Preview – Resident Evil 3: Nemesis
By: Capcom
AS FAR as gaming years ago, 1998 was a belter – blowing out classics like Half Life, Metal Gear Solid and, of course, Resident Evil 2. After shifting 5 million copies, last year's zombie redo wowed both critics and Capcom's accountants. So it surprised no-one when the Japanese giant announced the third in the undead-busters would receive similarly state-of-the-art gussying for modern consoles.
A remake for the ages, it's amazing how faithful last year's Resident Evil 2 was to the original while feeling so funky-fresh in its design. Cherry-picking the best of classic and modern gameplay, its technical showboating was never at the cost of the original's identity.
Resi 3 will include similar gameplay updates, with an over-the-shoulder view and modern controls – but all in service of a very different beast. For fans who preferred zombie slaughter to mind-bending puzzles, three was the magic number. More stripped-down than its titanic forebear, Resi 3 was laser-focused on action, with faster, cannier zombies that gathered in bigger groups.
Taking place during the events of RE2's cop shop-set horror, its follow-up takes players to the mean streets of Raccoon City as Jill Valentine, aided by members of Umbrella, attempts to escape the cadaver-ridden burg.
Sure, Resident Evil 2 had its unstoppable menace, but the lumbering Mr X was a mere annoyance compared to 3's Nemesis – an unstoppable, rocket launcher-totin' git who could run at a fair lick and smash through walls. Looking for all the world like a Hellraiser reject in his fetishistic finery, keeping one bead on Nemesis made every second of your escape a sweaty-palmed affair.
The graphical upgrade is obviously a giant leap from the PlayStation original, but just as last year's Resi 2 changed up events, characters, and story beats, so Resi 3 will tread a new path. You'll know the endgame, but getting there won't be as you remember.
As an extra bonus, Resi 3 will also include Resistance, a competitive multiplayer take on the series. Though conjuring grim flashbacks to Operation Raccoon City, Umbrella Corps and Outbreak, here's hoping the latest attempt to make a multiplayer Resi is more than just a poor man's Left 4 Dead. Given that one of the characters is called Martin Sandwich, things are looking up.
The third game in a series is often when the wheels start to come off. From Mass Effect to Dead Space, Driver to Ninja Gaiden, once great franchises have been ruined by stinky third efforts. Resident Evil 3 bucked the trend, with combat-heavy undead horror that should fit the remake style like a funeral suit.
And who knows? If RE3 makes tills sing, we'll hopefully get a remake of Code Veronica, the last of the fixed camera efforts – dovetailing the iconic series into the relative modernity of RE4.
:: Resident Evil 3's remake is set for release on PS4, Xbox One and PC on April 3.
