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Warning: Spoilers
In recent years, the 'Resident Evil' ( titled 'Bio Hazard' in Japan ) video games have become nothing short of boring. How hard it is to forget then just how wonderful the games once were in the '90's. The first game was released by Capcom in 1996 for both the Playstation and the Sega Saturn. Sales of the game shot through the roof and was so popular that a year later it was remade as a director's cut version. However, nowadays, with Xbox One and PS4 being the 'in thing', the original game does not get a look in ( a retro gaming magazine even panned it, classing it as 'camp and dated' ), which is a terrible shame as in my view it is still a joy to play, despite its dated graphics and bad acting.
The two playable characters in the game are machine expert Jill Valentine and marksman Chris Redfield, both of which serve as part of Alpha Team of S. T. A. R. S ( Special Tactics and Rescue Squad ) police force based in the fictional American town of Raccoon City and are sent out along with Captain Albert Wesker, Rebecca Chambers ( Bravo Team's First-Aider ) weapons specialist Barry Burton to the Arklay Mountains to investigate a series of cannibalistic attacks. Upon arriving in the area the team are almost attacked by a pack of fierce dog-like creatures and are left stranded when their pilot Brad Vickers loses his nerve and flies off in the chopper. Eventually, the remaining members seek refuge in a nearby mansion, which they soon discover is no ordinary mansion. It transpires that the house was used by Umbrella Corporation ( a large biomedical company ) to conduct a series of illegal experiments. One such experiment, the Tyrant Virus, was exposed in the underground lab and affected all of Umbrella's researchers and security guards. Anyone who is affected by the virus turns into a flesh eating zombie.
I don't want to say too much else about the game as that would spoil it for those who have not yet got around to playing it. The moral of the game is the player must battle their way through a series of dangerous creatures, baffling puzzles and deadly booby traps in order to make it out alive. A number of minor characters include Richard Aiken ( who died after being bitten by Yawn, a huge poisonous snake ), Joseph Frost ( who was eaten alive by the dogs who the team encountered before reaching the mansion ), Forest Speyer ( who was pecked to death by aggressive crows ), Kenneth J. Sullivan ( who is killed at the start after being eaten by a zombie ) and Enrico Marini, who after informing the player that there is a traitor among them, is shot dead by an unseen assailant. Boss-like creatures include the aforementioned Yawn, Plant-42 ( a plant that has been transformed into a deadly monster ), Neptune ( a deadly shark ), the Black Tiger ( a gigantic venomous spider ) and Tyrant ( the life form of the T-Virus who the player must defeat at the end of the game ).
The game-play itself is something to enjoy a lot however the voice acting is comical. For instance, if playing Jill, at one point in the game she is almost crushed by a descending ceiling and is saved from certain death by Barry.
JILL: Thank you for saving my life, Barry!
BARRY: Don't mention it, that was too close! You were almost a 'Jill' sandwich!
If playing Chris, there is a hilarious scene where Chris narrowly survives a battle with Plant-42, much to the amazement of his partner Rebecca.
REBECCA: You're alive!
CHRIS: Yeah! So much for him, we got to the 'root' of the problem!
A few other vocal anomalies are scattered about, such as when Jill finds Chris locked in a cell in the underground lab : ''I'll come back and rescue you later, will you wait here?''. What the hell does she think he will do? Burrow his way out underground? The acting aside, the thrill-packed game-play and suspense factor more than makes up for this shortcoming and is highly recommended to anyone who loves a gory shoot-em-up.
In 1998, the sequel 'Resident Evil 2' was released and did just as well commercially as the first. In 2002, a remake of the original was made for the Nintendo Gamecube console. The remake featured new dialogue and puzzles, as well as more defined graphics and improved voice acting. That same year, a film was made of 'Resident Evil' which led onto a number of follow-ups. Many adaptations of 'Resident Evil' may have came and went over the years but in my opinion the original remains the best.
10/10
