Resident Evil 3 is a survival horror videogame, and the latest REmake from Capcom, following on the massive success of last year’s Resident Evil 2. RE3 is a re-imagining of 1999’s Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, which was for a long time, my favourite Resident Evil game, with Nemesis being my all-time favourite RE antagonist. The game follows former S.T.A.R.S operative Jill Valentine as she attempts to escape the destruction of an overrun Raccoon City – she reluctantly teams up with Umbrella operative Carlos Oliveira in an attempt to survive the zombie apocalypse, all the while being relentlessly hunted by Umbrella’s new, intelligent bioweapon – The Nemesis.
I really, really enjoyed Resident Evil 3. The graphics are clean and gorgeous, the the environments are stunning – both fresh and somehow nostalgic at the same time and aesthetically, it surpasses Resident Evil 2. There’s a lot more open world exploration as opposed to previous Resident Evil entries which is a welcome development in my book. The game kicks into gear from the get-go, with a near immediate Nemesis encounter that slaps you silly with a sense of panic and urgency. The game rarely relents on the breakneck pace, only occasionally letting you take a gulp of fresh air when you hit a save room and hear that mellow, haunting piano melody. The enemy AI in Resident Evil 3 is highly intuitive, diverse, and make for great, relentless antagonists – from the fodder zombies, to more heavy enemies like the Hunters and of course, Nemesis. I found that resources like health and ammo weren’t as scarce as they were in previous games, however, inventory space felt like it was a lot more limited which forces you to carefully consider what you’re hoarding and why. I really enjoyed the continuity between Resident Evil 2 and 3 – you visit some familiar spaces, like the Raccoon City Police Department – and can explore parts of the station that Claire and Leon will eventually stumble into.
My main issue with Resident Evil 3 is that it feels slightly incomplete. I know that the original Resident Evil 3: Nemesis was criticised for its short length, but the REmake was the perfect excuse to rectify that. I think I completed it in just under 7 hours, and I made sure to take my time to absorb and digest every facet of the experience. It’s definitely a lot more action-based than Resident Evil 2 and there was several key elements missing too – there was virtually no puzzles, and locations like the Clocktower and Graveyard were allegedly cut in order to make the game a more realistic, streamlined experience. I can’t help but feel that it might have been tacked on last minute with Resident Evil Resistance. As I said previously, I’m a huge Nemesis fan, and alongside the Licker, I think it has one of the greatest creature designs of all time. I have to say though, I HATE his redesign for Resident Evil 3, that classic saying, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” comes to mind in a serious way. Even though he remains to be a formidable foe, his goofy design (especially the side-squashed nose and overly long teeth), really took away a lot of the fear factor for me.
Resident Evil 3 is another satisfactory entry for fans of the franchise, but I can’t help but feel that due to the length, it isn’t exactly worth its hefty price tag. Now that being said, I’m not a huge online gamer, so I more than likely won’t go near Resistance, which, understandably, is a huge chunk of the game that I’m locking myself out of – the online alone could justify the price. All in all, I give Resident Evil 3: 4 out of 5 green herbs. I’m excited to see where and how far Capcom take the remakes – I’d personally love to see a remake of Code Veronica X or Resident Evil Outbreak.
PLAYED ON THE PS4 PRO AND A SONY BRAVIA XD80.
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