Game Review: Resident Evil 3 (2020)

Capcom revisits another fan favourite from the vaults…

Could lightning strike twice for this classic remake series?

In 2019, the Resident Evil franchise had been well and truly saved from irrelevance and was experiencing what appeared to be a new golden age. After some disastrous games like Resident Evil 6 and Umbrella Corps seemingly placing the final nail in the coffin, Resident Evil 7 arrived in January of 2017 to inject new life into the dying series, taking some cues from the likes of Outlast and Alien Isolation to revamp the series into a beast that could once again be considered frightening and fun all at the same time. Two years later, Capcom finally released the long-awaited remake of Resident Evil 2 to much critical acclaim, myself included, as it not only remade a beloved classic game from the late 90s but was essentially crowned the game of the year as it reinvented the franchise once again with a terrifying experience that won the hearts of gamers and horror fans everywhere. For years we all thought that Resident Evil 4 could never be overtaken as the greatest game in the franchise, but the remake of Resident Evil 2 put some doubts of that in place. After all the hype had died down somewhat, the fans started wondering what else the team at Capcom could deliver with it’s revolutionary new RE Engine and all eyes fell upon another classic game in the franchise: Resident Evil 3. 

For over 20 years fans were bursting for another experience like it as the game was renowned for keeping players on their toes with the intimidating presence of Nemesis, the main antagonist of the game that constantly hunted down the player with every chance it got. The Resident Evil 2 remake offered a teasing preview of this with Mr X as he also hunted the player throughout, making the game all the more tension-filled because of it. But Nemesis is a different monster altogether as he’s like Mr X on steroids. With the game finally available to play, could lightning strike twice for yet another classic in this series? Well yes and no. 

First up, the main thing everyone was looking forward to: Nemesis. His placement in this game is both amazing and disappointing. His appearance in the intro of the game is fantastic as although you don’t actually do much in terms of the gameplay except run when you’re obviously supposed to run away from him, it builds him up brilliantly as an unstoppable force that won’t be easy to kill. The only real disappointment is that he only really appears during scripted moments so you never really feel like he can turn up and attack at any moment like in the original game and even less so on a replay when you know when and where he’s going to appear so Mr X still wins in terms of the scare factor. However, on the few occasions where Nemesis does hunt you through the streets of Raccoon City, they are some of the most adrenalizing moments in the entire game as he can run after you, jump ahead of you to catch you, grab you with his gross tentacle, and do some real damage with a power punch from hell. It’s great stuff and you need to be tactical when running from him. He’ll even pick up some weaponry, later on, to add to the threat. He also provides the only boss fights featured in the game and these are some pretty fun fights but not the real challenges I hoped they would be. I only died once and that was due to me wasting ammo instead of being tactical. The first boss fight filled me with dread when I realised I was going to have to face off with Nemesis on a rooftop whilst he tried to burn me alive with a massive flamethrower, but it ended up just being a case of hiding behind cover and shooting when the opportunity was presented so it wasn’t much of a challenge. Still pretty fun at least. 

In terms of gameplay, not much has changed since RE2 except there’s now a new dodge mechanic making the game feel more action than horror but is a nice contrast to RE2, and if you time the dodge perfectly you can slow down time for some deadly headshots on those poor old zombies. While it is more action-oriented this time around, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t some spooks to be had. Early on in the game, you have to turn on some generators in a power plant that just so happens to be infested with mutated spiders that don’t mind sticking a tube down your throat to infect you with parasites. Anyone with arachnophobia isn’t going to have a fun time here as you need to navigate through tight corridors to reach your objective all the while dealing with these spiders that can also appear behind you without you knowing. This is the only section in the game that’s really like this though so I wish there was more of it. While the zombies are pretty much replicas from RE2, there are few new enemy types on offer to keep you on your toes such as the sewer-dwelling “Gamma Hunters”, “Pale Heads” that can soak up damage, and the return of the “Hunters” from the original Resident Evil in a nice, terrifying nostalgic touch. 

I do feel at odds with this game though. While there is a lot to enjoy as far as gameplay goes, it does feel too short an experience which seems to be a regular complaint about the game. I managed to complete the campaign in just under 6 hours and that was while I was hunting around for everything I could. There’s no real reason to go back again either as it’s missing any branching paths or modes from a different character’s perspective. It doesn’t even offer any survival mode. The only reason to go back would be for missed collectables, to unlock cosmetic items, or to try to beat the game again on a higher difficulty. 

You do receive Resident Evil Resistance as a bonus game but it’s online only and I’ve had a shot of it with no real desire to try it again. I can’t imagine players sticking around too long so the servers may not remain busy in time. It doesn’t help that a section of the campaign includes the police station from RE2 and while this is a nice throwback it still feels like they’re reusing assets to pad out the game. There are whole sections and even boss fights from the original RE3 that are totally missing here and I’m not sure why. I consider myself a big fan of the franchise and as I may have mentioned before, I have the Umbrella Corporation logo tattooed on my arm, and even I feel like I spent way too much money with the £50 digital copy. As a fan, it leaves me disappointed and ripped off as a consumer. This feels more like a DLC expansion for RE2 and probably should have been priced as such.

Overall I would still recommend the game if you’re looking to kill a few hours as there’s a lot of action and horror to enjoy here, even if the content provided does leave a lot to be desired as a fan. However, I would only recommend purchasing once the price has been cut way down, even to around £20 which seems like a fair price for the content on offer. If you enjoyed the remake of RE2 you’ll have fun here, even if less so than before. 

Resident Evil 3 is out now on PS4, Xbox One & Microsoft Windows.

Many thanks to Ross Donald for contributing this review. Ross previously reviewed the Resident Evil 2 remake for The Head Scratcher (check it out below) and he regularly contributes to the excellent Glasgow-based rock and metal website Rock Will Eat Itself. Check them out at https://rockwilleatitself.blogspot.com.

Peace.