Resident Evil

About Resident Evil

Capcom Planning Room 2 dropped this survival horror title on March 22, 1996 for PC and PlayStation. You play as members of S.T.A.R.S. sent to investigate a pack of zombie dogs near Raccoon City. Alpha Team gets wiped out, leaving Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine trapped in a creepy mansion filled with monsters. The visuals mix 3D characters against static pre-rendered backgrounds with fixed camera angles. This setup created the tension that defined a whole genre. You hunt for clues while avoiding enemies that can take you down fast. It is a single-player experience designed to make you feel small and vulnerable.

Gameplay

Sessions involve managing limited inventory space while exploring dark corridors filled with puzzles. You walk toward static camera angles that frame the action, then solve environmental riddles to unlock new areas. Combat is clunky by modern standards, requiring precise aim and ammo conservation against zombies and mutated creatures. Most sessions last around an hour or two as you piece together the story through notes and cutscenes. You switch between characters like Jill or Chris to access different keys and rooms. The controls feel stiff compared to today titles, but the pacing keeps you focused on survival rather than fast reflexes.

What Players Think

Players rate this title 78.4 out of 100 based on 430 reviews on IGDB. The community moods lean heavily toward Atmospheric with five votes and Story-Driven with four. Three users tagged it as Creepy while one found the narrative Emotional. Average completion times hover near ten hours for a standard playthrough. Critics note the game popularized the survival horror label, though some find the movement rigid. Green Man Gaming lists the cheapest price at 14.99 dollars. Review snippets often mention the pre-rendered backgrounds as either charming or dated depending on your preference for retro aesthetics versus modern fluidity.

PlayPile's Take

This game is worth playing if you want to see where the genre started. It costs 14.99 dollars on Green Man Gaming and offers a full campaign with no multiplayer mode. The fixed camera angles and tank controls might frustrate some, but they create genuine dread that modern titles often miss. You earn achievements by surviving specific scenarios or finding secret items. It is not for those seeking tight action mechanics. Play this if you appreciate history and want to understand why horror games work the way they do today.

Storyline

On July 24, 1998, when a series of bizarre murders occur on the outskirts of the Midwestern town of Raccoon City, the Raccoon City Police Department's S.T.A.R.S. team are assigned to investigate. After contact with Bravo Team is lost, Alpha Team is sent to investigate their disappearance. Alpha Team locates Bravo Team's crashed helicopter and land at the site, where they are suddenly attacked by a pack of monstrous dogs, killing one of the team's members. After Alpha Team's helicopter pilot, Brad Vickers, panics and takes off alone, the remaining members of the team (Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Albert Wesker and Barry Burton) are forced to seek refuge in a nearby abandoned mansion. It soon becomes very clear that it isn't just any mansion, but a hellish place where the undead walk the corridors and other horrors are lurking in the darkness, waiting to eat some heads.