When the original Resident Evil released back in 1996, it paved the way for the survival horror boom of the late 90’s and early 2000’s. Ask anyone who played the game back then, and they’ll all tell you they about how they jumped like a sissy when the dogs crashed through the window, or quote one of the game’s famous campy one-liners.
In 2002, fans of the 1996 release were treated to a stunning remake on Nintendo’s Gamecube, offering superior visuals and sound, and introducing the series to a new consumer base. There’s no doubt that this was the superior version of the game that brought the genre in to the limelight.
Well, here we are in 2014, and Capcom has just confirmed that the 2002 Gamecube release will be receiving the HD treatment, releasing here in the States in 2015 for Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, and PC as a digital download.
Capcom doesn’t want to make any changes that could potentially remove the original Resident Evil‘s sheer terror, but will be enhancing the game’s visuals and soundtrack, as well as offering a new 16:9 widescreen mode. Since certain portions of the environment can easily get cut-off with a widescreen format, Capcom will not only include a “scroll” function to view the environment better, but also give you the choice to play the game in its original 4:3 display.
One area that Resident Evil struggled with during its early years was its notoriously clunky “tank controls”, but if you’re a purist, you can still turn and run like it’s 1996 all over again. Capcom, however, will be including a new modernized control scheme, where the direction of your analog stick will determine which direction you’ll advance towards. This is similar to what Silent Hill 2 offered with its 2D control scheme back in 2001, which worked wonders and will be a welcome change.
So how does the Resident Evil HD Remaster look? Kotaku has uploaded the following screenshots, while I take full responsibility for the bad jokes.
What do you think? I loved the 2002 remake back on the Gamecube, and I’m sure we’ll be all over Resident Evil HD Remaster when it releases early next year.
Bradley Keene is the Executive Editor here at What’s Your Tag?, generally handling reviews, public relations, and our social media communications. He’s an aspiring video game journalist, Baltimore native, and on again/off again WoW player that favors roguelikes, horror games, and point-and-click adventures. His favorite console is the Dreamcast, favorite game is the original Metroid, and he could watch The Goonies for the rest of his life. Contact him by e-mail at the address above, or follow his insanity on Twitter.
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