The cutscene that started it all...
I don't claim to be the no.1 Resident Evil fan in the world but I do have much love for this series. The first time I got into Resident Evil was probably the movie with Milla Jovovich. I was just about 13 then. I thought the show was pretty decent, something new, something out of the ordinary. It was the first time where a monster/horror flick had any brains involved. I fancied the idea of a virus turning humans into mindless freaks who just crave for meat (before you say anything, this was considered my first zombie flick so the concept of being "infected" was new to me). Also, the idea of a well-known, rich and powerful pharmaceutical company producing and researching such dangerous biohazards really appealed to me.
Anyways, what really made me a fan was RE Outbreak for the PS2. It was my very first Resident Evil game. Sure, the diehard fans really rated it lowly and the gameplay was at times annoying (with uncooperative team mates), but still I enjoyed it. You see, the Resident Evil series isn't a mindless series build upon a fixed, trial and tested gameplay but rather the foundation is found in its storyline/setting. After finishing outbreak, I just couldn't help but go and read up on the entire Resident Evil synopsis. And slowly, I found myself liking more and more the characters, the deep plot with the big pharmaceutical companies and all the politics that are going on and of course the evolution of the viruses.
In 2005, I got my first taste of RE 4 at a friend's place on his gamecube. Even though I barely just scratched the surface then, I personally felt that RE 4 was quite possibly one of the best games I've ever played. Later that year, Capcom announced the game's release on the PS2, I was estatic and immediately got my copy when it was released. Boy I was real pleased with it. The first time I played through it, I took my time to fully enjoy it and only completed it in 25 hours. The 2nd time I played it, I chose to play it on the highest difficulty and did a speed run through and I managed to clear it in just under 8 hours. Personally, I thought Capcom hit the jackpot in RE 4. They got the gameplay formula right. Previous games like Outbreak and the rest of the main series gave players a very limited aiming system that was at times clumbersome and annoying. But with over-the-shoulder aiming, it gave gamers more freedom to look around as well as more accurate aim. All in all, I wasn't surprised that RE 4 won game of the year.
Today, the focus has shifted to RE 5 and I'm looking forward to playing it at the end of the year when I get my hands on my PS3. So anyway, this is all I could come up with regarding my constant positive rants with this series. Hopefully, there're some like-minded Resident Evil game admirers like me out there. If not, to the rest of you reading, shalom and be blessed.