More Thoughts From Me #38: The Master of Unlocking

With Halloween right around the corner, I’ve been looking at some spooky video games this month. One of my favorite spooky series is the Resident Evil franchise. I still remember playing the first Resident Evil and being blown away by it. Resident Evil was one of the reasons I bought a Playstation 1. It was also a reason I bought the Gamecube! Today, I want to talk about that first Resident Evil and also mention my favorite of the Resident Evil games.

The very first Resident Evil game, on the Playstation 1, could be a bit corny. The dialogue was not that great, as you can see above, and the plot and jump scares were not as good as they would be later on (ok, that dog jumping through the window did get me the first time). Even so, Resident Evil 1 for the Playstation 1 was fun. From exploring the mansion, to fighting zombies, and solving puzzles, the first Resident Evil kept you on your toes and you never knew what to expect next. The game was innovative for its time. There was nothing else out there at the time that did what Resident Evil did. The game even had a live action cutscene before you pressed start! Resident Evil was a must own on the Playstation 1.

It was also a must own on the Gamecube years later when Capcom redid the graphics and gameplay. I remember seeing the Resident Evil remake at a video game store at the time and being blown away. “That’s Resident Evil?!” I just had to have that game. It was a lot of fun too. Though, as good as it is, the remake is not my favorite Resident Evil game.

I thought that Resident Evil couldn’t get any better than the Resident Evil remake or Resident Evil Zero. I was so wrong though. Resident Evil 4 for the Gamecube took the series to the next level. The graphics on that game were like nothing we’d seen and the gameplay was faster, with a better camera, but it was still 100% Resident Evil. The fourth game was spookier too and the game was a lot more intense. This game is still my favorite of the Resident Evil games. However, the Wii version of the game might be even better than the Gamecube version.

While the graphics from Gamecube to the Wii are the same, the controls on the Wii version of even better. Aiming at zombies with the Wii remote works so well and so does the nunchek controls. The Wii version of Resident Evil 4 is the ultimate version of this game. I highly recommend Resident Evil 4. If you haven’t played it and you like this kind of game, you really need to get a Wii or Wii U and play this. Of course, not every game in the Resident Evil franchise has been great…

The Resident Evil series has had its highs and lows. The more recent main series games have been way too actiony for my tastes, with not enough Resident Evil scares and “Jill Sandwich” moments. I do think that the game Resident Evil Revelations was a nice return to the older style Resident Evil gameplay (though with a better in-game camera!). However, I don’t think the series has seen a great Resident Evil since four!

Will Capcom get the series back on track? I’m not sure. The preview I saw for the upcoming Resident Evil looked more like Silent Hill than Resident Evil. I wish that Capcom would keep to the Revelations style gameplay or take things back to the way they were with four. Since I don’t own a Playstation 4 or Xbox One, its doubtful that I’ll ever know if the next Resident Evil will be good or not. It’s a shame that Resident Evil’s return to Nintendo consoles with Revelations (and Mercenaries) was so brief. As much as I like the first Resident Evil for Playstation 1, Resident Evil has always been at its best on Nintendo platforms in my opinion. Here’s hoping for the best when it come to the future of Resident Evil!

So what is your favorite Resident Evil game? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Next week: Poor Luigi! He absolutely hates haunted mansions but keeps getting sent into them. Yes, next week we’ll look at the Luigi’s Mansion games!

More Thoughts From Me is an opinion column. The thoughts expressed here are mine and mine alone. Resident Evil 4 is the best though!