set-piece mentality that's been drowning us in quick-time events since Resi 4 reaches all-new levels of (COMPLETE! GLOBAL!) saturation.  At first I thought I preferred it just because the Leon campaign felt like a 'return to the roots' for the series, but despite the zombie presence and more gothic locations it's not really that different from the other three.  Rather, the difference here is that the game's more comfortable with being a straight action title.  Resi 5 still laboured under the impression that it could be scary and so held itself back; Resi 6 has no such illusions and simply aims for excitement.  That's some distance away from what I want the series to be - and it doesn't excuse the clumsy stick controls or the sheer volume of QTEs - but I appreciate the honesty.

Best bit?

The drive through C-virus-bombed Lanshiang streets near the end of Leon's campaign.  It's a rare moment of quiet introspection that really sells the scale of the nightmare around you, as you peer out through unbreakable windows at roads flooded with gas, civilians running scared and zombies hammering on doors.

Worst bit?

The protracted Edonia assault in Chris' campaign.  Just endless variations of you in bombed-out houses shooting at gun-toting J'avo guys that all blur together even before you finish playing.

Legacy effect?

Don't know yet, since this is the most recent of the games.  Resi 7 will more than likely be announced at E3 this year, so maybe we'll get some clue there.  (UPDATE - no it wasn't)

~+~

#6/#5 (tie): RESIDENT EVIL ZERO

What happens?

July 23rd, 1998.  Bizarre murder cases have been troubling the police of Raccoon City.  All cases involve the victims being partially eaten, and all occurred within the grounds of nearby Arklay Forest.  The S.T.A.R.S are called in, with the less-experienced Bravo Team being deployed first, but their helicopter malfunctions and leaves them stranded in the forest.  They investigate and find evidence of an escaped convict - Billy Coen, ex-marine, guilty of multiple murders - before team medic Rebecca Chambers finds her way on-board a stalled train.  There she encounters the living dead and gruesome mutant leeches, not to mention Billy...who offers to help her.  The pair strike up an uneasy trust as they struggle to survive the night, and all around them the true powers move behind the scenes, seeking to either expose or cover-up this incident.

Why here?

I'll explain the tie in the next entry, but for this one, Resi Zero is a very confusing game for me because I don't know why it isn't better.  It's building on the framework of REmake, which is a very solid platform to start with; its graphics are as good as could be expected for the time, and its music is legitimately great; there's a lot of new enemies, many of them successfully threatening (...and also the occasional giant frog, but I try to ignore them); and the story gives the oft-ignored Becky Chambers some time to grow, and claims to answer some long-held questions about the beginnings of Umbrella and the July 1998 events.  Also, the 'partner zapping' system - wherein you essentially control 2 player characters at once - worked better than it had any right to.  In practice, though...I think what really kills the game is the inventory system.  There's no magic item-holding boxes like in the older Resis; instead, if you run out of space for things (and you will; even with 2 inventories each character only holds 6 slots, and even classically single-slot weapons like the shotgun take up 2 now) you drop them on the floor of the room you're in, where they remain, marked on the map, until you need them again.  What this means is MAXIMUM BACKTRACKING every five minutes when you run out of bullets/first-aid sprays/something and need to traipse across half the management training facility to find the stuff you left behind.  Pretty much kills momentum stone-dead, and I can't imagine how annoying it is for speedrunners.  Plus, the story was okay, but it didn't really resolve much of anything and added in a whole bunch more retcons to a series already drowning in them, and it took until Resi 5 for someone at Capcom to figure out how it all worked in the end.

Best bit?

The Ecliptic Express sequence in its entirety.  Talk about peaking early, right?  But honestly, the Express is a brilliant environment (especially once it starts moving), the placement of key items feels logical, the music being turned down in favour of environmental sounds is genius, and the whole place is linear and connected enough that backtracking for items isn't a chore.

Worst bit?

When you realize you can evade every single 'Mimicry Marcus' by just running past them while they're busy changing into their attack form.  Oops.

Legacy effect?

This being the last-released 'original style' Resi it's hard to tell exactly what its legacy is.  Maybe just in proving that the classic gameplay style had had its day?  Being more kind, the decision to ditch the magic item boxes here became permanent by Resi 4, and seeing that 2 player characters worked here might have been key to that becoming the norm for Resi 5.

~+~

#6/#5 (tie): RESIDENT EVIL 3: NEMESIS

What happens?

Late September 1998.  The leftover T-virus monsters from the mansion have already been picking off stragglers on the edges of Raccoon City for a month before Umbrella's own hasty attempts to deal with their in-city research facilities creates a full-on outbreak that claims the entire town.  Jill Valentine, the last S.T.A.R.S member left in the city, finds her escape efforts hamstrung first by zombies, then by Umbrella's ostensibly friendly soldiers-for-hire, and finally by the Nemesis, a surprisingly smart and impossibly tough monster sent to eradicate any and all S.T.A.R.S types that cross its path.

Why here?

Okay, so, the tie.  When trying to decide whether to put this game above or below Zero, I realised with a start that they both suffer for the same reasons.  Much as Zero was built on REmake, so was Nemesis built on Resi 2's bones, and also like Zero it tried to expand on the existing gameplay with new mechanics and ideas...and somehow lost something as a result.  Now, the game still works just fine, and I like how the 'decision points' change subsequent events and encourage multiple playthroughs.  Beyond that, though, the dodge mechanic is a little too easy to pull off and really negates the threat of basic zombies; the abundance of regular ammo and special mixable gunpowder makes this the first game where you're never really in danger of running out; and the Nemesis - who appears unheralded at multiple intervals and can chase you between rooms - starts off strong but progressively becomes less of a fright and more of an irritation; hearing that "Ssstarsss BOWORRRRAAAA~" for the twelfth time never fails to draw a groan, as you realise your next puzzle solution will have to wait while you go run around a wide circle of the entire city to throw this moron off your scent.  I'd also argue the more open and 'realistic' Raccoon City lacks the atmosphere of Resi 2's silent police station and sewers, though that's subject to personal opinion.

Best bit?

For all the wrong reasons, probably, any time when Nemesis shows up and a 'decision moment' lets you push him off a high thing.  Partly because it's consistently hilarious that skinny, miniskirt-wearing Jill can just push over an 8-foot walking pile of rotted beef, but because it works.  Sure, he never dies from it, but making Nemesis fall over somehow keeps him out of the game for another 20 minutes at least.  Is he like a turtle?  If he falls on his back can he not get back up without help?

Worst bit?

The boss fight in the trash disposal room.  It seems to be random whether Nemesis is really dumb or really smart in this fight, so luring him into the delayed acid jets is either a breeze or nigh-impossible.  Either way it gets on my tits.

Legacy effect?

Resi 3, to me, is the start of the series' obsession with OTT action at the expense of horror.  It's not all the way there yet, largely because it's still working from the Resi 2 framework, but the plentiful ammo and use of explosive objects in the environment for multi-kills are forewarnings of where the series was heading, and the dodge move feels like a warm-up for the close-quarter attacks in Resi 4 (as well as resurfacing in Revelations).  There's also been a couple attempts since Resi 3 to recapture the 'magic' of the Nemesis, particularly with the Ustanak in Resi 6.  Lastly, even though Resi 3 smartly attempted to close the book on Raccoon City, its popularity inspired a swell of Raccoon nostalgia that Capcom have been milking ever since, particularly in Operation Raccoon City and the Outbreak games.

~+~

#4: RESIDENT EVIL REVELATIONS

What happens?

2005: Chris and temporary partner Jessica Sherawat have gone missing on a BSAA mission, with their trail stopping in the Mediterranean ocean.  Jill and her partner, Parker Luciani, follow and come across the Queen Zenobia, a luxury cruise ship drifting aimlessly...and full of the monstrous byproducts of the T-Abyss virus.  The search quickly turns out to have been a red herring, but there's more on the Zenobia than terror and death - and as the agents discover, they're only part of a much larger game, one that started a whole year ago with the destruction of the artificial city of Terragrigia...

Why here?

Revelations is the first entry on the list that I'm seemingly always going back to, either for campaign or Raid mode.  There's just something more-ish about how it plays, which isn't perhaps perfect but hits at just the right point between the action extravaganza of Resi 5 and the more careful, tense exploration of 4 (or even something older).  The story is dense, to the point where I've seen plenty of series fans complaining about how it 'makes no sense' but frankly, they're wrong; it actually does answer just about every question it throws up, and despite kinda coming off like the thoughts of a 9/11 truther it's cool to see Resi trying to be topical and mostly succeeding.  The cruise ship environment feels plausible but isn't afraid to get crazy when needed, and the monsters are frightening, difficult to take down and share a common visual theme (twisted sea-life) that both aids suspension of disbelief and gave the designers plenty of ideas to throw around (zombie whale!).  On the other hand, some of the character designs are either silly, exploitative or somewhere in-between (Rachel, Jessica and Raymond's hair are the prime offenders), the visuals don't impress quite as much on home consoles as they did on 3DS (inevitable, I guess) and it's admittedly weird to nearly always have a partner character following you in a game that isn't actually co-op.  Still, I love this one.

Best bit?

The scuba investigation of the sunken Dido is wonderful.  There's not a lot there that can hurt you, but since you can't attack underwater you're still on edge, plus the music is the best in the game.

Worst bit?

That final boss, though.  Oy vey.

Legacy effect?

Unclear at this point, though I really hope it's not a string of games all ending with post-credits teasers that ultimately lead to nothing.  Revelations sadly doesn't seem to be getting a straight sequel so the bit in the café is pointless.

~+~

#3: RESIDENT EVIL (REMAKE)

What happens?

Same shit as in Resi 1, mostly, just newer.

Why here?

This is why I can't put Resi 1 higher.  I thought about maybe counting both titles as one game, since, y'know, remake and all, but ultimately this one is different enough to stand separate, and my based god it is so much better.  The core story and environments are familiar but both visuals and script have been completely overhauled, and blissfully the voicework actually sounds like trained actors now.  All the classic bosses are back with at least one new, welcome addition that gives the Spencer estate a little more self-contained backstory.  Puzzles are re-arranged to screw with your head.  The dodge move is ditched in favour of defense weapons that can let you escape grabs harmlessly, but have limited availability so they don't totally overwhelm the opposition (and why weren't they in other games?).  And perhaps most infamously, zombies who aren't decapitated or burnt to cinders will rise again as fast, clawed Crimson Heads that will seriously ruin your day.  This is probably still the scariest the series ever got, and it's still absolutely worth digging out, even if the lack of surround-sound support is kind of a bummer.

Best bit?

Lisa Trevor.  The hunched-over posture, the clanking chains, the mournful wailing, it's enough to almost make you feel sympathetic for her if she wasn't indestructible and capable of killing you effortlessly, sometimes with only 2 attacks.

Worst bit?

Having to wait around in Chris' campaign while Rebecca remembers how to play the piano.  Dammit Becky, why can't you just be implausibly good at everything the way Jill is?

Legacy effect?

REmake kinda feels like the capstone on the 'classic' Resi titles, with the only one still clinging to those mechanics after it, Zero, using the same engine but a quite different approach to play.  So there's not a lot in this game that's specifically brought up in later titles, though the Crimson Heads would rear their, uh, heads in some of the spin-off games, and the Bloodshots in Resi 6 feel like a pretty transparent copy of them.

~+~

#2: RESIDENT EVIL 2

What happens?

September 29th, 1998: rookie RPD officer Leon S. Kennedy arrives in Raccoon City for his first day on the force, only to find the city a ghost town populated by the undead.  Nearby, Claire Redfield rolls into town looking for her brother, and meets up with the same trouble.  The two cross paths briefly before being separated, and both head for the RPD office in the blind hope that it'll be a safe haven.  Their struggles to escape bring them close to the source of the infection and the people who put it into motion, and into conflict with an upgraded Tyrant and the constantly mutating victim of the new and improved G-Virus...

Why here?

Sometimes I think I'm biased towards Resi 2 because it was my first love in this series.  Then I play it again and find it's still kinda magical.  The graphics might be dated now but the designs are still wonderful, from the RPD building with its boarded-up windows and scattered chairs giving off an Assault on Precinct 13 vibe, to the vertigo-inducing lab with its walkways suspended over bottomless pits.  Y'know, like all labs do.  The weapon balancing is perfect (the handgun is weedy but there's decent ammo available; the magnum is crazy powerful but bullets are rare like gold dust, etc.) and your character's limited movement abilities are just about enough to keep ahead of the zombies if you're careful.  The zombies are still a threat, and things like the Lickers and Ivy plants are best ran away from rather than thought.  Most impressively, the story broadens the universe but mostly remains a small-scale character piece, focused on the protagonists and a few supporting players, and their interactions make Leon and Claire a better-defined duo than Chris and Jill ever were.  Plus of course there's the clever A/B scenario distinctions to make playing through twice less of a chore, the best damn music the series has ever had, Mr. X one-upping the first game's dogs breaking windows by punching holes in solid walls like a boss, the first time you fire the Custom Shotgun and it cuts a zombie clear in half at the waist...it's just a string of constant moments of masterpiece.

Best bit?

Ada's goodbye in either scenario.  The origin point of Agonized Leon Yelling People's Names At Them, which is probably my favourite recurring trend in the series.

Worst bit?

Playing as Sherry.  I could handle the no-weapons approach just fine if she wasn't also bloody slower than everyone else.  Nnnnrgh.

Legacy effect?

Resi 2 doesn't change all that much of the gameplay from the first, even though it does tighten things up.  What it does do is establish the nutty conspiracies and backstabbing that seem to be daily operating standards for Umbrella, which would grow and grow into the massive network of half-truths and unanswered questions that's simultaneously been the series' greatest strength and weakness for years.  Also, the 'Fourth Survivor' and 'Extreme Battle' modes were the series' first flirtings with extra mini-games unlocked after beating the main game.  'Survivor' remains unique, though, by being the only mini-game that's considered a canonical part of the story ('Assignment Ada' in Resi 4 was thought to be one for a while, but 'Separate Ways' basically rendered it void).

~+~

#1: RESIDENT EVIL 4

What happens?

2004: Umbrella is gone, and the world seems relatively stable for now.  Suddenly, Ashley Graham - daughter of the then-President of the United States - is kidnapped, and the trail leads Leon, now working for the government, to a rural part of Spain.  There, he finds the locals...less than friendly.  In fact they're all crazy and immediately try to kill him on sight, forcing Leon to arm up and barge through them in a cacophony of gunfire, explosions and occasionally chainsaws.  But finding Ashley is only the start of Leon's troubles; getting her home intact without falling prey to villainous villagers, a creepy castle-dwelling cult and other things that aren't so easy to alliterate will push him to the brink.

Why here?

Because it's basically perfect.  Resi 4 was the first of the 'action-based' games, and it's still by far the best, in no small part down to pacing.  The thrills are plentiful but the game knows how to space them out, and knows that the longer the silence before the next storm erupts, the more it'll make you panic.  Which is its real trick - it's still a scary game, it's just a different kind of fear from before.  Resi 5 was hard but it was also non-stop, to the point where constant battling dulls your mind and you just end up swearing at the inventory or your AI partner for failing you.  Resi 6 slightly course-corrected but left far too much time to QTEs that drag you out of the game proper.  Resi 4 uses QTEs smartly - often during cutscenes, to make sure you're paying attention - and without taking anything away from its fantastic core principles.  The music and locations still skew towards gothic horror and largely succeed, and the sheer volume of enemies is what gets to you - you might not be screwed for ammo this time, but can you kill all of these guys before one stabs your lights out?  Plus it's just such an imaginative ride; no it doesn't make even a little sense that Salazar's castle has a nest of giant insects, or a thirty-foot mechanized statue, or a big-wheeled platform car that leads into what looks like the depths of Hell itself, but who cares, it's goddamn interesting.  Add to that the subtle genius of how Ashley is handled, probably the best incarnation of an 'escort mission' in any game ever, a script that knows full well how daft it is and doesn't care, and the debut of the hyper-addictive Mercenaries mode, and...yeah.  Perfect.

Best bit?

Ada's dress...wait, no, I can think of something better than gratuitous leg porn, lemme think.  Oh yeah!  The fight with the Verdugo in the steam corridor.  I used to just run away from it, never thinking about what the canisters might do.  Smart boy.

Worst bit?

On the days where my fingers are too clumsy for QTEs, that first Krauser fight is an absolute nightmare.

Legacy effect?

Resi 5, 6 and Revelations are all very plainly running on similar tech as 4, albeit with changes here and there (some of them good, many of them bad).  The idea of making each game a largely self-contained story has filtered through into both 6 and Revelations, and will likely continue with future titles.  And of course, Mercenaries has become the go-to default for the series' bonus modes since then; I know Resi 3 had a mode called Mercenaries but it was a very different beast, perhaps more akin to Revelations' Raid mode.

~+~

Agree?  Disagree?  Sound off in the comments, I love a good argument! (as long as I win)