Note: This post contains spoilers.

Resident Evil games (the early ones at least) are masterful when it comes to atmosphere. Good atmosphere is achieved through a mix of clever sound design, music, believable voice acting, and inspired art direction. By balancing all of these out just right, a game’s atmosphere can cast a spell on a player, immersing them further into the game and its world. However, mess one of these up and that spell is easily broken. Take for example the original PS1 release of RE. While its mansion and creatures were both horrifying and creepy, and the music spooky and ominous, it's atmosphere was ultimately watered down by its amateur and laughably bad voice acting. Luckily Capcom learned from its mistakes and RE2 saw a big improvement in the voice acting department and just about every other area. It looked and sounded miles better than its 1996 predecessor and was universally praised. While RE2 was an improvement, it wasn't until RE3 that Capcom acheived perfection.

In retrospective, RE3 is easily the darkest entries in the series. While RE2 had its fair share of horrific moments, it feels like an Indiana Jones movie with zombies when compared to its follow-up. It also had a cheery and overbearingly hopeful ending. RE3 on the other hand was the polar opposite: bleak and hopeless. From the get go the intro CG cutscene paints a bleak picture of an infected city where survivors are making a desperate final stand. They're outnumbered and quickly slaughtered and you as a player are thrown smack dab into the aftermath. Watching that intro, you immediately know the odds are stacked against you and escaping isn’t going to be easy.

Soon after taking control of Jill Valentine (the game's heroine and survivor from the original game) you end up in warehouse where you encounter an emotionally disturbed man that's lost his daughter to zombies. He’s clearly suffering from shock and won't cooperate. Jill tries to reason with him but he chooses to lock himself up rather than risk escape. You're on your own, and standing still, you hear the distant moans of the city's undead.

From its detailed prerendered backgrounds, to its use of ambient sounds, RE3 just oozes atmosphere from start to finish. But it's the game's first 15-30 minutes that so masterfully set it all up. Immediately you notice its voice acting is well rounded, particularity Catherine Disher's portrayal of Jill, and the story beats hit all the right notes. As you navigate through Raccoon City's alleys you encounter a few survivors making a run for it. But no matter what you do you'll always hear their chilling dying screams in the distance and come across their corpses being eaten loudly by zombies. Maybe like me you felt guilt for not being able to save them. These encounters add to the bleak atmosphere and effectively give the game a hopeless tone, especially when paired with the ominous and foreboding soundtrack.

Just when you thought things couldn't get any worse, you encounter a familiar face, Jill's STARS colleague, Brad Vickers. Bloody and panicky, he hints that something is stalking STARS members. What's following you? Brad is so horrified that he makes a run for it before he can tell you. Hopelessness and desperation already hang in the air, but now we're dreading an unknown pursuer. You run after Brad and make your way to the police station.

Upon reaching the station you encounter the thing Brad was so desperately running from. A tall hulking bioweapon super zombie known as Nemesis. Created by Umbrella to silence surviving STARS members, Nemesis is hands down the most terrifying monster to ever grace a horror game. He's a cross between the cunning “Clever Girl” raptor from Jurassic Park and the relentless T-1000 from The Terminator 2. His right eye is sewn shut, his lips are all but missing, and he wears a leather BDSM looking outfit that gives him the appearance of a Cenobite from Clive Barker's Hellraiser. He repeatedly mutters one word, and one word only: “STARS”. In seconds, he grabs Brad and violently murders him in front of Jill and then sets his sites on her.

By this point the sense of dread is practically suffocating, especially now that you realize Nemesis will be stalking you for the rest of the game. Nemesis shares a lot of similarities to the Tyrant in RE2 (aka Mr. X) who also stalks your character during the B mode playthrough. Appearance wise he just looks like a burly bald guy in a trench coat and only uses his fists to fight you. Nemesis on the other hand is both horrifying looking and fast. He also has a sharp tentacle like appendage that he releases out of his hand like Mortal Kombat's Scorpion that can kill you in a single hit if he grabs you. Oh and he occasionally uses a rocket launcher. Yes, this zombie knows how to use a rocket launcher. It's pretty clear which one is scarier.

You weren't completely powerless though. RE3 introduced new mechanics to aid you in your escape. 180 degree turns were now possible, a minor respite from the game's difficult and often criticized tank controls. More interesting though was the introduction of dodging which could be pulled off with a well timed button press. Many RE3 players have complained they're difficult to pull off, but it's difficult in the way ripostes and visceral attacks are difficult in Dark Souls and Bloodborne. Difficult yes, but not beyond mastering with some practice. In addition to this mechanic RE3 was the first and only game to also introduce gunpowder. Gunpowder offered an extra layer of strategy not found in other RE games. Players could find different gun gunpowder scattered throughout the game that they could mix to create different kinds of ammo, giving the player a bit of an edge.

The biggest issue fans seem to have with RE3 is its short length. First time players can beat the game in under 5 hours while RE veterans can probably manage under 2. It's true that RE3 is short, but what it lacks in game length it more than makes up for in quality and variety (I’d also argue that short game length doesn’t necessary make a game bad, but that’s something to be discussed in another article). RE3 offered players a diverse number of areas to explore. Yes, you visit the police station featured in RE2, but only briefly. RE2 on the other hand paled in comparison when it came to environments. When RE2 was nearing release many fans were excited with the change of setting. Early previews showed that the game would take place in an infected city. However, when the game was finally released some fans were disappointed. While the game did technically take place in Raccoon City, most of player's time was spent inside the Raccoon City Police Station, a kind of substitute for RE1's puzzle filled Spencer Mansion. Beyond that the game had a sewer, a lab, and not much else. Its longer length was also kind of artificial.

Upon completing RE2 with one character, players could load up the next disc and continue their save with the other character. Only by beating the game with both characters was the true ending unlocked. The modes offered minor difference such as different characters, cut scenes, boss encounters, and some small new areas. But ultimately you were replaying the exact same game twice, just slightly remixed in the second run.

RE3's creators seemed to have heard players' complaints of not being able to explore Raccoon city and this was rectified. With RE3 players could now explore the virus stricken city outside the Police Department. During the game you explore its numerous alleys, police station, diner, offices, gas station, clock tower, hospital, graveyard, and even a factory. The variety in the game kept things varied and interesting. It was short yes, but it didn't outstay its welcome or try to artificially increase its game length. Sure you only had the option of choosing one character, but RE3 cut off that fat for a leaner and more focused experience. The same goes for the game's story. RE3 doesn't bog itself down trying to create new lore, unlike later games in the series which became extremely convoluted and hard to follow. RE3 kept things simple. There were no bickering rival scientists, conspiracy plots, and goofy over the top villains. It's just you trying to escape a doomed city while being pursued by Nemesis. In the case of RE3, less really was more.

Ask any Resident Evil fan what their favorite game in the series is and they'll no doubt say RE2, and while RE2 is a great game in its own right, its sequel is underrated and deserves a second look. In many ways RE3 is the superior game thanks to its masterful atmosphere, disturbing and unforgettable super-zombie villain, and the introduction of some new mechanics (the 180 spin which would make its way to subsequent sequels and remakes). Resident Evil 3 Nemesis is an underrated classic that significantly improved on its predecessor’s formula and distilled the series's best elements into a single game. Fingers crossed Capcom remakes it as well.

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