MEMOIRS OF A GAMER: ESCAPING RACCOON CITY WAS A THRILL!
If you're even remotely familiar with video game culture, you're probably well aware of the dreaded "T-Virus." It spawned a horror franchise unlike any other…
Read Time: 8 Minutes
This feature may contain spoilers, so consider yourself warned.
‘Capcom’ is often regarded as the game developer that gave birth to the survival horror genre. And while it may not be strictly true, the reason they wear that crown is because their first effort took hold in a way the other entries of the day just didn’t. 'Resident Evil’ was a smash hit and a cultural phenomenon, despite all the corny dialogue and utterly atrocious voice acting. But my first foray into the franchise was its stellar sequel, which captivated me in a way few games ever have.
Development of the game started literally just a month after work on the original game ceased. It was originally set to look very different: the police department was going to look more futuristic, and the lead was supposed to be a woman by the name of Elza, but throughout development she turned into Claire. A lot of work that ended up being abandoned was done. So much so, that fans and journalists refer to it all as ‘Resident Evil 1.5’, and there’s quite a bit of footage and information floating around about it.
An early build of the sequel to ‘Resident Evil’. Nothing depicted in this scene wound up in ‘Resident Evil 2’, save for that zombie—and even then, it looked a little different. (Source: ‘The Games DB’)
Producer Shinji Mikami was at loggerheads with supervisor Yoshiki Okamoto over the story. The latter was under the impression that the story was looking too “final,” and wanted to write things in a way that kept the story open. As such, professional screenwriter Noboru Sugimura was brought into the fold, and changes were made. This began Elza’s transformation into Claire, introducing a more direct narrative link to the original game. In fact, some narrative tweaks from the rewrite even made it into ‘Resident Evil: Director’s Cut’, and the game as we know it today began to be formed.
The conscious decision was made to introduce new monsters to supplement the hordes of zombies, and rather than depict wounds on characters, the team thought it was better to instead have alternate styles of movement to depict injuries, with characters nursing their wounds at first, before limping in pain as things got critical.
Music was another focal point, and to this day the ‘Resident Evil 2’ soundtrack is lauded by critics and fans. All but one of the tracks were composed by Masami Ueda, Shusaku Uchiyama, or Syun Nishigaki; with a concerted effort made to convey desperation. It succeeds in that regard, but also does well to make things sound oddly isolated, mysterious, and even quite grand on occasion.
In late January of 1998, the game was released in North America and Japan. The rest of the world had to wait until April, but it quickly became a marquee release, which was ported to other systems a number of times thereafter. It was every bit the critical darling and commercial success it was expected to be, and ‘Resident Evil’ as a series was cemented as a powerhouse on the ‘Sony PlayStation’.
'Resident Evil 2’ was bigger and better than its predecessor in just about every single way. Set in the fictional town of Raccoon City two months after the first game, an outbreak of the T-Virus that turns people into mindless zombies has spread. In the first game, the mysterious ‘Spencer Mansion’ was the setting, but this time, the virus has spread into the city itself.
Rookie cop Leon Kennedy drives into town in order to start his stint at the local police department. He encounters some zombies, before bumping into Claire Redfield, looking for her brother Chris—one of the protagonists of the first game. So, he gives her a lift, and this unlikely duo continue to drive into town, unaware that they’re about have the night of their lives.
They crash when a zombie leaps out from the back seat, and are forced to separate when a truck driver that’s been bitten begins to succumb to the virus and veers towards them. Thus, players take on the role of Leon or Claire, in complementing scenarios that have them traversing the streets, the police department, the sewers, and ultimately a secret laboratory. The canonical story is something of a hodgepodge, depending on who you’re playing as. But the major beats remain lately unchanged.
The pair soon reunite inside the police station, where Claire discovers that her brother has gone to Europe in order to investigate the Umbrella Corporation. Their research is responsible for the outbreak. Leon and Claire decide to split up, look for survivors, and make their escape. Not long after that, Claire encounters a little girl named Sherry, being stalked by a mysterious creature; while Leon bumps into the enigmatic Ada, who insists she is looking for her boyfriend John.
While trying to catch up to Sherry, Claire finds out that one of the only survivors in the Raccoon City Police Department is Chief Brian Irons. He’s corrupt, and has been concealing the development of a new G-Virus being made by ‘Umbrella’. Meanwhile, Leon finds freelance journalist Ben Bertolucci in one of the holding cells, having locked himself in to be safe from the monster pursuing Sherry. Both Irons and Bertolucci wind up falling victim to the monster.
As it turns out, Sherry is the daughter of Umbrella scientists William and Annette Birkin—the former of which has mutated as a result of the G-Virus he created, and is chasing his daughter. And either Leon or Claire (depending on who you’re playing as) tussle with him on several occasions, as he morphs into various forms along the way.
The various twisted forms William Birkin takes in the original ‘Resident Evil 2’. Each one more menacing than the last. (Source: ‘Resident Evil Fandom Wiki’)
Throughout it all, Ada turns out to be a covert agent trying to steal a sample of the G-Virus. She winds up confessing feelings for Leon, but ultimately meeting her end either by falling or being slammed by a monster, depending on which scenario you’re in.
Ultimately, Leon, Claire, and Sherry manage to board an escape train in the bowels of an ‘Umbrella’ research station. And they make it out of the city just as the facility self-destructs, vowing to stop ‘Umbrella’ for good.
There were zombies to fight, rabid dogs and crows, hideous skinless monstrosities with long tongues known as “lickers,” weird plant monsters, a giant alligator, a giant moth, and a tyrant to square off against. There were also puzzles to solve, hidden objects to find, and secrets to unravel. And the game also did a really good job of throwing in a few jump scares, right when you least expected them.
What really added relatability to the game was the way in which the story was laid out. Players initially played the “A Scenario” of either the Leon or Claire story first. Completing it then unlocked the “B Scenario” of the other character. Not only was that second scenario a little bit harder, but the placement of items changed, and new enemies were even introduced. Also adding some intrigue to that second play-through, was the fact that some decisions in the first scenario would actually impact the second—like whether or not to take the submachine gun when you come across it. Taking it in the first scenario meant you didn’t have the luxury of finding it during your second scenario, which is where you likely needed it more.
It was a clever way to extend the experience while reusing all the existing game assets. And it resulted in two fairly different experiences, essentially giving players four different story modes to complete in order to see all the ins and outs. There were even some special characters to unblock and play as, for those who went through the scenarios multiple times and got high scores.
The game was remade and released worldwide in January of 2019. That rendition of ‘Resident Evil 2’ holds a special place in my heart, because my wife and I were dating at the time, and it was the first game we ever sat down and played through together. She relegated herself to the watcher, as the nature of the game made her too nervous to play it herself. But it led to a really great time for both of us.
Leon in the remake finds decorations in the police station, which suggested that the other officers planned a welcome party for him. In the original ‘Resident Evil 2’ the word “welcome” was misspelled with two L’s. But in the remake, that second L can be found on one officer’s desk, so the developers made a conscious nod to that old gaff. (Source: ‘Reddit’)
I’ve shone a light on quite a few horror games in the pieces I’ve written up until this point. The funny thing is: I’m really not all that much of a horror fan. But those horror titles that do capture me, just have a way of immersing me in their world. And the original ‘Resident Evil 2’ was my very first whole horror experience…