Resident Evil 2
Nintendo 64
Nostalgia Factor:
I've been a Resident Evil 2 fan for the PlayStation since the moment I first laid eyes on it. I played the heck out of it when I was a teenager and I still come back to it from time to time because I like it so much. It's been a while, though. The last time I played the game was back in 2017 and I gave it an A+ score.
I've always known that there was a Nintendo 64 version of this game, but I always dismissed it. I would think to myself: there's no way the N64 can handle this game. I bet it is a crappy port. It came out back in 1999, and in the ensuing 26 years I have never even thought of checking this version out... until now!
In recent months I've stumbled across a few online reviews of this game, praising it for its quality. The reviewers pointed out what a technical marvel this game is, as it took two CDs to fit the whole game on it for the PS1, but they could fit it all on one cartridge for the N64. According to the reviewers, it was a near perfect port.
Due to these remarks, I decided to check the game out. I've been wanting to revisit Resident Evil 2 anyway, since it's been 8 years since I played it last. I also haven't reviewed a Nintendo 64 game in a long time. Sounds like the perfect opportunity to take care of both problems at the same time. Let's dive in, shall we?
Story:
Admittedly, this is a lazy move from my end. But nothing has changed regarding the game's story. Nothing. Check out my 2017 review if you want a full breakdown. But I ain't taking the time to do that here.
Gameplay:
I've already written a complete breakdown of how the game works. Call me lazy if you want, but check out the 2017 review of this game if you want the full scoop.
Are there any differences between this game and the PS1 original? Not really any that I could see. I never spent much time with it, but I seem to remember there being some kind of "time attack" mode on the PS1 game after you beat it. I completed this game with both characters (A and B scenarios) and I did not see the same mode unlocked here. Either I did something wrong where it did not unlock, or it is not here in the N64 version.
Aside from that, this is pretty much identical in gameplay to the original game. Oh wait! I seem to remember the ability to lock onto enemies when firing at them in the PS1 game. That ability is not present here. I found myself having to manually aim the entire game, which was a pain in the butt. It also seems the ability to quickly do a 180 spin is missing from the game too. I didn't realize how much I used it until I couldn't anymore. Oh well. The absence of the quick spin and the lock on ability made the game slightly more challenging for me. I can breeze through this game normally, so I guess the extra challenge was appreciated.
Graphics:
The biggest difference between this game and the PS1 original is the graphics. I understand that a drop in quality is to be expected when moving this game from disc to cartridge, so I am not mad about it.
Don't let the screenshots fool you. Even though I googled the N64 version of this game, all the results look better than the game did when I was actually playing it. The characters are more pixelated than they were before. The backgrounds a little darker and muddier. I also noticed some weird staticy green stuff popping up on the edge of the screen as I played. Sometimes when the camera angle would change, I'd see a flash of the green staticy stuff on the entire screen before the angle would change. It was only for a brief microsecond, but it was definitely distracting. Maybe it was just my copy of the game, but I always felt like it was close to crashing at any second.
Despite the minor drop in graphical quality, I still really liked the game. The slight dip in graphics was not enough to affect my enjoyment of the game one tiny bit. Not only am I super impressed they fit a whole 2-CD game on one cartridge, but they fit the cutscenes on here, too. Wild.
This version of the game allows you to change the color of blood when you or an enemy is wounded. I was going to play with default red, but accidentally changed it to blue when looking through my options. I'm glad I did it though, because seeing blue blood constantly spurt out gives the game a unique feel to the original. I noticed the gore toned down in other areas, as zombie heads don't explode when they are hit with the shotgun at close range. Typical Nintendo censorship.
Sound:
This sounds just as good as the PS1 version. I didn't notice any real differences. I played this in the dark with headphones on, and really got absorbed into the action.
Overall:
I'm shocked at how good this version of the game is. The only major difference is the graphics. It definitely does not look quite as good as the original game. But it is still impressive, considering the hardware limitations.
The gameplay is unchanged. I often forgot I was playing an alternate version of the game as I made my way through it. It is just as fun as ever. There are a few small differences, but this game is just as fun to play as it was before. That said: in the future when I get the itch to play the game again, I am going to pick the PlayStation version. As good as this one is, it just isn't quite as good as the original.
I'm struggling with my final grade, here. I've always stood by my opinion that graphics don't matter. It is the gameplay that counts. And as far as this game goes, the gameplay is pretty much unchanged from the original RE2. It's still a fun, fantastic game. The original got an A+ from me. If graphics truly don't matter, this should get an A+ too, right? But like I said, if and when I decide to play RE2 again, it is going to be the PS1 version. So that means this one is worse, and that this should be reflected in the final score.... right?
I'm actually going to go with the regular A. I give out too many A pluses, and it is clear that this is the inferior version of the game. An A is still a great score. And honestly, the fact that they fit this all on one cartridge was almost impressive enough to give the game and A+ no matter what.
If you were an N64 kid growing up, and you didn't have a PlayStation, this would have been the perfect alternative to the other game. I would have been totally satisfied with this as a kid. As an adult, it is a fun curiosity that you should definitely check out if you have the means.
THE GRADE:
A
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