This remake of the classic zombie survival game is slated for release by Capcom on January 25, 2019. Staying true to the original game, it is a solo-player P2P title that will have players exploring poorly lit, zombie-infested tunnels and buildings while trying to discover what’s going on and trying to survive and escape from Raccoon City.
The Premise
Sewage rats have become infected by the Umbrella Corporation’s T-Virus and have caused the human population of Raccoon City to begin turning into zombies and in some cases, bizarre mutated creatures. A rookie cop, Leon Scott Kennedy finds himself spending his first day on the job trying to survive the recent outbreak.
While trying to figure out a plan of action, he bumps into college student, Claire Redfield, who is being chased by zombies. It turns out that she is looking for her missing brother, police officer Chris Redfield. After escaping from the zombies, they journey together to the Racoon Police Department, as Leon heard a radio message encouraging survivors to meet up there. Leon and Claire are soon separated, and Leon bumps into a mysterious woman called Ada Wong, while Claire discovers a young girl, Sherry Birkin. And so, the plot unfurls.
Gameplay
As with the original 1998 version, players will be switching between Claire and Leon, as well as Sherry and Ada in parts. While some areas will still be lit with electricity, much of the game will have the characters using flashlights while toggling between weapons. With the limited lighting, eerie creaks, groans, footsteps, electrical hums, bumps and other sounds, the mood is set to have players tense and jumping when the monsters finally appear. The improved graphics and detail add significantly to the scare factor.
Aside from most of the rooms having more than one entrance, thereby requiring players to constantly survey their surroundings for unwanted company, they will also have to look out for other surprises such as the floorboards collapsing from beneath them, and mutations dropping down from overhead. They will also need to be weary of zombies playing possum with the various corpses strewn all over the floor. Fortunately, regular zombies still lumber along slowly, so it is possible for characters to simply run past them and avoid confrontation at times. However, the zombie mutations are another story.
As most of the game takes place in the Raccoon City Police Department, the presence of necessary equipment such as fire blasters, grenades and other useful firearms plausible. Furthermore, although players are trying to discover a way out of the building, they also need to fend off the hordes that may try to enter the building from the outside. Players have limited item slots, so juggling the weapons, tools and devices that the character will carry becomes a serious strategic decision. Characters start out with what seems to be twelve item slots, with Leon and Claire being able to possibly add three extra slots by acquiring the side-pack. There are also collectible support items, such as green herbs that characters can use to create a cure for the T-Virus, in case they should become infected.
But the zombie horde is not their only concern. The Umbrella Corporation has also unleashed ‘Mr. X,’ one of their successful, obedient Tyrant bioweapons into the city to cover up the occurrences there. ‘Mr. X’ has high endurance levels and will crush the skull of the protagonist if it successfully catches them.
Of course, this game isn’t just about trying to survive. Claire is still looking for clues to her brother’s whereabouts, and as she does so, she will acquire new mini-missions along the way. She will be able to use the Raccoon City Police Department’s Renovation Plans to plot her course and find what she needs to progress in the game. So too Leon needs to discover what happened to survivors who were meant to be hiding in the police department, as well as the fate of the S.T.A.R.S team members. Then there are also Ada and Sherry’s mini-quests, which will all be revealed as the game unfolds. Players can also toggle their third-person perspective distance.
As a bonus, it’s rumored that there will still be various puzzles to solve as well as cameos of zombies and mutant creatures from other Resident Evil games. If all of this turns out to be true, it seems that fans will have a great deal to look forward to when the game makes its debut.
Gameplay Changes
Scenarios
Unlike the original game, where both Leon and Claire both had A and B scenarios that repeated elements of the plot, in the Resident Evil 2 remake, the two characters will each have their own scenario that will mesh the overall storyline together. The two Scenarios are Claire A and Leon B, where players will be choosing their protagonist and playing their story through until they reunite with the other in the final arc. What is significant here, is that players need to bear in mind throughout their gameplay that certain decision that they make in the first scenario that they play will affect the gameplay in the second scenario. For instance, if players decide to have Leon claim the side-pack, then it will not be available during Claire’s scenario, which again adds to the realism of the game, by adding an element of continuity.
Once the two main campaigns are complete and the True Ending has been unlocked, players will gain excess to a hardcore survival mode with a new character Hulk. Completing Hulk will unlock an even more difficult survival campaign as Tofu.
Fortification
This new mechanic replaces the emergency shutters that were available in the original Resident Evil 2 game. Whereas the previous title required players to find a cord and then decide where to use it to activate the shutters, thereby blocking the zombies’ entry into the building from windows in that location. Instead, players will need to gather wooden boards that they can then nail over each window in order to ‘keep the riffraff out.’ However, Zombies can now break through these boards, which will add to the strategic considerations of when and how to place the boards, in addition to how balance them in their character’s inventory.
Skins
Players who buy the deluxe version of the game will gain access to unlockable skins for both Leon and Claire. It’s possible that there will be other unlockable items and content, but as yet nothing has been announced. Furthermore, hose who preorder for the PS4 will gain a Samurai Edge Deluxe Guns for the main characters.
Collector’s Edition
This version will include the same DLC as the Deluxe Edition, as well as a real-life figurine of Leon, Resident Evil 2 Remake soundtrack, a renovation plan for the Raccoon City Police Department, Ben’s Artbook and a cool box to store them in.
