Resident Horrified

Fans of flesh-eating zombies can finally scream with glee, because Capcom has unleashed an all-you-can-eat smorgasbord for the undead on Nintendo 64. Not for the easily-disturbed, Resident Evil 2 thrusts players into a dark world that's uncomfortably close to being trapped in a horror movie.


RE2 is undeniably heavy on the blood and guts, but the real terror comes from exploring spooky environments like this
In fact, RE2 is so horrifying that it has been slapped with a well-deserved "M" (mature) rating by the ESRB. The blood color can be changed from realistic red to blue or green, and the violence level can be adjusted from high to low.

Awesome cinema scenes are genuinely creepy, with better dialogue than most video games
The third-person perspective action in Resident Evil 2 takes place in Raccoon City, where a flesh-eating virus is turning the town's citizens into zombies. Players control either Leon Kennedy or Claire Redfield, and must somehow avoid the zombies' bony fingers as they explore the town's huge 3D environments.

The game changes depending on which character you choose, and things you do as Leon can impact the storyline when you replay the game as Claire.
Luckily for the zombie, there aren't any fouls in playground basketball
To get the most out of the game and witness all of the awesome cinema scenes, players must endure the horrifying gaming experience more than once.

At a bulky 512 megabits, Resident Evil 2 is the largest Game Pak to ever be released on Nintendo 64. A large portion of memory is consumed by lengthy cinema scenes, using a unique visual style that has never been seen before on the N64.


Moving from one room to another takes a few seconds, but at least you're entertained by this marvelous opening and closing door!
During actual gameplay, Resident Evil has never looked better. Character graphics are more detailed and realistic than ever before, which may not be good news if you're easily spooked by the sight of decaying flesh.

Play control is different than in most 3D games, because players have no control over the camera.
Thanks to the stationary camera, the producers have the freedom to set up the arachnophobic scene shown here
The view changes constantly as you progress through the environments, in an effort by the developers to produce dramatic camera angles. This makes play control tricky for beginners, but with experience the system becomes easier to use and actually adds a desired panicky element to the game.

Resident Evil 2 isn't for everyone, but gamers looking for the fright of their lives will not be disappointed by Capcom's nightmarish adventure.