Hands on: Resident Evil 3

I remember watching my older brothers play Resident Evil 3 as a child, running downstairs crying to my parents the second Nemesis appeared.

The way Nemesis chased Jill Valentine relentlessly across Raccoon City with the bloodcurdling bellowing of “Stars!” sent chills down my spine, scarring me so much that I wouldn’t return to Capcom’s classic for years.

In hindsight, it feels supremely silly, with the original being drenched in cheesy dialogue and harsh polygonal graphics that sadly don’t stand the test of time. But now, the Japanese publisher is bringing a range of iconic titles back into the limelight with fully-fledged remakes, ready and willing to terrify a whole new generation. I promise I won’t go crying to my parents this time. 

After the rampant success of last year’s Resident Evil 2, it’s being succeeded by the original trilogy’s final chapter. Capcom has once again hit the ball out of the park, coming out swinging with a brave gorgeous reimagining of Nemesis that builds on its inspiration in some fascinating ways. Having spent a few hours with it at a recent event, it’s time to dive into what’s really going down in Raccoon City.

My time with Resident Evil 3 began in a subway station. The zombie outbreak had crippled power across the city, meaning trains weren’t running and the only light on the streets was from rusted neon lights lining the nearby storefronts. It’s a fractured vision of America stamped out by the horrors of pharmaceutical capitalism, an ethos which is punctuated throughout the campaign with campy yet grounded brilliance.

To escape the narrow, zombie-infested streets she finds herself in, Jill Valentine must venture to the surface and reach the nearby substation. Unfortunately, the journey there isn’t easy. With a handful of herbs and sparse collection of bullets in my inventory I left the station where the city’s horrors are finally unveiled. Citizens sprinted past me, some bitten and some not as the undead menace lurched towards them. 

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Crashed cars and raging fires littered the streets, flanked by living corpses who stop at nothing to eat everything in their wake. It was a striking image, and one that stuck with me for the coming hours. Once the public had fled, silence took over.

Carrying a fairly flimsy pistol, I peered down an alley where my first adversary awaited me. Resident Evil 2 did the impossible and made zombies scary again. Unless you land a bullet squarely in their brains, they keep walking. You can blow off their limbs and it does nothing, only slowing the inevitable.

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The weight of each creature felt significant, so letting them get within lunging distance was a recipe for disaster. It’s often best to fire a round into a zombie’s head, staggering them briefly so you’ve a chance to get away. This was made easier with the inclusion of a new dodge move, allowing Jill to dart away from or underneath enemies with a timely button press. It’s a brilliant idea, and one that occasionally removes the frustration of being surrounded by infected. 

A large chunk of my time was spent exploring a number of shops throughout Raccoon City. They’re all ransacked, depleted of supplies or secured in fear of the outbreak. Many of them are filled with corpses, some alive and some dead, although you’ll need to approach them to find out. I made a habit of firing a bullet at ones that appeared deceased, saving me the trouble of them suddenly springing to life. Resident Evil 3 is all about being prepared, always having a strategy ready to enact. 

The gunplay is identical to Resident Evil 2, once against relying on slow, melodic shooting and a keen sense of accuracy to survive. Panicking in a firefight only gives foes a few precious seconds to inch closer, while faster creatures – such as Nemesis – will be on you in seconds regardless. Each weapon has a distinctive weight, especially the shotgun, capable of blowing zombies into gruesome giblets with a single buckshot. 

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Upgrades including laser sights and satchels that increase your inventory space, can be found throughout the city and offer a reason to explore beyond the relatively linear narrative confines – if you’re brave enough, at least. I entered most buildings with a justified feeling of trepidation, weapon drawn and ready to fire. The payoff is normally worth it, and the masochistic side of me loves the thrill of a good jump scare. 

After prowling the streets I stumbled into a nearby substation. A twisted colony of spiders soon crawled out from nests in the walls to impregnate Jill with a horrendous virus that can only be cured by noshing on a green herb. This led to a tense puzzle sequence where I had to navigate a maze switch on generators with spiders hot on my tail. It was a tense encounter, which hearkened back to classic Resident Evil design – both a blessing and a curse. 

Once the bugs were out of the equation, it was back to the streets for our first encounter with Nemesis beyond a few passing glances. To put things simply, he’s terrifying. Capcom has evolved upon the omnipresent nature of Mr. X and twisted them into something truly nightmarish. Sprinting away isn’t a guaranteed solution now, since Nemesis can yank you backwards with his otherworldly tentacles, bringing you to the ground in seconds. 

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This makes the utilisation of Jill’s new skills essential for survival, and dodging past Nemesis with the utmost precision is absurdly satisfying. Capcom has said Nemesis cannot be killed (well, until the plot demands it) and will chase relentlessly throughout Raccoon City. We imagine they will make an exception for set pieces, with one I played seeing him follow you up a burning building, setting it alight with his own personal flamethrower. 

Watching Raccoon City grow smaller and smaller as you ascend into flaming oblivion is an anxiety-inducing delight, reaching a crescendo as you have no choice but to do battle with Nemesis at the structure’s apex. This is where one of Resident Evil’s shortcomings becomes evident, with the boss battles not really having evolved at all. Beating him took a matter of minutes as I strafed around in circles, avoiding attacks and shooting nearby generators to shock him in place. 

Despite its mechanical simplicity, showdowns like this are undeniably thrilling, and I imagine the campaign will be filled with them. Even after a mere couple of hours, Resident Evil 3 is a rattling barrel of paranoia, making the player jump whenever possible with a looming sense of dread. As I temporarily escaped Nemesis’ clutches, a developer places his hand on my shoulder and tells me to stop playing. Jill Valentine’s escape from Raccoon City will have to wait. 

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The upcoming remake also comes bundled with Resident Evil Resistance; an asynchronous multiplayer experience following a selection of characters seeking to escape the clutches of an omnipresent mastermind, who is also controlled by a player. The mastermind is capable of spawning all manner of traps, enemies and other obstacles from the gaze of a security camera, watching as the survivors try desperately to solve the mystery that blocks their progress.

It’s a hugely compelling premise, but the execution is tremendously lacking. At the time of writing, it feels woefully unbalanced in favour of the mastermind. After taking direct control of an armoured zombie in the opening moments, I won the match in under 40 seconds by simply spamming attacks towards the survivors. It’s easy to stun-lock them, pinning them to the ground so they’re powerless as the time limit dictating the round whittles down.

Aside from the excellent co-operative play of Resident Evil 5, the franchises’ multiplayer efforts have always been lacking, and this is sadly no different. The melodic gunplay and scrappy melee combat are chaotic and mindless in this setting, lacking the impactful satisfaction of the solo campaign. Instead, tight environments feel clumsy with several players packed into them, equipped with skills that are constantly interrupted by hostile attacks thanks to overlong animations.

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That being said, Resistance still has a lot going for it. Characters feel varied enough, distinguished in their roles as healers, tanks or combat experts. I opted for Valerie, a young girl who can lay down a healing spray which replenishes the health of all nearby players. It’s excellent when a zombie gets the jump on you, or if you’re desperately trying to clear a room of creatures camping near an exit. Moments like these are exhilarating, but they’re too often crammed between bouts of tedious frustration.

If Resistance does tickle your fancy, and I’m keen to dive in further on release, there’s an extensive progression system that will see you unlock new abilities, cosmetics and emotes for each character. If you’re a fan of Dead by Daylight or Friday the 13th, there’s definitely fun to be found here.

Resident Evil 3 – First Impressions

Resident Evil 3 is poised to be yet another home run for Capcom, albeit with the ambitious gamble of Project Resistance, which itself still has enough competent ingredients to be a fun addition to the stellar single-player campaign. Jill Valentine’s fight for survival has been recreated for modern platforms with truly stunning production values, ready to terrify a whole new generation of players alongside hardened veterans.

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