Resident Evil 2 (2019) is a remake of the 1998 classic.  Police officer Leon S. Kennedy and college student Claire Redfield find themselves in the same situation of escaping Raccoon City.  A zombie outbreak has erupted, and this is the story of their survival.

Developer: CAPCOM
Publisher: CAPCOM
Platforms: PC, PS4 (reviewed), Xbox One
Released: January 25, 2019
Copy purchased

Resident Evil 2 is back — now in 2019, this time with no more tank controls or fixed camera angles.  The game is in third-person and the new camera is “over the shoulder”.  I think the change is for the better.  I dig it.  But those aren’t the only changes in this reimagining.  Let’s take a deeper look.

First, the Bad

If you’re looking for character development, there isn’t much of one for either character.  Leon Kennedy — being the rookie cop that he is — is naive and by-the-books to a fault.  He is quite dull, a complete dope, and I did not find much about him likable.  I think I prefer the Leon that dodges lasers and suplexes people.  Claire has a bit more personality and her character strength and fortitude shines in her story.

The story presented in this game is a bit weak and doesn’t really have an arch.  There are files scattered throughout the environment which gives hints of what happened piecemeal.  I was never a fan of narrative told in this way; through reading documentation.  Of course later on in the game you find out exactly what the deal is, but the conclusion is flat in either character’s story.  This is one of those games where it’s more about the journey than the end.  I have to wonder if the lack of suspense and mystery is due to this being a remake — that I already have a general gist of things that will transpire.

So let’s talk about this 1st Run / 2nd Run business.  Leon and Claire meet by happenstance — decide to arrive at Police Station, each with their own reasons.  They get separate just before entering the Station, but soon meet again briefly.  This is where things just fall apart narratively.

You choose a character to play through initially (let’s say Leon, for this example)– this is called the 1st Run.  After you complete Leon’s story (1st Run), you play the game again as Claire on the 2nd Run.  A full “playthrough” of the game is considered a 1st Run [Character A] completion with a 2nd Run [Character B] completion.  This way, you get to see both character’s perspectives and the final true ending, which is only in the 2nd Run.

Question: What’s the difference between a character’s 1st Run and their 2nd Run?  Ignoring the true ending that is available in the 2nd Run, not a whole lot.  In the 1st Run, they would enter from the Station entrance, directly into the Main Hall.  In the 2nd Run, they would have to find a key and enter the Station through an alternate door.  The remainder of the game is similar — objectives are the same, but the puzzle solutions are slightly different.

And so what’s the difference between Claire and Leon’s campaigns?  Not much change here either.  It’s the same main objectives, but both Leon and Claire have access to certain rooms that the other won’t have access to.  This is just for the Police Station.  Leon and Claire both have their own unique character interactions — Leon will meet with a mysterious woman and Claire will meet a small girl.  This makes it so their individual stories aren’t exactly a one-to-one copy.  But ultimately, both characters will converge in the same place, solving the same puzzles.

And therein lies the problem.  Leon’s 1st Run through the Police Station, will be nearly similar to Claire’s 2nd Run in the Police Station.  Claire just doesn’t meet an early character Marvin, and the puzzle solutions are different.  But this doesn’t make any sense whatsoever if the characters — Leon and Claire, are supposedly working alongside each other.  Why does Leon have to find the three medallions in his 1st Run, and then Claire has to do the same in the 2nd Run?  Why is the Parking Garage gate down after one of them already opened it?  Must they repeat the same objectives, and fight the same bosses?  Throughout the game, they are solving the same roadblocks, but never once run into each other.  Ridiculously enough, Claire can find notes and memos that Leon has left for her.

The 2nd Run of the game should have been distinctly different than the 1st Run.  It should have been more than slightly different solutions to the same puzzles.  It should have complemented the other character’s 1st Run.

Speaking of puzzles, the pacing of the game could use a mix-up.  There is a huge chunk of time solving puzzles which could have been broken up by something else.  Introduce another character or two, or an opportunity for side mission.  This was one benefit of Resident Evil 7 — the game had The Bakers, and you would have encounters with those members in between puzzles making it a better paced game.  The Evil Within 2 had a few nice side missions with Sykes.  If they are remaking it, they may as well take some further liberties to mix it up for the better.

Okay, the Good

The initial playthrough of the game is fantastic.  You get a real sense of exploration, and combined with the puzzle-solving — it is loads of fun.  Players can expect their 1st Run playthrough to be about 8-10 hours.  Then they can play through their 2nd Run in less time.  Most players will be content to leave the game at that, and that’s fine.  But for more hardcore players, there is a whole ‘nother level to this game that focus on inventory management and efficiency.  As the horror aspects wear off, the game centers more on survival.

A new extra game mode unlocks after the 2nd Run, which will test your survival skills.  You can also play through the story campaign in Hardcore mode which ramps up the difficulty.  Improving your overall game rank and times increases the replayability.  However I have to admit this may not be for everyone — the survival aspect itself can be pretty stressful in nature, and some people just play games to have fun.

CAPCOM’s RE Engine really shines here with photorealistic visuals that are so good you don’t need pre-rendered cutscenes.  Enemy design and hit reactions are detailed and animated.  You’re able to shoot off the limbs of zombies for fun or for strategy.  If you shoot the Minigun, you can actually see some bullets ricochet off the walls!  I was impressed with this.



Even though there is a lot to critique here, I still wholly recommend the game.  Resident Evil 2 (2019) is a fine remake on an old classic.  There’s just a big glaring issue in 1st/2nd Run that should have been expanded upon.  If they had cultivated this to something that made more sense, it would have elevated this game to the heights of a truly standout game.  Nonetheless, there’s plenty in Resident Evil 2 (2019) to make it worthwhile,  and newcomers and veterans owe it to themselves to give this one a shot.

Review Score: 8.5 / 10

This is a review of Resident Evil 2 (2019) after having played through the game multiple times.  I unlocked the Platinum trophy.  I have also achieved S+ Rank and written up a guide, provided a resource for all puzzles, and completed the Tofu Survivor.  I’ve been a Resident Evil fan since the original, and played the original Resident Evil 2 (and also completed the Tofu Survivor back then).