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Resident Evil (video game)
Encyclopedia
Resident Evil, known as in Japan, is a survival horror video game by Capcom
. The first installment in the Resident Evil series, it was originally released in 1996 for the PlayStation and was subsequently ported to the Sega Saturn
and PC
. In 2002, a remake of the game was released for the Nintendo GameCube
featuring new graphics, voice acting and many gameplay changes. A Nintendo DS
port of the original was released in 2006 titled Resident Evil: Deadly Silence.
It was one of the first games to be dubbed a "survival horror." Accordingly, Game Informer refers to "the original Resident Evil" as "one of the most important games of all time." The inspiration for Resident Evil was the earlier Capcom game Sweet Home
. Shinji Mikami
was initially commissioned to make a horror game set in a haunted mansion like Sweet Home, which Resident Evil was originally intended to be a remake of.
backdrops with pre-determined camera angles. The player controls the character by pushing the d-pad or analog stick left or right to rotate the character and then move the character forward or backwards by the pushing the d-pad up or down.
To fulfill the game's objective, the player uncovers various documents that provide exposition about the game's narrative, as well as clues that help them solve various puzzles within the mansion. Key items are also available that give the player access to other items or new areas. The player can arm their character with weapons to defend themselves from enemies, although the ammunition available for each firearm is limited and the player must learn to conserve the ammunition they have for situations where they will really need it. To restore the character's health, the player uses first-aid sprays or three types of healing herbs that can be mixed together in different combinations for different healing effects. The carrying capacity of the player is limited depending on the character and items that the player does not wish to carry at the moment can be stored into an item box to be retrieved for later use. To save their progress, the player must pick up an ink ribbon and use it on any of the typewriters scattered through key locations in the game. However, the supply of ink ribbons the player can acquire is also limited much like the player's ammo and healing supplies.
The various enemies the player encounters include infected creatures like flesh-eating zombie
s, zombie dogs, giant spiders, crows and artificial creatures with codenames such as "Hunters" and "Chimeras", as well as the game's ultimate adversary, a new type of biological weapon known as the "Tyrant".
or Jill Valentine
as the main character. Jill has more firepower and a lockpick that enables her to access areas and items easily, while Chris has limited firepower but is more durable in terms of taking damage from enemies. The game's supporting characters includes Barry Burton, Alpha team's weapons expert who provides Jill with additional firepower; Rebecca Chambers
, a surviving member of Bravo team who supports Chris with her medical expertise; Albert Wesker
, the captain of STARS and leader of Alpha team; and Brad Vickers, the helicopter pilot who sends transmissions to them as he tries to find them in the helicopter. Other minor characters include Joseph Frost, the sixth member of Alpha team whose sudden death sets the story into motion, Enrico Marini, the leader of Bravo team who gives the player the game's most critical plot twist, Richard Aiken, who gives the player a radio used to receive Brad's transmissions, Kenneth Sullivan, a member of Bravo team killed just after Alpha team arrives, and Forest Speyer, whose corpse is found on the balcony by the player.
, but there are no signs of survivors; only a severed hand is found. While searching the area for further clues, Alpha team is attacked by ferocious dogs, one of which kills one of the team's members, Joseph Frost. Alpha's helicopter pilot, Brad Vickers, panics and takes off alone. Pursued by the dogs who killed their colleague, Alpha team is forced to seek refuge within a nearby mansion. It is believed to be abandoned.
With the dogs roaming outside, the four remaining Alpha team members (Albert Wesker
, Chris Redfield
, Jill Valentine
and Barry Burton) are trapped within. Depending on which character is the player, one of the members of Alpha team is separated from the others during the chase and does not make it to the mansion (Barry if Chris, Chris if Jill). A gunshot rings out, and the player character moves to investigate. At this point, the player takes control of the character and begins to explore the mansion. One of the first discoveries is a member of Bravo team, Kenneth J. Sullivan, being eaten by a zombie. While searching the mansion, the character finds the other members of Bravo team, such as Richard Aiken, dying of poison, who gives the character his radio before dying; Forest Speyer, found dead on the balcony; and Enrico Marini, who reveals that one member of the team is a traitor before being shot and killed by an unseen attacker. The character eventually finds the mansion to be riddled with puzzles, traps, and horrors. Scattered documents suggest that a series of illegal experiments were being undertaken on the property by a clandestine research team, under the authority and supervision of the Umbrella Corporation, a biomedical conglomerate
. The creatures roaming the mansion and surrounding region are the results of these experiments, which have exposed the mansion's personnel and various animals and insects to a highly contagious and mutagen
ic biological agent
known as the T-virus.
After navigating a series of underground tunnels, passageways and buildings, the player discovers a secret underground laboratory containing the Umbrella Corporation's experiments, including the Tyrant. In the lab, the player learns that Wesker is a double agent working for Umbrella. Wesker is killed after that by one of the creations. The player finds the other playable character in a cell, put there by Wesker, and manages to get him/her out by activating the self-destruct system. Chris, Jill and the helper character (Rebecca if Chris, Barry if Jill) head for the heliport, but the other two are separated from the player due to more creatures. The player gets up to the heliport and manages to contact Brad and meet the other two survivors there, but they are attacked by the Tyrant
, a giant humanoid monster created through prolonged exposure to the T-virus. After the Tyrant is defeated, Chris, Jill and Barry/Rebecca manage to escape the premises in the team helicopter.
The original PlayStation version of Resident Evil featured several considerable changes between its original Japanese release and its English-language counterparts. The North American and European versions of the intro were heavily cut from the one featured in the Japanese releases. Shots of mangled corpses, a "Cerberus" zombie dog being shot, and Joseph's death were edited out, as well as scenes featuring the character Chris Redfield smoking a cigarette. The Japanese PlayStation version, Bio Hazard, also features a vocal ending theme performed by Fumitaka Fuchigami that was not in any other versions of the game.
In the game itself, the auto-aiming function was disabled and the numbers of ink ribbons found by the player were reduced. Capcom also planned to eliminate the "fourth dimensional" item boxes for the North American version (meaning that any item the player stored in one item box could not be retrieved in another), but they were restored for the released version of the game in North America. The later released GameCube version of the game features a hidden difficulty setting called "Real Survival," which eliminates the fourth dimensional item boxes.
The Japanese releases all contain English voice acting with Japanese captions and text. Japanese voice acting for the game was also recorded, but was left unused. According to Mikami, the Japanese voice acting was removed from the game as he found the quality of the performances to be unsatisfactory.
already were using the name. Capcom therefore decided to run a contest within its company to find a new name. They eventually settled on Resident Evil, since the game takes place in a mansion. Interviewed by GamesRadar
, Chris Kramer said:
, and was originally bundled with a playable demo of that game.
The main addition to Director's Cut is an "arranged" version of the game that changes the location of nearly every vital item in the mansion, as well as the enemy placement. The main characters, as well as Rebecca, are given a new wardrobe and the player's handgun is replaced by an improved model where any shot fired has a random chance of decapitating a zombie, killing it instantly. The original version of the game is included as well, along with a new "beginner" mode where the enemies are easier to kill and the amount of ammunition that can be found by the player is doubled. Additionally, the auto-aim function was restored in all modes, though it is not noted in the in-game controls so the player must accidentally stumble upon it.
The North American and European releases of the Director's Cut were marketed as featuring the original, uncensored footage as seen in the Japanese releases. However, the Full Motion Video (FMV) sequences were still censored. Capcom claimed the omission was the result of a localization mistake made by the developers and offered the uncensored intro as a free download from their website. The French and German PAL versions of Director's Cut feature the uncensored FMVs, in colored versions.
controls and vibration
functions, as well as a new symphonic soundtrack by Mamoru Samuragoch, replacing the original soundtrack by Makoto Tomozawa, Akari Kaida
, and Masami Ueda. The Japanese Dual Shock Ver. came packaged with a bonus disc that contained downloadable save data and footage of the Japanese dubbed version of the opening cut scene and other footage, along with gameplay footage of Resident Evil 1.5, the canceled version of Resident Evil 2.
Resident Evil: Director's Cut Dual Shock Ver. was later released for the PlayStation 3
and PlayStation Portable
as a downloadable game available from the PlayStation Network.
in which the player must traverse through a series of rooms from the main game and eliminate all enemies within them with the weapons selected by the player. This minigame features two exclusive enemies not in the main game: a zombie version of Wesker and a gold-colored Tyrant. The player's performance is graded at the end of the minigame. The Saturn version also features exclusive enemy monsters, such as a re-skinned breed of Hunters known as Ticks and a second Tyrant prior to the game's final battle. Exclusive outfits for Jill and Chris were added as well.
for Jill and an FN Minimi
for Chris. New unlockable outfits for Chris and Jill were added as well.
version of Resident Evil was planned, but later canceled by Capcom, citing that the port was of poor quality. Capcom later released a new game in the series for the platform titled Resident Evil Gaiden
.
. This was part of an exclusivity agreement between Capcom
and Nintendo
that spanned three new games. The title includes a variety of new gameplay elements, environments, and story details as well as state of the art visuals. Shinji Mikami
has stated that the remake is "70% different from the original."
The game is notable for its nearly photo-realistic environments, all of which are pre-rendered. The remake features all-new graphics
and sound, and also incorporates gameplay
elements from the later installments such as the use of body language
to indicate the main character's health and the 180-degree turn. In addition, it introduced a new running style that was also used in Resident Evil Zero, and several new areas were added to the game. The overall plot remains largely unchanged. The original live-action FMV segments were redone in CG
, with the voice acting
done by a new cast. The script was rewritten to have a more serious tone and improved translation, as opposed to the unprofessional dialogue and roughly-translated script of the original. Gameplay mechanics are largely the same although most of the puzzles have been changed and the player can equip a defensive weapon that can be used when seized by an enemy. These defensive weapons include a dagger and a one-shot Cobra Standard .22 Magnum Derringer. Each character also has their own defensive weapon exclusive to them. Jill Valentine uses a taser, while Chris Redfield is able to find stun grenades. These weapons are automatically used when the player is grabbed by an enemy, saving them from taking damage.
Additionally, the remake features many unlockable game modes, secrets, and various endings not found in the original. It also restores the George Trevor subplot
, and splices other main characters of the Resident Evil games, such as William Birkin and Alexia Ashford into the game's backstory.
The GameCube version of Resident Evil sold over 1.35 million copies.
port of the original Resident Evil, titled Resident Evil: Deadly Silence was made to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the series. Deadly Silence includes a "Classic Mode", the original game with minimal enhancements and touch-screen support, and a "Rebirth Mode", containing a greater number of enemies and a series of new puzzles that make use of the platform's specifications.
The game makes use of the dual screen display with the top screen used to display the map, along with the player's remaining ammunition and health (determined by the color of the background); while the bottom screen displays the main action, and can be switched to show the player's inventory. The DS version also includes updated play mechanics: the 180-degree turn introduced in Resident Evil 3, along with the knife button and tactical reload from Resident Evil 4. The updated controls are applicable to both Classic and Rebirth modes. Dialog and loading screens can now be skipped. The live-action footage was still censored, even in the game's Japanese release; however, the scene showing Kenneth's decapitated head was kept.
In "Rebirth", new puzzles are added that use the system's touch-screen. "Knife Battle" sequences, viewed from a first-person perspective, are also added, in which the player must fend off incoming enemies by swinging the knife via the stylus. One particular puzzle requires the player to resuscitate an injured comrade by blowing into the built-in microphone. The player can also shake off enemies by using the touch screen, performing a melee attack.
The game also includes wireless LAN
support for up to four players with two different multiplayer game modes. The first is a cooperative mode in which each player must help each other solve puzzles and escape the mansion together. The other is a competitive mode in which the objective is to get the highest score out of all the players by destroying the most monsters, with the tougher monsters being worth more points. There are three playable multiplayer stages and nine playable characters.
version of the Resident Evil remake originally released for the GameCube was released in Japan on December 25, 2008. As with the previous Wii version of Resident Evil Zero, the game saw
minimal changes in its transition to the Wii. The Wii version was released in North America and Europe in June 2009 under the title Resident Evil Archives: Resident Evil.
of the 1996 video game Resident Evil, was written by author
S.D. Perry as the first book
in her series of Resident Evil novels
. The novel combines Jill
's and Chris
scenarios into one narrative and features all five of the main characters (including Barry Burton, Rebecca Chambers and Albert Wesker
).
The book also takes liberty with some of the original source materials; the most notable difference being the inclusion of an original character named Trent, an insider from Umbrella Corporation who provides Jill with information about the Spencer Mansion prior to the events of the mansion incident. Since the book was written a few years before the Nintendo GameCube remake, the novelization omits the presence of Lisa Trevor in the mansion. However, the book does allude to the original version of George Trevor's Journal from The True Story Behind Bio Hazard, as well as the short story it contained, Bio Hazard: The Beginning, which involved the disappearance of Chris Redfield's friend, Billy Rabbitson. Another notable difference in the novels is moving the location of Raccoon City from the Midwest to Pennsylvania
, apparently about an hour's drive from New York
. Overall,despite having been written before the retcon introduced in REmake and RE 0, the book still maintains overall similarity to what the story warped into in the early 2000s.
praised the game, describing it as "one of those rare games that's almost as entertaining to watch as it is to play", while Computer Gaming World
gave a more mixed review for the Windows version in explaining that they "tried to hate it with its graphic violence, rampant sexism, poor voice acting and use of every horror cliché, however...it's actually fun."
The PlayStation game was a best seller in North America. In total, according to Capcom's Investor Relations website, the original Resident Evil has sold over 2.75 million units.
The GameCube version of Resident Evil received critical acclaim. GameSpot
said this about the remake: "Capcom has nearly perfected its craft and created the best Resident Evil ever". IGN
mentioned at the time that the remake was "the prettiest, most atmospheric and all-around scariest game we've ever played". The original game was put into the Guinness World Records: Gamer's Edition 2008 for the "Worst Game Dialogue Ever".
The GameCube remake of Resident Evil sold over 1.35 million units.
Capcom
is a Japanese developer and publisher of video games, known for creating multi-million-selling franchises such as Devil May Cry, Chaos Legion, Street Fighter, Mega Man and Resident Evil. Capcom developed and published Bionic Commando, Lost Planet and Dark Void too, but they are less known. Its...
. The first installment in the Resident Evil series, it was originally released in 1996 for the PlayStation and was subsequently ported to the Sega Saturn
Sega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
and PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
. In 2002, a remake of the game was released for the Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
featuring new graphics, voice acting and many gameplay changes. A Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
port of the original was released in 2006 titled Resident Evil: Deadly Silence.
It was one of the first games to be dubbed a "survival horror." Accordingly, Game Informer refers to "the original Resident Evil" as "one of the most important games of all time." The inspiration for Resident Evil was the earlier Capcom game Sweet Home
Sweet Home (video game)
is a survival horror role-playing video game that was released for the Famicom in 1989. It features several elements of console role-playing games. Sweet Home was developed and published by Capcom and the game was never released outside Japan...
. Shinji Mikami
Shinji Mikami
is a Japanese video game designer best known for creating the seminal survival horror series Resident Evil. He also contributed to some of Capcom's most popular post-32-bit era franchises, including Viewtiful Joe, Devil May Cry, and Ace Attorney, where he served as an executive producer...
was initially commissioned to make a horror game set in a haunted mansion like Sweet Home, which Resident Evil was originally intended to be a remake of.
Gameplay
The player's character is a member of a special law enforcement task force who is trapped in a mansion populated by dangerous mutated creatures. The objective of the game is to uncover the mystery of the mansion and ultimately escape alive. The game's graphics consist of 3D polygonal characters and objects superimposed over pre-renderedPre-rendered
Pre-rendering is the process in which video footage is not rendered in real-time by the hardware that is outputing or playing back the video. Instead, the video is a recording of a footage that was previously rendered on a different equipment...
backdrops with pre-determined camera angles. The player controls the character by pushing the d-pad or analog stick left or right to rotate the character and then move the character forward or backwards by the pushing the d-pad up or down.
To fulfill the game's objective, the player uncovers various documents that provide exposition about the game's narrative, as well as clues that help them solve various puzzles within the mansion. Key items are also available that give the player access to other items or new areas. The player can arm their character with weapons to defend themselves from enemies, although the ammunition available for each firearm is limited and the player must learn to conserve the ammunition they have for situations where they will really need it. To restore the character's health, the player uses first-aid sprays or three types of healing herbs that can be mixed together in different combinations for different healing effects. The carrying capacity of the player is limited depending on the character and items that the player does not wish to carry at the moment can be stored into an item box to be retrieved for later use. To save their progress, the player must pick up an ink ribbon and use it on any of the typewriters scattered through key locations in the game. However, the supply of ink ribbons the player can acquire is also limited much like the player's ammo and healing supplies.
The various enemies the player encounters include infected creatures like flesh-eating zombie
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
s, zombie dogs, giant spiders, crows and artificial creatures with codenames such as "Hunters" and "Chimeras", as well as the game's ultimate adversary, a new type of biological weapon known as the "Tyrant".
Setting
A series of bizarre murders have occurred on the outskirts of Raccoon City, with signs of cannibalism on the victims' remains. The Raccoon Police Department's Special Tactics And Rescue Service (S.T.A.R.S.) are assigned to investigate the murders. S.T.A.R.S. is divided into two teams: Alpha and Bravo. Bravo team is sent first, but after contact with them is lost, Alpha team is sent to investigate their disappearance.Characters
The player has a choice between Alpha team members Chris RedfieldChris Redfield
is a fictional character from Capcom's Resident Evil series.Chris is one of the two main protagonists in the first Resident Evil game, the other being Jill Valentine. Redfield returned as a playable character in Resident Evil Code: Veronica, where he must search for, and ultimately rescue, his...
or Jill Valentine
Jill Valentine
is a fictional character in the Resident Evil survival horror series by Capcom.Jill is one of the two protagonists of the original Resident Evil game, where she was introduced as a member of the Raccoon Police Department's Special Tactics And Rescue Service , trapped in a secret research complex of...
as the main character. Jill has more firepower and a lockpick that enables her to access areas and items easily, while Chris has limited firepower but is more durable in terms of taking damage from enemies. The game's supporting characters includes Barry Burton, Alpha team's weapons expert who provides Jill with additional firepower; Rebecca Chambers
Rebecca Chambers (character)
is a player character in the Resident Evil survival horror video games, first introduced in the first game in the series in 1996. She is also one of the main characters in the Resident Evil novels.-Character design:...
, a surviving member of Bravo team who supports Chris with her medical expertise; Albert Wesker
Albert Wesker
is a character in the Resident Evil franchise. Although portrayed as a supporting character in the first game, he was later established as the primary antagonist of the series; he usually manipulated story events behind-the-scenes and had a role in more games than the other main characters...
, the captain of STARS and leader of Alpha team; and Brad Vickers, the helicopter pilot who sends transmissions to them as he tries to find them in the helicopter. Other minor characters include Joseph Frost, the sixth member of Alpha team whose sudden death sets the story into motion, Enrico Marini, the leader of Bravo team who gives the player the game's most critical plot twist, Richard Aiken, who gives the player a radio used to receive Brad's transmissions, Kenneth Sullivan, a member of Bravo team killed just after Alpha team arrives, and Forest Speyer, whose corpse is found on the balcony by the player.
Story
The game begins on July 24, 1998 after Alpha team locates Bravo team's helicopterHelicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
, but there are no signs of survivors; only a severed hand is found. While searching the area for further clues, Alpha team is attacked by ferocious dogs, one of which kills one of the team's members, Joseph Frost. Alpha's helicopter pilot, Brad Vickers, panics and takes off alone. Pursued by the dogs who killed their colleague, Alpha team is forced to seek refuge within a nearby mansion. It is believed to be abandoned.
With the dogs roaming outside, the four remaining Alpha team members (Albert Wesker
Albert Wesker
is a character in the Resident Evil franchise. Although portrayed as a supporting character in the first game, he was later established as the primary antagonist of the series; he usually manipulated story events behind-the-scenes and had a role in more games than the other main characters...
, Chris Redfield
Chris Redfield
is a fictional character from Capcom's Resident Evil series.Chris is one of the two main protagonists in the first Resident Evil game, the other being Jill Valentine. Redfield returned as a playable character in Resident Evil Code: Veronica, where he must search for, and ultimately rescue, his...
, Jill Valentine
Jill Valentine
is a fictional character in the Resident Evil survival horror series by Capcom.Jill is one of the two protagonists of the original Resident Evil game, where she was introduced as a member of the Raccoon Police Department's Special Tactics And Rescue Service , trapped in a secret research complex of...
and Barry Burton) are trapped within. Depending on which character is the player, one of the members of Alpha team is separated from the others during the chase and does not make it to the mansion (Barry if Chris, Chris if Jill). A gunshot rings out, and the player character moves to investigate. At this point, the player takes control of the character and begins to explore the mansion. One of the first discoveries is a member of Bravo team, Kenneth J. Sullivan, being eaten by a zombie. While searching the mansion, the character finds the other members of Bravo team, such as Richard Aiken, dying of poison, who gives the character his radio before dying; Forest Speyer, found dead on the balcony; and Enrico Marini, who reveals that one member of the team is a traitor before being shot and killed by an unseen attacker. The character eventually finds the mansion to be riddled with puzzles, traps, and horrors. Scattered documents suggest that a series of illegal experiments were being undertaken on the property by a clandestine research team, under the authority and supervision of the Umbrella Corporation, a biomedical conglomerate
Conglomerate (company)
A conglomerate is a combination of two or more corporations engaged in entirely different businesses that fall under one corporate structure , usually involving a parent company and several subsidiaries. Often, a conglomerate is a multi-industry company...
. The creatures roaming the mansion and surrounding region are the results of these experiments, which have exposed the mansion's personnel and various animals and insects to a highly contagious and mutagen
Mutagen
In genetics, a mutagen is a physical or chemical agent that changes the genetic material, usually DNA, of an organism and thus increases the frequency of mutations above the natural background level. As many mutations cause cancer, mutagens are therefore also likely to be carcinogens...
ic biological agent
Biological agent
A biological agent — also called bio-agent or biological threat agent — is a bacterium, virus, prion, or fungus which may cause infection, allergy, toxicity or otherwise create a hazard to human health. They can be used as a biological weapon in bioterrorism or biological warfare...
known as the T-virus.
After navigating a series of underground tunnels, passageways and buildings, the player discovers a secret underground laboratory containing the Umbrella Corporation's experiments, including the Tyrant. In the lab, the player learns that Wesker is a double agent working for Umbrella. Wesker is killed after that by one of the creations. The player finds the other playable character in a cell, put there by Wesker, and manages to get him/her out by activating the self-destruct system. Chris, Jill and the helper character (Rebecca if Chris, Barry if Jill) head for the heliport, but the other two are separated from the player due to more creatures. The player gets up to the heliport and manages to contact Brad and meet the other two survivors there, but they are attacked by the Tyrant
Tyrant (Resident Evil)
The Tyrant is the code name of a series of boss characters in the Resident Evil video game series. Tyrants, biologically engineered supersoldiers created and used by the sinister Umbrella Corporation, make appearances as boss characters in most of Resident Evil games and the desire to create an...
, a giant humanoid monster created through prolonged exposure to the T-virus. After the Tyrant is defeated, Chris, Jill and Barry/Rebecca manage to escape the premises in the team helicopter.
Development
Resident Evil was created by a team of staff members who would later become part of Capcom Production Studio 4.English localization
In the game itself, the auto-aiming function was disabled and the numbers of ink ribbons found by the player were reduced. Capcom also planned to eliminate the "fourth dimensional" item boxes for the North American version (meaning that any item the player stored in one item box could not be retrieved in another), but they were restored for the released version of the game in North America. The later released GameCube version of the game features a hidden difficulty setting called "Real Survival," which eliminates the fourth dimensional item boxes.
The Japanese releases all contain English voice acting with Japanese captions and text. Japanese voice acting for the game was also recorded, but was left unused. According to Mikami, the Japanese voice acting was removed from the game as he found the quality of the performances to be unsatisfactory.
Title change
The game was originally called Bio Hazard in Japan. However, it was decided to change the name in the US and Europe after Chris Kramer, the Director of Communications at Capcom, pointed out that it would be impossible to trademark "Biohazard" in the US. Among others, another game and a bandBiohazard (band)
Biohazard is a band originally based in Brooklyn, New York. They are acknowledged as one of the earliest bands to fuse hardcore punk and heavy metal with elements of hip hop. The original lineup consisted of Vocalist/Guitarist Billy Graziadei, bassist/vocalist Evan Seinfeld, guitarist Bobby Hambel,...
already were using the name. Capcom therefore decided to run a contest within its company to find a new name. They eventually settled on Resident Evil, since the game takes place in a mansion. Interviewed by GamesRadar
GamesRadar
GamesRadar is a multi-format video game website featuring regular news, previews, reviews, videos, and guides. It is owned and operated simultaneously in the UK and US by worldwide publisher Future Publishing...
, Chris Kramer said:
"I thought it was super-cheesy; can’t remember what I felt was a better alternative, probably something stupid about zombies – but the rest of the marketing crew loved it and were ultimately able to convince Capcom Japan and Mikami-san that the name fit."
Director's Cut
An updated version of Resident Evil for the PlayStation, titled Resident Evil: Director's Cut, was released on September 1997, a year and a half after the original game's release. Director's Cut was produced to compensate for the delay of the sequel, Resident Evil 2Resident Evil 2
Resident Evil 2, known as in Japan, is a survival horror video game originally released for the PlayStation in 1998. Developed by Capcom as the second installment in the Resident Evil series, its story takes place two months after the events of the first game, Resident Evil...
, and was originally bundled with a playable demo of that game.
The main addition to Director's Cut is an "arranged" version of the game that changes the location of nearly every vital item in the mansion, as well as the enemy placement. The main characters, as well as Rebecca, are given a new wardrobe and the player's handgun is replaced by an improved model where any shot fired has a random chance of decapitating a zombie, killing it instantly. The original version of the game is included as well, along with a new "beginner" mode where the enemies are easier to kill and the amount of ammunition that can be found by the player is doubled. Additionally, the auto-aim function was restored in all modes, though it is not noted in the in-game controls so the player must accidentally stumble upon it.
The North American and European releases of the Director's Cut were marketed as featuring the original, uncensored footage as seen in the Japanese releases. However, the Full Motion Video (FMV) sequences were still censored. Capcom claimed the omission was the result of a localization mistake made by the developers and offered the uncensored intro as a free download from their website. The French and German PAL versions of Director's Cut feature the uncensored FMVs, in colored versions.
Dual Shock Ver.
A second release of Director's Cut, known as the Dual Shock Ver., was released in Japan and North America. The Dual Shock Ver. featured support for the DualShock controller's analogAnalog signal
An analog or analogue signal is any continuous signal for which the time varying feature of the signal is a representation of some other time varying quantity, i.e., analogous to another time varying signal. It differs from a digital signal in terms of small fluctuations in the signal which are...
controls and vibration
Vibration
Vibration refers to mechanical oscillations about an equilibrium point. The oscillations may be periodic such as the motion of a pendulum or random such as the movement of a tire on a gravel road.Vibration is occasionally "desirable"...
functions, as well as a new symphonic soundtrack by Mamoru Samuragoch, replacing the original soundtrack by Makoto Tomozawa, Akari Kaida
Akari Kaida
is a video game music composer. She has composed musical scores for Capcom games including Resident Evil, Dino Crisis and Ōkami...
, and Masami Ueda. The Japanese Dual Shock Ver. came packaged with a bonus disc that contained downloadable save data and footage of the Japanese dubbed version of the opening cut scene and other footage, along with gameplay footage of Resident Evil 1.5, the canceled version of Resident Evil 2.
Resident Evil: Director's Cut Dual Shock Ver. was later released for the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
as a downloadable game available from the PlayStation Network.
Sega Saturn version
The Sega Saturn version added an unlockable Battle Game minigameMinigame
A minigame is a short video game often contained within another video game. A minigame is always smaller or more simplistic than the game in which it is contained. Minigames are sometimes also offered separately for free to promote the main game...
in which the player must traverse through a series of rooms from the main game and eliminate all enemies within them with the weapons selected by the player. This minigame features two exclusive enemies not in the main game: a zombie version of Wesker and a gold-colored Tyrant. The player's performance is graded at the end of the minigame. The Saturn version also features exclusive enemy monsters, such as a re-skinned breed of Hunters known as Ticks and a second Tyrant prior to the game's final battle. Exclusive outfits for Jill and Chris were added as well.
Windows version
The Windows version featured the uncensored footage from the Japanese version, but the opening intro is in full color rather than black and white. Support for 3D accelerators was added as well, allowing for much sharper graphics. Two new unlockable weapons were added, a MAC-10MAC-10
The MAC-10 is a highly compact, blowback operated machine pistol developed by Gordon B. Ingram in 1964.-Design:The M-10 was built predominantly from steel stampings...
for Jill and an FN Minimi
FN Minimi
The Minimi is a Belgian 5.56mm light machine gun developed by Fabrique Nationale in Herstal by Ernest Vervier. First introduced in 1974, it has entered service with the armed forces of over thirty countries...
for Chris. New unlockable outfits for Chris and Jill were added as well.
Unreleased Game Boy Color version
A Game Boy ColorGame Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
version of Resident Evil was planned, but later canceled by Capcom, citing that the port was of poor quality. Capcom later released a new game in the series for the platform titled Resident Evil Gaiden
Resident Evil Gaiden
Resident Evil Gaiden, known as Biohazard Gaiden in Japan, is a survival horror game for the Game Boy Color co-developed by Capcom and M4, and first released on December 14, 2001...
.
GameCube remake
In 2002, a remade version of the game, known as Resident Evil in Western regions and as Biohazard in Japan, was released for the Nintendo GameCubeNintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
. This was part of an exclusivity agreement between Capcom
Capcom
is a Japanese developer and publisher of video games, known for creating multi-million-selling franchises such as Devil May Cry, Chaos Legion, Street Fighter, Mega Man and Resident Evil. Capcom developed and published Bionic Commando, Lost Planet and Dark Void too, but they are less known. Its...
and Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
that spanned three new games. The title includes a variety of new gameplay elements, environments, and story details as well as state of the art visuals. Shinji Mikami
Shinji Mikami
is a Japanese video game designer best known for creating the seminal survival horror series Resident Evil. He also contributed to some of Capcom's most popular post-32-bit era franchises, including Viewtiful Joe, Devil May Cry, and Ace Attorney, where he served as an executive producer...
has stated that the remake is "70% different from the original."
The game is notable for its nearly photo-realistic environments, all of which are pre-rendered. The remake features all-new graphics
Computer graphics
Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....
and sound, and also incorporates gameplay
Gameplay
Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and player's connection with it...
elements from the later installments such as the use of body language
Body language
Body language is a form of non-verbal communication, which consists of body posture, gestures, facial expressions, and eye movements. Humans send and interpret such signals almost entirely subconsciously....
to indicate the main character's health and the 180-degree turn. In addition, it introduced a new running style that was also used in Resident Evil Zero, and several new areas were added to the game. The overall plot remains largely unchanged. The original live-action FMV segments were redone in CG
Computer graphics
Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....
, with the voice acting
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
done by a new cast. The script was rewritten to have a more serious tone and improved translation, as opposed to the unprofessional dialogue and roughly-translated script of the original. Gameplay mechanics are largely the same although most of the puzzles have been changed and the player can equip a defensive weapon that can be used when seized by an enemy. These defensive weapons include a dagger and a one-shot Cobra Standard .22 Magnum Derringer. Each character also has their own defensive weapon exclusive to them. Jill Valentine uses a taser, while Chris Redfield is able to find stun grenades. These weapons are automatically used when the player is grabbed by an enemy, saving them from taking damage.
Additionally, the remake features many unlockable game modes, secrets, and various endings not found in the original. It also restores the George Trevor subplot
Subplot
A subplot is a secondary plot strand that is a supporting side story for any story or the main plot. Subplots may connect to main plots, in either time and place or in thematic significance...
, and splices other main characters of the Resident Evil games, such as William Birkin and Alexia Ashford into the game's backstory.
The GameCube version of Resident Evil sold over 1.35 million copies.
Deadly Silence
A Nintendo DSNintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
port of the original Resident Evil, titled Resident Evil: Deadly Silence was made to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the series. Deadly Silence includes a "Classic Mode", the original game with minimal enhancements and touch-screen support, and a "Rebirth Mode", containing a greater number of enemies and a series of new puzzles that make use of the platform's specifications.
The game makes use of the dual screen display with the top screen used to display the map, along with the player's remaining ammunition and health (determined by the color of the background); while the bottom screen displays the main action, and can be switched to show the player's inventory. The DS version also includes updated play mechanics: the 180-degree turn introduced in Resident Evil 3, along with the knife button and tactical reload from Resident Evil 4. The updated controls are applicable to both Classic and Rebirth modes. Dialog and loading screens can now be skipped. The live-action footage was still censored, even in the game's Japanese release; however, the scene showing Kenneth's decapitated head was kept.
In "Rebirth", new puzzles are added that use the system's touch-screen. "Knife Battle" sequences, viewed from a first-person perspective, are also added, in which the player must fend off incoming enemies by swinging the knife via the stylus. One particular puzzle requires the player to resuscitate an injured comrade by blowing into the built-in microphone. The player can also shake off enemies by using the touch screen, performing a melee attack.
The game also includes wireless LAN
Local area network
A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
support for up to four players with two different multiplayer game modes. The first is a cooperative mode in which each player must help each other solve puzzles and escape the mansion together. The other is a competitive mode in which the objective is to get the highest score out of all the players by destroying the most monsters, with the tougher monsters being worth more points. There are three playable multiplayer stages and nine playable characters.
Wii version
A WiiWii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
version of the Resident Evil remake originally released for the GameCube was released in Japan on December 25, 2008. As with the previous Wii version of Resident Evil Zero, the game saw
minimal changes in its transition to the Wii. The Wii version was released in North America and Europe in June 2009 under the title Resident Evil Archives: Resident Evil.
Novelization
Resident Evil: The Umbrella Conspiracy is a 1998 novelizationNovelization
A novelization is a novel that is written based on some other media story form rather than as an original work.Novelizations of films usually add background material not found in the original work to flesh out the story, because novels are generally longer than screenplays...
of the 1996 video game Resident Evil, was written by author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
S.D. Perry as the first book
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
in her series of Resident Evil novels
Resident Evil (series)
Resident Evil, known as in Japan, is a media franchise owned by the video game company Capcom. It was created by Shinji Mikami as a survival horror game series that was initiated with the eponymous PlayStation title Resident Evil in 1996. Since then, the game series has strayed from its roots to...
. The novel combines Jill
Jill Valentine
is a fictional character in the Resident Evil survival horror series by Capcom.Jill is one of the two protagonists of the original Resident Evil game, where she was introduced as a member of the Raccoon Police Department's Special Tactics And Rescue Service , trapped in a secret research complex of...
's and Chris
Chris Redfield
is a fictional character from Capcom's Resident Evil series.Chris is one of the two main protagonists in the first Resident Evil game, the other being Jill Valentine. Redfield returned as a playable character in Resident Evil Code: Veronica, where he must search for, and ultimately rescue, his...
scenarios into one narrative and features all five of the main characters (including Barry Burton, Rebecca Chambers and Albert Wesker
Albert Wesker
is a character in the Resident Evil franchise. Although portrayed as a supporting character in the first game, he was later established as the primary antagonist of the series; he usually manipulated story events behind-the-scenes and had a role in more games than the other main characters...
).
The book also takes liberty with some of the original source materials; the most notable difference being the inclusion of an original character named Trent, an insider from Umbrella Corporation who provides Jill with information about the Spencer Mansion prior to the events of the mansion incident. Since the book was written a few years before the Nintendo GameCube remake, the novelization omits the presence of Lisa Trevor in the mansion. However, the book does allude to the original version of George Trevor's Journal from The True Story Behind Bio Hazard, as well as the short story it contained, Bio Hazard: The Beginning, which involved the disappearance of Chris Redfield's friend, Billy Rabbitson. Another notable difference in the novels is moving the location of Raccoon City from the Midwest to Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, apparently about an hour's drive from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Overall,despite having been written before the retcon introduced in REmake and RE 0, the book still maintains overall similarity to what the story warped into in the early 2000s.
Reception
The game received positive reviews from critics. For example, GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
praised the game, describing it as "one of those rare games that's almost as entertaining to watch as it is to play", while Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
gave a more mixed review for the Windows version in explaining that they "tried to hate it with its graphic violence, rampant sexism, poor voice acting and use of every horror cliché, however...it's actually fun."
The PlayStation game was a best seller in North America. In total, according to Capcom's Investor Relations website, the original Resident Evil has sold over 2.75 million units.
The GameCube version of Resident Evil received critical acclaim. GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
said this about the remake: "Capcom has nearly perfected its craft and created the best Resident Evil ever". IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
mentioned at the time that the remake was "the prettiest, most atmospheric and all-around scariest game we've ever played". The original game was put into the Guinness World Records: Gamer's Edition 2008 for the "Worst Game Dialogue Ever".
The GameCube remake of Resident Evil sold over 1.35 million units.