RESIDENT EVIL 3 REMAKE (PS4)

Resident Evil 3 is a reimagining of the classic PSOne Survival horror game, set in the location of Raccoon City which – following the events of the first Resident Evil game – now finds itself completely overrun by the hordes of the undead.

On this occasion you play the role of Jill Valentine, who after the events of the first game finds herself suspended, subject to a discrediting witch hunt from the RCPD, and expecting the forces of Umbrella to kick her door in and silence her any day now. Unfortunately when Umbrella do finally show their face they don’t com through the door but through the wall as Jill finds herself on the run from the seemingly unstoppable Nemesis who is here to silence the last of the STARS team and cover up Umbrellas involvement in the apocalyptic events now unfolding in Racoon City.

It’s going to take you about 6-8 hours complete your first play through depending on difficulty level and how much back tracking you do to uncover the various mysteries of Racoon City, which in this new game not only includes areas chained off for which you must obtain bolt cutters to enter, but also the addition of crates that can be smashed open to reveal loot, as well as simple locks on boxes and doors that can be picked once the lock pick is obtained – after all, you ARE the “master of unlocking”!

Your adventure starts in your apartment where you have been suffering worsening nightmares relating to your earlier experience at the manor and conducting your own investigation into the actions of the Umbrella corp when you receive a call from STARS helicopter pilot Brad telling you to get out NOW, at which point you receive your first unwanted visit from the Nemesis, resulting in a tense pursuit scene that give you a taste of just how persistent and implacable a foe he is going to be throughout the game (including Terminator-esque “dun, dun, dundundun music!), only having your fat pulled out of the fire by Carlos – another familiar face from the original game – who is recruits you to assist in helping him get survivors out of the city.

Visuals are very good. Characters are extremely realistic looking (although Carlos’ hair leaves a lot to be desired!), so much so that in cut scenes you can seemingly see every skin pore, hair, and bead of sweat! Character movement is fluid and natural, and the use of lighting and shadows makes every part of the game scary and foreboding.

Sound is also very good. The voice talent is excellent and scenes are well scripted. As you traverse the dark streets and alleys of Raccoon City and other locations, rain will batter windows, the dead will rattle doors and fences, the cries of survivors in their last moments of life can be heard, and zombies will frequently unexpectedly smash through doors or out of abandoned vehicles to give you a shock, all of which creates a very palpable feeling of dread at almost every turn.

Controls are similar to those that fans of the franchise have been using since Resident Evil 4. The left stick moves your character, whilst the right stick operates the camera. There are no fixed camera angles unlike the very early Resident Evil games, and this method helps to increase the sense of anticipation as you are forced to frantically search every corner and shadow for threats rather than have the entire area laid out for you to see.

The left trigger readies your weapon, whilst the right trigger is used to discharge it. The left shoulder button readies secondary weapons such as the knife. The keypad is used to interact with items, reload your weapons, and access your inventory and other menus. It’s all very fluid and ergonomically designed.

In terms of story, as I mention at the top of the interview this is a reimagining of the classic original game rather than a simple remake. Whilst the broad strokes of the story line and most of the characters remain the same, the fine details are quite different, so even if your memory is good enough to recall every detail of a game you probably last played twenty years ago, this one should feel almost entirely new and fresh to you, and the way the various sections of the game are laid out is also almost entirely different from the original. There are also some interesting Easter eggs that hint towards the events of the remake of RE2 as well, such as encounters with Kendo, and a reveal on how exactly Marcus found himself infected.

The objective of the game is still to escape with your life whilst assisting Carlos, and you will of course still find yourself embroiled in a conspiracy of epic proportions, but at the start you will find yourself restricted to one small part of the map and are required to solve a series of small puzzles or mysteries in order to proceed to other areas. As is tradition, these puzzles are always of the “find fire hose/find key/find 3 x medallions” variety.

Whilst looking for key mission items you will also find a variety of useful inventory items to help you keep the hordes at bay. These range from simple ammunition for your weapons, heavier weaponry such as the shotgun or grenade launcher, special weapons such as flash bang and fragmentation grenades, to components that make your existing weapons more deadly or effective (such as the red dot laser sight). The game sees the return of the well known ‘herb’ method of healing injury (as well as the usual first aid sprays), and also the use of the “gunpowder” system of producing ammunition that first appeared in the original RE3 game way back when.

Much as was the case in the remake of RE2, combat remains extremely detailed. You can blow all sorts of parts off zombies. Of course the best way to put a zombie down for good is a head shot, but you can shoot their arms off, or knee cap them to send them sprawling to the floor – and yes – blow them in half with a shotgun if you like!

Combat is not without it’s problems however.

The main frustration I have with it – in fact probably the main frustration with the entire game – is just how difficult it is to put down the average zombie and make sure it stays down for good. One would think that a good single shot from a pistol to the centre of the forehead should be enough, but just as was the case in the RE2 remake, zombies literally take a number of shots to the head to put down for good. It’s perhaps not quite as ridiculous as RE2, but expect it to take four to five head shots from your standard weaponry to finish them off.

It is the case that a hit to a superficial part of a zombies head such as the jaw will result in quite realistic cosmetic, non-fatal damage (I’ve had zombie with their entire faces blow off still shuffling towards me), but I’ve frequently seen zombies take a couple of hits to the brain pan, fall down, get back up, take a couple more hits, fall down, and get back up again! A lot of the time they will lay there seemingly dead (again) and not react at all to your presence when you walk over them, but then be back on their feet when you exit and return to the area a couple of minutes later! My advice: If you see a corpse lying on the floor, give it a poke with your knife to make sure it really is just a corpse!

Ammunition is never in plentiful supply and you’ll always want to make your shots count because of it’s scarcity, so it’s extremely frustrating to time and time again hit a zombie right in the sweet spot only to see it shrug it off or get back up for another go at you! Other weapons such as the Magnum, Shotgun, and Grenade Launcher seem as deadly as ever, but the standard pistol is VERY under powered, and sadly it’s this weapon that you’re going to find yourself relying on for the vast majority of your killing.

Zombies are also very, very difficult to hit at all, despite their generally slow movement, as they sway and loll back and forth, and even more difficult to lay a head shot on – let alone half a dozen head shots – so my recommendation for non-hardcore gamers who are looking to enjoy rather than be frustrated by the experience of playing is to go with the ‘assisted’ game mode that offers a degree of auto-targeting.

RE3 also comes with the free game “Resistance”, a multi-player co-op game that requires a PSN account to play and involves you taking the role of an Umbrella “Mastermind” as he attempts to kill a group of Racoon City citizens he has captured and placed in a deadly maze filled with traps, zombies, and bioweapons. Alternatively you can take on the role of one of the civilians where your role is to try and escape by solving a series of puzzles against the clock whilst trying to survive an onslaught of the undead.

Despite some frustrations, Resident Evil 3 is still a very good gaming experience that will be as exciting for new people who have come to the franchise as it will be for those like myself who are revisiting this game after a two decades long period of absence.