Off the Shelf Media

With any piece of media, whether it be a video game, tv show, or movie, you only get one chance to experience it for the first time. Over my many years of absorbing various forms of pop culture, I’ve found that the best accolade I could possibly hear about any piece of media is “man, you’re lucky. I wish I could watch that again for the first time.” 

Great stories toss you overboard into the deep stormy waters of its material, while you helplessly absorb the rushing waves of emotion and intrigue, having no idea where the current will drag you off to. Upon that second viewing, you feel a bit more prepared for the depths, possibly grabbing an inflatable tube or maybe some swimmies to wrap around your arms, having a better idea of where the current is taking you, allowing you to soak in more of the intricate details of the story.

Then, any time you are tossed overboard after that, you feel as though your own pirate ship will come to pick you up as you manage to wade through the waters of the story or game, prepared to not only soak up anything else you may havemissed but to truly understand why you love something so much. This analogy is true for most pieces of media, but in my opinion, the video game to which this example rings the most true is the first time you play any Resident Evil Video Game. 

My introduction to the series was through the Resident Evil 2 Remake, which to this day I consider one of the greatest video games ever created and a gaming experience I hold extremely close to my heart. For those unfamiliar with Res 2, back in the 90s, its predecessor, Resident Evil, became a genre-defining video game. It essentially created an entire subgenre of the “survival horror experience.” Survival horror is a specific type of horror game that makes you constantly feel as though you will not make it out of this situation, and if you do, it will be by the skin of your teeth. Ammo is low, other resources are hard to come by, and most, if not every, enemy you encounter is an extremely prepared posture. 

In Resident Evil 2, we are gifted with two playable campaigns, as the same night unfolds from the differing perspectives of Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield. Without diving too deep into the lore of Raccoon City, simply put, our heroes of the night are dropped in a Labyrinthine Police Station. They are tasked with making it out alive while trying to unravel the mystery behind what is happening as zombies and ghouls litter their path. 

Take note of my usage of the word “Labyrinth” because this police station surely did not have any of its budget cut. Sprawling hallways, staircases galore, four floors, locked doors, a rookie cop on his first day (or night I suppose), and a sister trying to find her missing brother. 

Upon my first playthrough of this game, it took me about 25 hours to play just ONE of the two sister campaigns. Once finished, I felt the exhaustion that Leon S. Kennedy must have experienced, unprepared to relive the entire game again with some slightly different puzzles.

I played this game for the first time about five years ago. What I find truly incredible about these games is that I could come over to your crib, load up the game, and beat it in about 53 minutes on a good day. Yes, 25 hours of pain, exhaust, fear, and a lack of direction, microscopically reduced to a 53-minute experience, as I would be able to maneuver the Labyrinth expertly, knowing where the key to each door lies, what enemies to kill and which to ignore, and where to feel any bit of stress.

This is that dragon I am speaking of. 

Granted, do I feel cool being able to speed-run Resident Evil? Yes. Yes, I do. Maybe a little too cool, but I do find it to be a feat of my own gaming skill, but my god do I wish I could just hit that reset button, use the Men in Black forget-me stick, and live within that police station again as a scared rookie cop on his first day. 

Resident Evil makes you work and earn every win in the game. It makes you use your brain in a way most video games are unable to. You will need to open up the map and plot out your route. You’ll have to decide which guns to bring, how much ammo you can give up, pray you don’t get hit so you can save your first aid spray for a boss fight or a stickier situation, just to sometimes get to that next safe room, only to be equally as confused on where to go next.

The over-the-shoulder combat is done so extremely well that fighting the zombies is fun and immersive while also challenging and taxing over time. But again, all of these memories and feelings are evermore fleeting the more you play the game. The more times you run the Police Station, the better you get. Which, in its own right, becomes a different experience altogether as the game evolves into something you find joy in speed running. But if you put Leon’s gun to my head and asked which version of the game I would want to play more, I’d pick scared baby every time.

Resident Evil 1, 2, and 7 are the best games to experience what I’ve discussed thus far as these three are the most labyrinthine-like playthroughs, dropping you in an unknown location and basically saying, “Try to get out lololol.” While Resident Evil 3,4 and 8 are a bit more action-oriented (you can check out our team’s walkthrough of the Resident Evil 4 Remake on YouTube) and all great games in there own right; my personal choice will always be to drop me in the mansion or police station or freaky bayou house and tell me to just get out. But for me and other vets of Umbrella, I am forced to wait for the next Resident Evil game to drop before I can have this type of experience again. 

But if you, my friend, have yet to experience the sense of accomplishment from finally making it “out”, give Resident Evil 2 a try. I promise it will be rewarding.