Forum Overview :: P.T. :: Resident Evil HD is the best game I've played in years.

[quote name="Dream Cast"]I didn't play the original Resident Evil when it came out because it looked sad and janky, like Alone in the Dark. Then I didn't play the 2002 GameCube remake because I didn't have a GameCube because I wasn't eleven years old and a girl. Fortunately, the recent HD remaster of the GameCube remake solved both of those problems. (????) The thing I didn't realize about Resident Evil is that it's actually Mega Man to Alone in the Dark's any given European platformer. It's an incredibly fast and precise game where the moment to moment action consists largely of inventory and resource management, through a series of basic lock-and-key puzzles and largely non-skill-based combat encounters (where even engaging with the enemy is already considered a loss), all within the overarching structure of a single game-length timed puzzle. My first playthrough, going for 100% completion, took me nearly twelve hours. My second took just over two. My third I did without saving (the way the system works, saving will almost always cost you time, unless you engage in some FreeCell-level inventory planning), causing the game to get surly and release a zombie strapped with explosives into the mansion, who would chase me through all subsequent playthroughs and explode us both if he got shot. So my fourth I did knife only. My fifth I did on the unlockable Real Survival difficulty mode, which was only marginally harder than hard, and my sixth on Invisible Enemies mode, which is exactly what it sounds like. Rarely have I played a game that was so good at shepherding you from newbie to master, just by setting progressively more challenging challenges and leaving you to them without tutorializing, difficulty scaling, or other well-meaning overbearance. It is absolutely and deservedly confident in both itself and its players. Resident Evil HD made me want to seek out similar games, but I have a feeling that's going to end in disappointment, since as far as I can tell there's nothing inherently fun about the mechanics themselves; the game is only so functionally compelling because it's crafted like a Swiss watch. For some less abstract thrills, try <i>Condemned: Criminal Origins</i> or <i>F.E.A.R.: Forgo Expected Acronym Reveal</i>, both by a Monolith Productions at the height of their encounter design and environmental storytelling powers.[/quote]