Posts Tagged ‘biohazard’
Podcast: Resident Evil 7 (Part 1)
This week Fred and Jam are back to talk Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. We always knew it was going to take two parts, so this first part is dedicated to the pre-launch, Opening Hour demo, and the first two thirds of the game (the episode finishes after the boathouse battle).
Perspective of a Retro Gamer: Resident Evil 7
This series is basically a review of a modern game but with the context of a retro gamer visiting the present. As such it does not contain a review score and often speaks to concepts and franchises from the past. This article is spoiler free outside of what is revealed in trailers and public demos, which is why the screen shots are so vague.
Resident Evil has had a rocky journey over the last five years, up to and including the “Beginning Hour” demo for this very title. The comparison to P.T., Hideo Kojima’s “playable trailer” for Silent Hills that has since been canceled by Konami, is unmistakable. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I don’t want my Silent Hill getting mixed into my Resident Evil, the two should remain mutually exclusive. Couple that with the recent missteps of Resident Evil 6, my personal distaste for Revelations 2, and whatever goal Umbrella Corps. had, it wasn’t looking good. I for one was also a bit worried about the hodgepodge of features thrown at this title including support for 4K resolution, PS4 Pro support, Playstation VR support, and HDR support on all platforms. To my shock and awe, every bad indicator going into the release was without merit as Resident Evil 7: Biohazard demonstrates a return to form I have not felt since the remake of the original on GameCube in 2002.
Set in an old farm house in Louisiana, you play as main protagonist Ethan in search of your girlfriend Mia, who went missing years ago. Those that played through the “Beginning Hour” demo, especially if you caught the final “midnight edition” will find the opening scenes to be familiar but clearly re-engineered. I like this touch and I feel it was necessary for how many times Capcom made us play that thing in hopes to figuring out what was with the dummy finger and several other mysteries from the last six months. While it’s interesting to play through – not to mention the reward you receive for completing it with the good ending and the on-edge “kitchen” demo on Playstation VR – none of this is required if you’re just jumping into the main game. It reminds me why I’ve always appreciated the original work Capcom did on the Resident Evil series. Whether it was “arrange mode” in the original, the way the mansion was reworked in the remake, or even the drastic differences between the shack in the demo and the main game of Resident Evil 7, you won’t be able to guess what’s coming. After that opening sequence you will descend into a literal house of horrors and beyond that kept me on the edge of my seat and thoroughly creeped out for a majority of the game’s 8-12 hour campaign.
Resident Evil 7 Buyer’s Guide (Spoiler Free)
Resident Evil 7 is only a handful of days away (January 24th in North America and Europe, 26th in Japan) and it’s safe to say there’s justified anticipation for the title. Gameplay and plot aside, longtime fans of the series have already noticed little nods to the series as a whole down to the clever title of Resident Evil VII: Biohazard in the West and Biohazard 7: Resident Evil in the East. Unfortunately, we didn’t feel Capcom has done a great job about centralizing the things you need to know about buying the game. This is spoiler free as we are not receiving a review copy and have chosen not to view any coverage outside of public demos Capcom has released on various services. If you have pre-ordered, hopefully it was a tangible version so that you can change your mind now should a detail in this post sway you to a different format (digital/tangible) or platform. If you pre-ordered digitally, please take our strong advice to not pre-order digitally as there is no benefit, often no refund opportunities, no inventory and therefore no need, and pre-loading doesn’t need more than a day or so lead time with even some of the slowest speeds. With that, here’s what you should know when going out to purchase Resident Evil 7.
Resident Evil: The Musical. Yes, You Read That Correct
No guys, this is not a April fools joke. Japan really does have all the fun when it comes to weird shows to bring to the musical scene. With the success of Phoenix Wright in the musical scene I guess it was only a matter of time before Capcom looked at their other franchises. I guess we just weren’t expecting Resident Evil to be the second choice. What’s wrong Capcom, Viewtiful Joe too super hero for you, Okami too arty or maybe its because you want us just to forget about Clover studios. Still, Street Fighter? I’d dig a Zangief opera number.
Maybe its part of the 20th anniversary celebration. Unfortunately for the fans this is only coming to Japan, at least for now. If I had the expendable income I would learn Japanese and fly to Japan to see the show. But since that will unlikely happen here’s my suggestions for some songs they should feature in the musical. I’m assuming this will be based of the first original Playstaion title where you play the game as Jill Valentine. Warning: the following songs may spoil the plot of the game.
Resident Evil 2 Remake Ends Fan Made Remake, Happy Ending Ensues
Ever since the recent announcement from Capcom that a Resident Evil 2 remake is incoming, we here at GH101 have been wondering what will become of the ongoing development of a fan made remake. It was revealed yesterday by PC Gamer that Capcom has officially send a cease and desist (C&D) order to those developers halting the project. On the plus side, it seems everyone wins in this situation unless you were planning on playing the Unreal 4 developed project as it entered completion this summer. The team working on that project have announced that its ultimate goal was to have Capcom proper release a remake and furthermore that Capcom is meeting with them to discuss this development. It’s possible the team could be brought in as consultants or even contractors to work on whatever this remake will be, which I am certain is barely in the planning stages.
Fred’s Take: I’m always cautious with remakes (as opposed to remasters, which often take the original game and upres or upscale the assets) because by definition changes and creative liberties will be made. It could go either way, but the feedback I keep hearing from contemporary games press is that most hope to thwart tank controls, ink ribbons, and possibly even the static camera perspective (opting possibly for the forward thinking over-the-shoulder cam started in Resident Evil 4). As an avid fan of those early games, I think that all three of those aspects should still be included and you can easily overcome the tank controls by offering the modern controls found in Resident Evil HD Remaster. It does appear, however, that given the fact that the fan remake was using the over-the-shoulder cam and given the current landscape of games (not to mention the term “remake”) that we very well may lose those static angles I covet so much. Who knows what the overall changes will be and I will most assuredly play whatever this becomes when it finally sees the light of day sometime in the next 2-3 years. I also dream of a world where two teams make an old school and new school version of the same game, utilizing the features of both, but I can’t possibly see how that’s an effective development cycle.
Capcom Announces Resident Evil 2 Remake
So I get this e-mail about an hour ago from Capcom that says to check out the video above. I tried to hide my excitement as I read the name of the video: Resident Evil 2 Remake – Special Message From Producer “H”. Yep, it’s official, Capcom is remaking the beloved sequel, Resident Evil 2 and fresh on the heels of the nearly complete fan remake. What a predicament. On one hand I really like the RE4 style that the fan remake offers and here’s hoping a C&D (Cease & Desist Order) doesn’t show up in that team’s inbox until at least a few days after the release allowing myself and many other fans to grab it for legacy. On the other hand, I really would like to see what the team at Capcom can do with this project since we (myself and Jam) still love the Resident Evil franchise, adored the HD Remaster (and by proxy the original REmake), and the fact that I was rather disappointed in the efforts of both the main franchise and the Revelations series to date. They were okay, but not what I desired in the original four games’ veins. This also hopefully means it’ll be only a matter of time before we get the Remake treatment to Resident Evil 3 and then I think it’s safe to say I’m all out of things I want from this franchise. The video clearly states that development was just greenlit, which means this game will probably release alongside Bloodstained and Shenmue III in 2017 or later, but what the hell, we can wait.
Special thanks to Michael (@deadpoolprime) for the heads up. My press contacts already gave me access to the video, but I hadn’t looked at it yet and he reminded me that when I get a message to watch a special video, I should probably take the sliver of time to give it an immediate gander.
Now & Then: Resident Evil
Now & Then is different from both a retrospective and a review. It tackles games you probably already know and is a place for gamers to discuss these games. Below is an overview of a game’s presence in the market then and now. Authors of these articles share their personal experience, so we encourage all of you to do the same in the comments.
“You have once again entered the world of survival horror…”
Those famous words set up a genre that has undergone more definitions than probably any other in video games. Depending on your personal taste in titles, survival horror can mean different things but it was used first and defined by Resident Evil¹. This game was basically a haunted house brought to life and has spawned a series that many gamers, myself included, follow endlessly. Despite the direction of the series not holding well with fans of the originals and a slew of poorly made films, Resident Evil lingers on, if only in our nostalgic minds.
Gaming History 101 