Resident Evil Classic
The game that started it all. While it's now 10 years old and badly showing its age, this is still a fantastic game, and was quite a revolution at the time it came out. I'll never forget playing the game when it first came out, and the opening scene with live actors was something that stuck in my brain for years to come, even long after I'd stopped playing the games. The use of live actors for the opening and closing sequences seemed so fantastic and unique at the time, although in hindsight they are more funny than scary. But they were memorable, and that's what counts. Seeing the actors running from (hilariously bad) dogs to a big scary mansion was all it took to draw me in; I was hooked.
The storyline itself is fantastic, and uncovering it piece by piece is a large part of the fun. Just why are there so many zombies about? Who or what created them? Not to mention the crows, snakes, plants, dogs and large assortment of other scary creatures roaming the grounds. Why are your teammates acting so weird? Why are most of them dead or dying? It's a mystery waiting to be unravelled, but the answers may be more frightening than the questions. This is the storyline that kicked off the series, and there is a wealth of it here.
The enemies are great and terrifying (although less so these days, Crimson Heads anyone?), and best of all die gorey deaths. Zombie limbs blow off the more you shoot them, and all leave puddles of blood when they finally do bite the big one. The large pixel spray of blood is also fun to watch with each shot. There's quite a variety as well, zombies are just the 'basic' enemy and really do very little damage compared to some of the later ones. Hunters, sharks, plants, dogs, and of course the massive end boss the Tyrant, who really can be quite a pain in the bum to finish off.
In addition to the scary mansion and numerous enemies are the puzzles, which add another dimension to the game. Taking this from a random shoot-em-up to a thinking game, the puzzles can be frustrating as hell until you finally figure them out. There's often lots of running back and forth to get the right things needed, do the puzzles in the correct order, avoiding attacking enemies if you complete them wrong and so forth. They are quite fun however, and without them the game would likely get fairly boring, and fast.
But at the end of the day, the mansion itself really is the heart of this game. You'll come to know it quite well throughout the course of playing, as first time around you'll likely be all over it, multiple times. It's a fantastic place, full of hidden nooks and cranies, secret rooms, secret doors, plenty of places for enemies to hide and to discover scary facts. Then just when you think you're done with it, you'll discover the back yard, the guardhouse, the underground tunnels and ultimately the underground labs. There's no shortage of scenery here, and each setting is just as fascinating (and scary) as the last. I know I certainly fell in love with the place, zombies and all.
As a character-story however, this game doesn't do a lot in revealing much about its two main protagonists, including Chris. With the choice of two scenarios, one as Jill, one as Chris, to this day its still never been confirmed who did what at the mansion. Its likely it was a hybrid of the two scenarios, and even the endings we get are not the 'official' ending to the game. One can only ever save three characters, when we know all four got out.
By watching the game alone it's hard to gauge any sort of reaction to Chris other than the fact he's a regular hero-type character, a badass but still righteous and fighting the good fight. Ultimately we only get two things out of this game; Chris really doesn't like Wesker, and he has fond feelings for Jill. Most of Chris' character building will come in later games, even those he doesn't even appear in, but this is our introduction to the man himself, and it isn't all that bad. It is also here that he develops his hatred for Umbrella, a hatred that will soon become an obsession that will rule his life. He also has a few funny lines, but one gets the impression that none of the other S.T.A.R.S. would actually consider Chris to be a successful comedian. His jokes are lame, even if he doesn't seem to realise it at the time.
The voice talent in this game is also something that has to be seen to be believed. Chris is no exception, and one can't help but laugh just about everytime he opens his mouth to say something. From such pearls as "We got to the 'root' of that problem" and "He's sleeping with the ultimate failure", all delivered with cheesy precision, you can't help but love it. Many would vote it the worst voice acting ever recorded, but it gets the job done, and the cheese is something to be admired (and laughed at).
The graphics are also quite amusing by today's standards, although they were top of the line when the game came out. The characters are quite blocky and square, and there's hardly any facial definition (and certainly no emotion). The blood shoots out in fantastic large pixel sprays, and the surroundings are fairly detailed considering the time the game came out. While the game itself isn't awful looking, compared to later ones, especially Remake, it is rather outdated and actually kinda dull. But taken by itself this game looks great, and was a revolution for the time it was released.
The game comes with a few unlockable extras to keep you playing long after you've completed it. Beating the game in under three hours will unlock a rocket launcher with unlimited ammo, while the same in Advanced mode will give you the Colt Python with unlimited ammo. Another fun addition is that of changeable costumes. If you manage to beat the game and save both your teammates (not too hard) you get the special key, which unlocks the costume room. Chris gets a spiffy Made in Heaven jacket (his trademark) and brown jeans. The Sega Saturn version of the game also comes with an unlockable Battle Mode.
The Director's Cut version is undoubtedly the best version of the game to get however. Not only does it come with Easy and Advanced modes, but in the Advanced mode costumes are already unlocked, you can simply head on in and change. Chris also has an extra costume in it, a kind of off-duty police officer look. The Advanced mode also changes around the order in which you complete things, so it offers a new challenge to experienced players. The models are also slightly upgraded from the traditional classic game, although you'll be hard pressed to notice too much difference.
Overall, this is a fantastic game, and deserves the 'classic' tag it's gained over the years. Without this game there would be no Resident Evil, and it's still one of my personal favourites from the series. Even though it later got an absolutely beautiful Remake, this game still has its own charms, and if nothing else is a nice nostalgic trip down memory lane. The start of it all for our Chris Redfield, if you haven't checked this game out yet, you really should.
Rating: A