When you think of horror gaming, chances are you picture Resident Evil in one of its many forms. From its humble beginnings as a puzzle-based zombie game that took cues from Alone in the Dark and Sweet Home, Capcom's survival series has become almost the final word in scary video gaming. There's not much that comes close to it in terms of worldwide succ?ess and brand recognition.

With that, I'm going to attempt to rank all the mainline Resident Evil games that have been released over the decades (almost 30!) based purely on their sales figures. Now, there are a couple of things I want to clear up before I get starte?d.

First off: there seems to be some debate about whether the likes of Revelations and Revelations 2 count as "main games" in the series. As such, I won't be discussing them, as no one seems to agree. However, Code Veronica is unanimous when it comes to classing it as a canon RE game. So, in the list it goes.

As for the sales numbers themselves, there doesn't appear to be a consensus on that, either. It would make sense to use Capcom's own figures, but they don't match up with what other sources say. For example: it lists RE4 (the original) numerous times, depending on the platform and release version. Given this, I'll pull information from a number of places, but I will try to keep this as accurate as I can. Also, it ultimately doesn't matter in the end. We're all just trying to get through ?the week, yeah?

Code: Veronica (2000) - 2.54 million

Taking place just before the military destruction of Raccoon city, Code: Veronica is smack-bang in between Resident Evil 2 and 3. The Wikipedia entry for the game refers to it as the "fourth main installment" in the series, though if y??ou're not famili?ar with the franchise, you'd be forgiven for thinking it's a spinoff, seeing as it's not a numbered game. I've made that mistake in the past.

It's also considered one of the strongest entries, with pretty much universal acclaim across the board. Metacritic shows a review score of 94 and a user rating of 9.1 for the Dreamcast version. You'll sometimes see it on lists of the top Resident Evil games of all time. With such praise, it's no wonder there are high hopes that Capcom will remake Code: Veronica at some point.

Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (1999) - 3.50 million

I still have fond memories of being in my teens and playing the 1999 release of Resident Evil 3. I loved the second game, and the third entry was just as fantastic to me. I was t??errified of the prospect of bumping into Nemesis at unexpected intervals, but my sweaty hands and greasy face (teenager, remember) fought bravely. And that was the last time I truly felt free. Sigh.

Anyway...three and a half million in sales is definitely noteworthy, especially for a time when gaming wasn't quite the behemoth industry it is today. Nemesis was the third-best game in Japan for 1999 �where it was called Last Escape �according to data originally published by Famitsu. That placed it ahead of Gran Turismo 2 and Dino Crisis.

Resident Evil 2 (1998) - 4.96 million

Now we come to my favorite Resident Evil game of all time. Is this a nostalgia thing? Almost certainly, yes. But I still recall being blown away by its visuals and the fact that the game dropped you right in the middle of the action. Unheard of at the time, when I think about it. I played this game to death when it first came out, even attempting to unlock the ability to play as Tofu.

Coming just a couple of years after the original, RE2 seemed to fall just shy of its predecessor in terms of sales. But it absolutely (in my eyes, at least) took what made the first game such a hit and upped just about everything. Yes, two and a half decades late?r, it's dated, but it's a classic. But that first time Mr. X burst through a wall will go down as one of the most frightened I've ever been while playing a game.

Resident Evil (1996) - 5.08 million

There's some debate about when the "survival horror" genre actually began. One thing that most would agree on is that it didn't start with the original Resident Evil. However, it's generally considered the first game to be described as a survival horror. Some would consider 1992's Alone in the Dark �which influenced RE �to be the first. But the term can re??troactively describe even earlier releases, it seems.

That aside, it doesn't detract from Resident Evil's impact on the gaming world. Its blend of exploration, puzzle solving, and a zombie infestation combined to make it one of the scariest games ever released at the time. For that alone, it??'s gone down in the history books as probably the most important horror game of all time.

Resident Evil Remake (2002) - 5.25 million

You could argue that this reimagining of the first Resident Evil installment was what kick-started Capcom's keen interest in remaking the older games from scratch. However, this came out some 17 years before the RE2 remake, which is a fact that hammers home just how long t??????????????????????????he series has been going for.

This 2002 do-over of RE kept the third-person perspective and tank controls of its ancestor, but gave a boost to the visuals. It was a much darker version than the original, I found, but it retained the franchise's position in the limelight a good few years before the fourth game would come along and absolutely smash the boundaries of ??survival horror.

Resident Evil Zero (2002) - 5.45 million

With the release of both a remake and a brand-new entry, 2002 was evidently a good year to be a Resident Evil fan. If you wanted to play the games in chronological order based on timeline, Zero would be the one to start with??. Covering the events before the 1996 game, this one is a prequel and sees you playing as both Rebecca Chambers and convict Billy Coen.

Sadly, I never finished this one, though I did enjoy the fact that you could switch between both characters at a moment's notice. This was something of a departure from previous Resident Evil games, where you typically played one campaign before playi??ng the story again as someone else. Novel.

Resident Evil 4 Remake (2023) - 7 million

The numbers are starting to climb up, but we haven't yet reached the tens of millions. Also, given that Resident Evil 4 Remake is the latest installment to be released �launching in March 2023 �this number is on?ly going to change as time moves on. The previous entries on ?this list are probably not shifting many copies now, given their general ages.

The original RE4 is easily considered one of �if not the �best game in the series. So, you can imagine the pressure Capcom was under to make the remake nothing short of stellar. Fortunately, the studio pulled it off, bringing everything fans loved ab??out the 2005 release, but -- actually, you don't need me to tell you how good it is. No doubt many of you have played the remake already.

Resident Evil 3 Remake (2020) - 8.70 million

Don't be too surprised that this has (so far) sold more than RE4. Remember, the latter has only been out just over a year, while the remake of Resident Evil 3 has had a good while longer to rack up the numbers. It's not quite as?? high in terms of sales figures as some of the other games, but it's still a sizeable chunk, especially for such a s?hort game.

That was largely the main criticism of RE3. That, and it dialed back the puzzles a tad. But even for a short horror title, it was able to capture the essence of its 1999 counterpart and inject some much-needed modernity into the ????mix. Of course, it also kept the Nemesis antagonist, which would have been criminal to leave out.

Resident Evil Village (2021) - 10 million

Now we're into the juicy numbers. It was very recently that Capcom announced Resident Evil Village had smashed 10 million copies, and is the fastest game in the whole series to achieve this. Much like RE4 Remake, we can expect the eighth installment to keep racking up those figures over time. But we can already see how successful the s??eries continues to be ?after all these years.

Village is �in a way �the second installment that is trying to do something different with the franchise, much like RE7 before it. Gone are the classic zombies and third-person camera angles. Replaced instead by a much more involved perspective, grittier visuals, and a return to form for gamers who just want to ogle a digital matriarch.

Resident Evil 6 (2012) - 13.10 million

This one might be a surprise to some. If you know the general trajectory of Resident Evil quality, you'll be familiar with the sixth game's reputation. Pretty much tacking on horror as an aside, the series was, by this point, almost entirely about bombastic act?ion than tension. This 2012 installment is typically regarded as one of the weakest of the mainline games.

Or so I thought. The fact that it's sold over 13 million copies must be a testament to how well it did upon release, or some time after it. Steam shows it as "mostly positive" for reviews, while Metacritic has it down as 67 out of 100. It seems weird, then, that the sales figures appear to be at odds with the overall reception of RE6. But that's show business, baby!

Resident Evil 4 (2002) - 13.20 million

I'm going to confess something right now. Please don't hate me for this, but...I don't consider the original Resident Evil 4 to be the best in the series. I know, I know. It's sacrilege. But ??I think it's because I played it many years after it was released. By this point, the control scheme felt outdated and the voice acting felt too cheesy for something that had moved into darker and more sincere territory.

That's not to say I didn't enjoy it. It's a great Resident Evil game. Just not my favorite. But I could still see why everyone loved it so much. Its switch to an over-the-shoulder per?spective was genre-defining and while being more action-orientated would be the later games' detriment, it worked out pretty nicely in this case. It's just a shame I was late to the party to truly appreciate it.

Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (2017) - 13.30 million

When I first saw the teasers and trailers for this, I was massively excited. Capcom was rewriting their own rules for Resident Evil 7 and it was a decision that helped breathe new life into the waning series. It had lashings of P.T. (long-dead by this point) and Outlast, which did not??hing to q??uell my thirst for this game.

Going back to its horror roots, Biohazard seemed to be a way to undo what the last two or three entries had done. While Resident Evil 2 is my favorite overall for both its gameplay and trip down memory lane, RE7 is easily my favorite of the modern games.

Resident Evil 2 Remake (2019) - 13.90 million

While we mustn't forget the 2002 remake of Resident Evil, the 2019 modern take on RE2 can be said to be the start of a new er??a f??or Capcom in terms of remaking classic games. Nearly 14 million in sales over the past few years is probably all the evidence you need to understand just how huge this game was upon release.

Obviously, the game itself played a huge part in that popularity. Had it been a straight remake of the 1998 release, it probably wouldn't have been as well-received aside from some appeal to older fans. But bringing back the over-the-shoulder camera from RE4, adding Mr. X from the offset, sw?itching the puzzles and overall level design around to keep things fresh are the hallmarks of a great remake tha??t still hits that nostalgia spot.

Resident Evil 5 (2009) - 14.60 million

Much like RE6, I was surprised to see that not only had the fifth Resident Evil game sold so many millions of copies, it's actually the highest-selling entry in the series. Right at the start of this article, I posted a link to Capcom's list of its top releases. I went through to double check these numbers. It turns out, yes, it does i?ndeed add up to 14.6 million when you include all v?ersions of the game.

I never played RE5 beyond the demo. The fact that it had a co-op mode �in Gears of War fashion �was a neat idea, but it's shift towards heavy action was off-putting for me. Still, you know my views on Resident Evil 4, so what do I kno?w, eh? The nu?mbers speak for themselves.

The post Ranking the mainline Resident Evil games by sales ????figures appeared first on Destructoid.

The remakes of the older Resident Evil games are exceptional reimaginings of some iconic entries in the survival horror genre. But with all this modernizing of such classics, it's easy to forget how we used to play games back in the day. That's probably why this one modder has injected some nostalgia into the RE2 remake.

In order to mix up the contemporary with the retro, Nexus Mods user alphaZomega has brought back the fixed camera angles, putting them into 2019's Resident Evil 2. From what I can tell, the game is still exactly as it is, but it just puts in that bit of a th??rowback to a bygone era.

In fact, fixed cameras are so antiquated, that the modder has put ?in a definition of what they actually are:

When starting the game, you will see your character from the point of view of a mounted / fixed camera cinematically pointed at the scene. Then when trying to walk out of frame, it will change to another camera based on your new loca??tion, with the camera angles transitioning to one another in a seamless sequence that will follow yo??u wherever you go. There are over 1700 fixed cameras all carefully placed and the game can be completed from beginning to end entirely using these cameras.

I never thought I'd see the day

In terms of what the "RE2R Class?ic" mod features, you can also expect to find the implementation of autoaim. This is because, as alphaZomega says, aiming in a fixed camera perspective is "not easy," so this option should make things less difficult.

To aid aiming even further, there are also laser sights, and if you want that extra dose of Resident Evil 2 nostalgia, there's an option to choose between modern controls and the lesser-spott?ed "tank co??ntrols" feature from yesteryear.

Decades after first hitting our PCs and consoles, Capcom's Resident Evil series is still going strong, perhaps even doing better than ever. It could be because the studio knows exactly what it's doing with its IP (RE5 and RE6 notwithstanding), or because different entries offer something new and/or old, appeasing both younger game??rs and veteran players alike.

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The PlayStation Blog revealed what PlayStation Plus Premium and Extra owners can ad??d to their Game Catalog this month. Each of January's offerings will be available to Ext?ra and Premium subscribers as of January 16.

Sony is highlighting Tiny Tina's Wonderlands as a stand-out this month. It's a spin-off from Gearbox's renowned Borderlands series. This time around, the looter-shooter leans into the tabletop inspirations set forth by past content like Borderlands 2's Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep. Chris Carter reviewed it at launch in March of 2022 and considered it "great".

Resident Evil 2 (also coming to Game Pass) is the second headliner this month. Capcom's "superb" remake of the iconic horror sequel wow-ed w??hen it was released in 2019. I'd strongly recommend it if you've yet to explore Raccoon ??City on modern consoles.

Hardspace: Shipbreaker is also coming to the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog on January 16. You may not recognize the title, but this space-scavenging career sim impressed many when it launched on PC last year. Zoey Handley of the Destructoid awarded it with an 8.5 upon release.

An oldie but a goodie comes to the service in the form of LEGO City Undercover. The 2013 open-world title is one of few original entries in the LEGO-verse. It got solid reviews back then too.

Another classic in the form of Just Cause 3 is on the way too. Destructoid labeled it as "Explosion: The Video Game" in our 2015 review.

Those awaiting the upcoming free-to-play Skate project can try to quench their thirst with Session: Skate Sim this month. It's self-described as an "ultra-realistic sk??ati??ng game" that's "made by and for skaters".

January also brings us the stealth samurai title Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun. Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong is a great option for those looking for some cool puzzles within a darker story. And Surviving the Aftermath, a post-apocalyptic resource management game, is the final PlayStat?ion Pl??us Game Catalog offering of the month.

For those with PlayStation Plus Premium, there are five new titles coming to that retro library. Be on the lookout for Secret of Mana, Legend of Mana, Street Fighter: 30th Anniversary Collection, Star Wars: Episode 1 The Phantom Menace, and Rally Cross to drop in January as well.

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There are some solid additions for Xbox Game Pass subscribers to enjoy as we kick off 2024. With the headliners of the month being Assassin's Creed Valhalla and Resident Evil 2.

One title, Close to the Sun, is out now for Game Pass owners. The rest will be spread out through the rest of January. Close to the Sun is a first-person adventure game from 2019 that has a bit of a Bioshock feel to it. It earned a 75 on Metacritic upo??n release, with critics coming away impressed for the most part with its atmosphere and story.

Following that is Hell Let Loose, which arrives January 4. It's a World War 2 shooter that touts 50 v. 50 battles on large-scale maps. It's a game that d??emands te?amwork, but with a Metascore of 84, it's said to be pretty fun for those who take the time to learn the ropes.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla (the Viking one) comes to subscribers on January 9. Destructoid gave it an "Okay" when it hit in 2020. Also on January 9, there's Figment from Bedtime Digital Games. The indie action-adventure game was received pretty favorably back in 2018.

The line-up continues with Super Mega Baseball 4 arriving on January 11 via EA Play. It's an arcadey alternative to MLB The Show that gets steadily stronger with each iteration. We Happy Few makes a return to Game Pass on January 11, too. But that's also the same day Resident Evil 2 arrives, and if you haven't played, you're going to want to. Chris Carter considered it "superb" when Capcom released it in 2019.

Finally, Those Who Remain arrives on January 16. It's a horror title that earned middling reviews when it launched. And with Resident Evil 2 in the mix this month, it's probably a skip.

Alongside new additions, there are also games that are being pulled from the Xbox Game Pass library. And this month is no exception with some big boys being removed from the subscription service. Grand Theft Auto V leaves Game Pass on January 5. And on January 15, players lose access to both Persona 3 Portable and Persona 4 Golden.

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It won't come as a surprise to anyone considering the success Capcom has had with past Resident Evil remakes, but the company has plans for more.

This was mentioned by Resident Evil 4 Remake director Yasuhiro Anpo at a PlayStation partner awards event in Japan, IGN reports. He doesn't go s?o far as to reveal which title i??s up next, but he does state it is something that will be announced in the future.

According to Anpo, Capcom looks to audience responses to gauge how it should tackle remakes. For this reason, the company is very grateful for the opinions fans voice, as it helps it to "develop with the player’s opinion in mind." RE4 Remake producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi also chimes in on how the RE Engine has facilitated development. Things are looking to only improve with the engine, as Capcom has revealed that you can expect more from it, in??cluding greater ray tracing features and improved console performance.

Which Resident Evil game will get a remake next?

Naturally, one would expect Resident Evil 5 to be the next game up. It's the third-bestselling title in the franchise, sitting behind only Resident Evil 7 and Resident Evil 2. However, for pl??????????????????????????ayers drawn in by the remakes, it may be a surprise to see just how action-focused the ??franchise can get.

Fans have long hoped for a remake of 2000's Code: Veronica, though the game has received a remaster before. Resident Evil Zero is also an option and you can also pick up a remastered version of? this 2002 game.

It's a good idea to keep your eye on Capcom in 2024, as it has a few big titles planned. One of the first is Dragon's Dogma 2 which has received a March 22 release date.

The post Capcom confirms more Resident Evil remakes are on the?? way appeared first on Destructoid.

Will it be Resident Evil 5?

The Resident Evil franchise has been on top of the world lately, especially with the release of the Resident Evil 4 remake. Now, not wanting to stop this j?u?ggernaut, Capcom is asking you which other game in the iconic survival horror series you'd like to see get remade, if any.

The recent survey poses a few questions about how well people know what's happening in the world of Resident Evil. For example, people are asked whether they follow any of the official social media channels, as well as how ?familiar they are with the entries, be they games or movie adapt?ations. One of the final questions then gives you the chance to suggest which installment you'd like to see a remake of.

With Capcom flying high in terms of sales, no doubt the studio is interested in where to take things from here. It should be pointed out that the survey results won't necessarily mean there'll be another RE remake in the pipeline. However, there have already been rumors that the series' 2009 release, Resident Evil 5 could be getting reimagined, but there's no solid evidence f??or that yet.

Given that the remake of Resident Evil 4 has sold millions of copies, it's not surprising that Capcom wants to keep bringing back older entries. At this point, however, anything past the fourth entry doesn't quite fit the "classic" status of the earlier installments. RE5 is certainly a mainline series ent??ry but arguably may not? necessarily warrant a full remake.

Maybe the results of this survey will lead Capcom into deciding?? an official remake of it is the way forward.

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[Update 2: Ray tracing has been reimplemented in a recent patch. This writer has confirmed that the optio??ns? now once again appear in the settings.]

[Update: Capcom has stated via Twitter that they are aware of the issue with Ray Tracing not being available in the Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3 remakes on PC. They say that this will be addressed in a "future update." As of writing, the patch is not avail??able. Our origina?l story follows.]

Bring out the floor unpolisher

In a strange update that some are speculating was an accident, Capcom has removed the Ray Tracing feature from the PC ports of the Resident Evil 2 and 3 remakes. Furthermore, the Dolby Atmos feature was removed from Resident Evil 3.

The patch rolled out sometime over the weekend. This writer saw it and wondered internally what it was for. There were? no patch notes included with it. Reports later came in of the feature removal.

Capcom has said nothing of the change, leading to much speculation. I did what you should never do and checked the Steam discussion forums and immediately regretted it. While there is a thread that demonstrates how you can revert to the previous patch and restore the feature, most of the comments were pure speculation, dumb jokes, or complete disinformation. I followed up on Reddit, and there, it’s much the same. No one seems to know what happened.

On April 12, Capcom reported that they were ending support of the non-Ray Tracing DirectX 11 version. What they meant by this is that the DX11 version will no longer be receiving updates �you can still access it if you want to. However, this has led some to speculate that Capcom accidentally disabled the DX12 branch. Then disputed. The theory th??at this was an accident is credible, if only because Capcom didn’t announce it in advance when they advised about the end-of-support for DX11. However, it seems like it would be very di?fficult to just do that by mistake.

Following my playthrough of Resident Evil 4, I reinstalled Resident Evil 2 for another go-round. I very quickly became distracted by other things, but I found the Ray Tracing to be well-implemented and that it ran reasonably well. While I’m not a fan of Ray Tracing’s performance relative to the visual differences it has, it does look more natural than RE2’s built-in screen space reflections. I guess I’ll wait? a bit to see if another patch comes through the queue, but otherwise, I might just uninstall it and play it on console instead.

The console versions of Resident Evil 2 and 3 seem unaffected. Resident Evil 7, 8, and 4 all retain thei??r Ray Tracing feature on PC. Destructoid will keep you posted on any comments by Capcom or reverse in t?he removal.

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What are ya playin', stranger?

The remake of Resident Evil 4 is nearly here, and if you're like me, the release of a new entry in a storied franchise always gives you the urge to seek out context. Sure, you could just play Resident Evil 4—it'll probably stand on its own just fine—but why not dig into some earlier series entries to gain a fuller appreciation of what Resident Evil 4 represents?

[caption id="attachment_365615" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Capcom[/caption]

Of course, nobody expects you to burn through every Resident Evil game over the next couple of days. Frankly, most of them won't do very much in relation to RE4 (it is, oddly, one of the more self-contained adventures in the Resident Evil franchise). But if you want to fully understand where RE4 stands, both in the Resident Evil universe and in our own, there ar?e a few titles you should ??at least take a look at.

Keep in mind here that I haven't played the remake of Resident Evil 4 yet. This is not an expert opinion as much as it is an outline of games that you should play to see where Resident Evil and Leon Kennedy have been lately.

The must-plays

[caption id="attachment_369553" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Capcom[/caption]

There are two games that are decidedly necessary in order to fully "get" any remake of Resident Evil 4. Those games are, of course, the 2019 remake of Resident Evil 2 and the original Resident Evil 4, released in 2005 and rereleased seemingly every day for? the last eighteen years.

I don't think I need to explain why you ought to play these games. Resident Evil 2 tells the story of Leon Kennedy's first zombie-bashing adventure, and it also establishes a baseline design language for the REmake series. You can probably skip the Claire Redfield route for now, since Claire is off toiling in Code Veronica land around the time of RE4, but if you've never played it, you should get around to that route eventually. For now, you can just take a quick peek around the Raccoon City Police Department in Leon Kennedy's shoes to see how he went from rookie cop to gloomy action hero and to get a sense of how the REmake series currently functions.

[caption id="attachment_369323" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Capcom[/caption]

As for Resident Evil 4...well, it's Resident Evil 4. And the new game is also Resident Evil 4. I find that a remake is almost always more satisfying when it's accompanied by an intimate understanding of the original work. I'll admit to being an occasional hypocrite on this point (I love Resident Evil 2 (2019) and have never played Resident Evil 2 (1998)), but the original RE4 is readily accessible on modern platforms and it holds up stunningly well. You should give it a shot!

The should-plays

[caption id="attachment_369554" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Capcom[/caption]

You can pretty safely skip the rest of the Resident Evil series and get a robust enough understanding of where the RE4 remake is coming from. But if you've already blazed through the first two games listed above and are still hungry for more, why not play the two most recent Resident Evil games?

Resident Evil 3 (2020) is a much better game than most people give it credit for, and if RE4 is as action-heavy as it seems to be, then RE3 will also serve as a nice bridging of the gap. Leon's not in this one, and it probably won't have a profound impact on the RE4 story, but it might? be worth playing just to gauge the level of mechanical continuity we're getting between these games.

[caption id="attachment_369555" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Capcom[/caption]

I also think there's some merit to playing Resident Evil Village for similar reasons. Between its rural European setting, its attache case inventory system, and its mysteriously friendly merchant, Village shares a lot of DNA with the original RE4. It feels, in a lot of ways, like Capcom's first pass at a Resident Evil 4 remake,? and while I'm not sure how large the crossover is between the specific creative teams, I think there's value in seeing two executions on a similar idea.

If you really want to, I won't stop you from playing all the other Resident Evil games, too. Most of them rock.

The post What to play before the Resident Evil 4 remake appeared first on Destructoid.

Running off like that was reckless AND stupid

It was always inevitable that Capcom's Resident Evil 2 remake was going to do gangbusters numbers �after all, the studio was revisiting one of their most closely-held, beloved, and nostalgic releases. But it seems that the pull of the Raccoon City Police Department knows no bounds, with the recent news that the critically acclaimed revisit has surpassed a staggering 10 million ??total? sales.

Released in 2019, a little over 20 years on from the groundbreaking PlayStation classic, Resident Evil 2 is a retelling of the worst "first day on the job" ever. Heroes Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield roll into Raccoon City to find that the entire town has been besieged by terrifying biokinetic monsters. Holding fort in the most bizarrely designed police station in modern memory, the new friends attempt to survive the night, holding off a menagerie of beasties while uncovering the tr??uth about the living nightmare now engulfing the burned-out 'berg.

Capcom's revelation of the remake's ongoing success is timely, arriving on the same day that streaming service Netflix premieres its live-action adaptation, Resident Evil. The new show sees lead character Jade Wesker (Ella Balinska) attempting to make sense of the increasingly threatening world around her, whilst also coming to terms with the miserable and destructive legacy her bloodline has left?? behind. While I am yet to check out the show myself, this morning's round of reviews seem quite divisive, but still err on the side of positivity for the most part.

Resident Evil 2 is available now on PS4, PC, and Xbox One.

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PC users will also get free upgrade patches

Resident Evil is getting next-gen upgrades for three of its big entries. The remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 3, as well as 7, are all getting free next-?gen upgrades later this year.

The three Resident Evil games will have upgrades on PlayStation 5 and both Xbox Series X and S. If you o??wn these games on PS4 or Xbox One, they'll have a free digital upgrade.

//twitter.com/RE_Games/status/1499036815000543234

And for those who play on PC, you'll also get to see the benefits. Upgrade patches for all three will roll? out for PC players at no additional cost, alongside the launch of the PS5 and Xbox Series ?X|S versions.

Right now, Capcom is characterizing these as visual enhancements. With how impressive these games, especially the remakes, were in the visu?al departmen?t, this should be a nice upgrade for a future replay.

The Resident Evil remakes seem to be pretty successful so far, so it's nice to see them get support as we move into a new console generation. Following both RE2 and RE3, it's been reported that a remake of Resident Evil 4 is ?also in the works, though we've yet to hear any official confirmation of it.

Resident Evil 7 also getting the upgrade n??od is nice, too. The shift to first-person horror was a gamble that seemed to pay off, and soon the Baker house will be fully explorable in next-gen fidelity. It will be terrifying, I'm sure.

The next-gen RE upgrades will start rolling out later this year.

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Resident Evil 2

Revisiting Resident Evil 2 was both a risky and dubious undertaking. After all, many people cite the 1998 survival horror sequel as one of the greatest video games of all-time. That's not an acclaim tossed around recklessly, either. The characters, map design, monsters, story, puzzles and cinematics of the PS1 adventure remain rightly embedded in t?he memories of all who've encountered it.

Given Resident Evil 2's status in video game history, a remake – whether the fans wanted one or not – could have potentially been a complete disaster. Realising the risk, but appreciating? the challenge, Capcom worked meticulously to deliver a modern reinterpretation of the survival horror sequel, bringing the script, visual design, control ??system, and gameplay up to speed, while taking extra special care not to sacrifice the tension, pulse-pounding action, creep factor, or grim gore of the original.

Released in January to huge praise from both critics and fans, Resident Evil 2 amplifies the positive elements of the original release, while modern technology allows for the retooling of its few negatives. But crucially, the RE 2 remake stands alone as its own entity – its existence neither harms or belittles the original release – allowing both games to exist together as alternate, but equally excellent takes on the infamous infestation of Raccoon City. A financial success as well as an artistic one, RE 2 has since gone on to sell over five million copies in its first year of release.

Resident Evil 2 is, for some, not only the best remake of the year, but the best game of the year. And given the? pedigree of its source material, Capcom pulled off a small miracle in pleasing the audience at large. The unen??viable task of fiddling with a sacred classic has, against the odds, paid off gloriously.

So, see you next year for Resident Evil 3?

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'Get that scum... Make him PAY'

Capcom has announced that sales of 2019's Resident Evil 2 have reached the five million mark, surpassin??g that of even the original PS1 classic, which sat spinning i?n many a PlayStation console back in 1998.

The Golden Joystick-winning remake first launched back in January of this year, where it wowed fans new and old with its revamped models, maps and monsters. The original Resident Evil 2 often comes up in conversation as one of the best PlayStation - nay - best games of all-time, and Capcom did an exc?el??lent job in recreating the horrors of the Raccoon Police Department for a whole new generation of players, not to mention the return of the meme-riffic Mr. X.

This proud accomplishment conveniently comes within a day of the revelation that 1999's Resident Evil 3 is also getting a rework. Launching in April 2020, Resi 3 will no doubt take a similar approach, presenting recognisable characters, locales, weapons and monsters, but all brought screaming into a new decade of visuals and mechanics. Pre-orders for Resident Evil 3 on PS4, PC and Xbox One are now live, you can check out a clip of the game in action right here.

Resident Evil 2, meanwhile, is available now on PS?4, PC and Xbo??x One.

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Whoa. Sorry about that, babe.

Hardly surprising news, but the long-awaited remake of Capcom's classic survival horror game Resident Evil 2 has been a huge success, with the publisher announc?ing that four million copies have been shipped within its first month of sale?.

Three million of those copies were shipped in the first week of release, with a further million shifted in the three weeks following. So sales are definitely slowing down, but that's still a great number, practically guaranteeing a Resident Evil 3: Nemesis remake at somepoint down the line, ah reckon. This new statistic brings the cumulative sales of the Resident Evil franchise to 90 million units.

Available now on PS4, PC and Xbox One, Resident Evil 2 smartly blends some of the best elements of the 1998 PS1 release with atmospheric modern-day visuals and cutting-edge engine tech. Receiving critical and community praise - as well as launching a million Mr. X memes - Resident Evil 2 succeeded in recreating one of the greatest video games of all-time for a whole new ?generation of fans.

Shipments of Resident Evil 2 top four million world??wide [Official]

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Like your speedrunning with a European twist? Look no further!

Feeling a touch of the post-AGDQ blues? Thankfully, it's not just North America that is serving up good old-fashioned charitable speedrunning for your viewing pleasure. Until February 23, The European Speedrunner Assembly will be bringing you a 24-hour Twitch stream, showcasing a variety of runs, and a secondary stream, all in the name of good fun and raisi?ng money for Save the Ch??ildren.

ESA has been showing awesome te?chnical gaming feats since 2015, and has gone from strength to strength lately. I had a great time attending the main summer event last year in Malmö, while the winter event (which has been going since last year) is hosted from the beautiful city of Växjö, also in Sweden. After adding the Movember event to its roster at the end of last year, and raising over $120,000 for Save the Children at the summer event in 2018, ESA is building a thriving community, all while helping out some worthwhile causes.

So, what catches my eye in the schedule? Here are my top tips for o??ne game a day to check out (and to donate to!) during t??he week*:

1. Monday, February 18, 13:30, Stream 1 - Resident Evil 2 (2019) run by Distortion2

2. Tuesday, February 19, 11:51, Stream 1 - Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) run by RebelDragon95

3. Wednesday, February 20, 08:00, Stream 2 - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt run by triggerino1

4. Thursday, February 21, 04:00, Stream 2 - Final Fantasy X run by Metako

5. Friday, February 22, 04:24, Stream 1 - Kingdom Hearts 3 run by IrregularJinny

6. Saturday, February 23, 13:04, Stream 1 - Cuphead run by kalevan_herra vs. Kirthar vs. TwoCPlus

*All times are listed according to the Pacific Standard Time.

Fancy throwing a donation their way? You can make all of your donations and pledges to Save the Children via ESA through this website.

Header photo credit to Michael Kire

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Raining savings in Raccoon City

Arguably one of the bigger title thus far in 2019, Resident Evil 2 is now released and the accolades are building up. (Review here)??. At last check, gamers on Steam Store have an overwhelmingly positive rating on the title, with positive ratings at over 96%. Essentially for those who haven't tried the game? or the 1-shot demo yet, the general consensus is that the game is a great balance between nostalgia and modern gameplay.

For those thinking of picking up the game after all the raving reviews, we've rounded up some slick savings for release week. As with usual, PC gamers can enjoy discounts of up to 25% off for both the Standard and Deluxe Edition of the game at $45 and ~$52 respectively. Conversely, PS4 gamers who don't mind going digital can also pick up a 7% discount on Resident Evil 2 Standard and 8% off for Deluxe at $56 and $64. While the savings on the PS4 digital copy isn't much, this is as good as we think it'll get for those who don't have the soon-to-be-defunct Be??st Buy GCU.

Resident Evil 2 / Biohazard RE:2 Deals

PC Deals

• Standard Edition at GMG (Steam) — $44.99  (list price $60)
• Deluxe Edition at GMG (Steam) — $52.49  (list price $70)
• Login required to see the full discount.

• Standard Edition at DLGamer (Steam) — $44.89  (list price $60)
• Deluxe Edition at DLGamer (Steam) — $52.39  (list price $70)

• Standard Edition at Fanatical (Steam) — $44.93  (list price $60)
• Deluxe Edtion at Fanatical (Steam) — $52.42  (list price $70)
• Use coupon code: ZOMBIES25

PS4 Deals

• Resident Evil 2 (PS4 Download) — $55.79  (list price $60)
• Resident Evil 2 Deluxe Edition (PS4 Download) — $64.39  (list price $70)

As you can tell from above, the Steam copy is essentially 25% off at all major third-party dig??ital distributors s??o you can just pick accordingly to the retailer of your choice. (Note: all the retailers listed above are authorized Capcom distributors.)

What do you for paying an extra ~$7.50 ($8.60 for PS4) on the Resident Evil 2 Digital Deluxe Edition? You'll receive additional sets of costumes for both Leon and Claire. Leon will receive the Arklay Sheriff and Noir costumes while Claire will receive the Military, Noir, and Elza Walker sets of costumes. A Deluxe Weapon called the Samurai Edge Albe?rt Model and the "Original Ver." soundtrack s??wap will also be included as well.

We're never much of a big ??fan on in-game extras for a premium price (because we're cheapskates) but if you're a big fan of the series and prefers to slay zombies in style, the extra coin may be a? worthwhile drop.

Game deals from Dealzon. Sales help support Destructoid.

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Raccoon City never looked so terrifying

Capcom has a tight set-up in the South Hall of E3. The entrance to its demo for the Resident Evil 2 remake is a miniature recreation of the Raccoon City police station, redesigned as a short haunted h??ouse to provide a brief bit of scares before the main attraction. Because I have a limited appointment with Capco?m, I skip going through the haunted house, though the screams emanating from it do not escape notice.

At my demo station, my Capcom handler explains to m??e this session has a hard out-time of 20 minutes. After a minor sound issue is ??fixed and I see a young, fresh-faced Leon Kennedy, I wonder if 20 minutes will be a long enough time for the game to get under my skin. In hindsight, that was a stupid question.

Resident Evil 2 only needs 10 minutes.

I've always admired Capcom and its efforts to push forward the look and feel of the Resident Evil franchise. RE VII is a knock-out, and this remake of the acclaimed classic, built from?? the ground up using the same engine as the most recent game in the series, is stunning and moody as all hell. Ra?ccoon City police department is both beautiful and decrepit, with signs of violent, messy struggles strewn throughout. Using the free motion camera, I explore the nooks and crannies of the police station. A lousy use of my limited time, but I'm just in awe at the level of detail here.

Soon enough, I move away from the bright lights of the lobby and into a flooded hallway. While much of the game will hue closely to the original release, aspects of the story and how the plot plays out have changed. Characters who came and went without much fanfare in the original are now fleshed out. Marvin Branagh isn't just someone I stumble across, but a man who also saves my life, a little bit later in the demo. One thing that isn't changing from the old Resident Evil 2: both Clai??re and Leon will have their own, independent, but intertwining campaigns.

The flooded hallway is dark and dank. Pulling out my flashlight, I move slowly through the shin-high water as the music begins to ratchet up. My arm hair starts?? to stand as I explore a media room with a bloody body on the floor. It doesn't reanimate, but it's not long?? after I encounter my first zombie. 

Cries for help are coming from the rear of the hallway. An officer is out of bullets and trying to get back in the station. I run over to him and lift the gate to let him in, watching in horror as I pull through just the top half of the man, his intestines dragging on the floor. The power of the Resident Evil VII engine makes this a nau?seating sight, but I have no time to get sick because the zombies are coming and they? are tough as shit.

Two zombies coming my way, an undead cop and citizen, require nearly all of my bullets to take down. Even head shots don't drop them quickly, something I'm quite good at pulling off with the third-person camera and the roughly 60 or so hours I've put into Resident Evil 4 ove?r the years. They soak up my shots, leaving me with just two bullets and completely unprepared for a mob of zombies that bursts through a door a moment later. It's absolutely startling. That sudden scare combined with the aggressive soundt??rack send a shock of fright through my spine and before I know it I have Leon in a sprint, trying to get him to safety as fast as I can.

I only escape thanks to Branagh. He's injured, bad, but he equips me with my c?ombat knife and sets me out on my mission to find a way to the secret passage Officer Half-A-Body scribbled down in his notebook. The conversation between the two is a good showcase of the new voice acting. The actors cast in both roles sound the part, and while a handful of cheesy lines are dropped, it's miles ahead of ?the PlayStation original.

I don't have much time left in the demo -- I can feel the clock ticking down in the back of my mind -- but I'm already sold on this. I've been sold on it since the zombie invasion of the inundated hallway. I come across a few more of the undead, slicing them up with my knife, before discovering a typewriter. Resident Evil 2 will feature auto-saving, but players can still utilize typewriters for intentional saves. My demo ends ?just as a female zombie begins to bite into my nec??k.

"I couldn't tell if you were sighing or frightened," my Capcom handler says to me as I step away from my demo station. I tell her I'm frightened, very, very frightened. I still have goosebumps from the taut atmosphere of what I just played. Resident Evil 2 is the remake fans have been most patient for, and with the dynamic engine from Resident Evil VII? powering it, the final product could very well be everything fans have hoped for and more.

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Squishy

One of the odder bonuses in the original Resident Evil 2 was the ability to unlock a scenario where you played as a giant piece of tofu. It was silly, crazy and also ridiculously hard. In an interview with Trusted Reviews, Resident Evil 2's producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi confirm??ed that not only will the tofu be making a return, but Hunk as well.

"Of course! Yes! Both the Fourth Survivor and Tofu modes will be included in the game," Hirabayashi st?ated. It is unclear if the previous unlock stipulations will apply, but this confirmation is sure to please fans that were upset at how "realistic" this remake was looking. It seems Capcom hasn't forgotten how to have fun with its franchises.

Really, though; a hyper-realistic piece of tofu should be hysterical.

Exclusive: Tofu and Hunk are back in Resident Evil 2, Capcom confirms [Trusted Reviews]

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Heading back to Raccoon City!

The Resident Evil 2 remake is upon us and it l??ooks incredible. The moment I realized I was seeing Raccoon City on screen, I could feel the goosebumps come over me, and hearing the crowd's reaction made it all the more special.

That said, what was shown was very brief and not a lot of information was given. But, the one thing we know for sure?? is that it's right around the corner with a release date announced?? for January 25, 2019!

It seems January is quickly becoming the MVP month f??or video games.

Resident Evil 2 remake vs original comparison shots pic.twitter.com/7l6dKqkGik

— Wario64 (@Wario64) June 12, 2018

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It's easy to forget he used to be a driving force at Capcom

Polygon had the chance to cat??ch up with Platinum's Hideki Kamiya, who mused on his glory?? days at Capcom a bit.

While he's not involved with Capcom's dealings, he did direct Resident Evil 2 proper, and thinks that they'll do a great job on the remake, stating, "??Just from a creator's perspective, to know that something that you made still resonates, and people still want to play it, and that Capcom is going to invest all that time and energy into remaking it, is really an honor. That's saying it, independent of the fact that one of my friends is making it. Looking at what Capcom is doing right now, and what they're making, I have a lot of confidence that they're going to knock it out of the park."

There's clearly no bad blood there. He even goes drinking with Jun Takeuchi (a Capcom producer) "quite often," and has been trying to get him to remake Resident Evil 2 for some time. Kamiya's candid and? open nature is one of the reasons why I love him so much, and hearing little details like this make my days a little happier.

Original Resident Evil 2 di??rector says he pestered Capcom for a remake [Polygon]

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