The Death (& Return?) Of Capcom

[talonmalon333]

I hope we get PC re-releases of RE2, 3, and CV now. I know I was just going on about this with Silent Hill the other day. But now that we have 1, 0, and 4 available on Steam, we need to complete the set.

[Foggle]

CV will almost certainly come after 0. 2 and 3 I'm not so sure about, but doubtless a remake of either would show up on Steam.

[talonmalon333]

Oh right. 2 is getting remade, and it'll surely be on PC.

But what makes you think CV will get re-released there?

[Foggle]

CV got a PS3/360 remaster along with 4, so I figure it's only a matter of time 'til they give it the RE4PC treatment.

[talonmalon333]

True, but there was a demand for 4. Is there really much for CV?

[Foggle]

That's a good point, but I honestly don't think there's much demand for 0, either. Considering how they actually took the time to port the RE5 DLC to PC 5 years after the fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they're just trying to get every mainline Resident Evil on Steam at this point.

[talonmalon333]

Actually, yeah, you're right. RE0 is the greatest example of a video game that simply fell through the cracks. It's not popular at all, but it's not hated either. No one would even call it underrated or an underground cult classic either. They really don't have much real thoughts on it in general. It's just... another Resident Evil game.

I'm trying to decide if it deserved that fate or not. What about you?

[Foggle]

"Just another Resident Evil game" is probably the best way to describe RE0 (and Revelations 2, for that matter). In the case of RE0, it's because - though not bad - the game simply didn't live up to the series' high pedigree. After 6 years of milking the franchise for all it was worth while other companies released similar (and, frankly, better) games like Silent Hill 1 & 2 and Fatal Frame, people weren't going to settle for "good" from RE anymore. The market was oversaturated with survival horror games - and generally fantastic ones, at that - so a Resident Evil not up to the standards of RE 1-3, CV, and REmake simply wasn't going to fly with consumers. Even then, despite its universal acclaim, REmake had already floundered in terms of sales, so RE0 ended up being the final nail in the coffin of classic Resident Evil. The series would not exist today without RE4, and you can thank Capcom's love of annual sequels for that.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Yep, Resident Evil was headed for obscurity at the time.  Most everyone was really hard on the series, and even leaning on marking down the old games in over-reactive fits of revisionism. Tomb Raider went through much the same thing around the time 3 came out. It was simply the same formula over and over without much in the way of creativity.

Then Resident Evil 4 came out.

If it wasn't for 4, the series would be where Silent Hill and Alone in the Dark are now. Simply curiosities for the general public and for genre fans with every new release.

[Foggle]

If it wasn't for 4, the series would be where Silent Hill and Alone in the Dark are now. Simply curiosities for the general public and for genre fans with every new release.

Actually, after ORC, RE6, and Rev2...

[Spark Of Spirit]

If it wasn't for 4, the series would be where Silent Hill and Alone in the Dark are now. Simply curiosities for the general public and for genre fans with every new release.

Actually, after ORC, RE6, and Rev2...

And they have no Mikami to save them this time.

[talonmalon333]

It's funny how, without Mikami, RE4 breathing new life into the series didn't last. It was supposed to be a new beginning for Resident Evil, but ultimately, it wasn't that at all. The classic formula was strong for RE1 and RE2, and though cracks were showing with 3, it wasn't a huge back breaker. In their own rights, 3 and CV were good games and 0 was passable. RE4 was fantastic, but in the very next game, the series plummeted to a new low.

Do they just not know what to do without Mikami to guide them?

[Spark Of Spirit]

I wouldn't have minded more games like 4.

But we didn't get those.

[Foggle]

It's funny how, without Mikami, RE4 breathing new life into the series didn't last. It was supposed to be a new beginning for Resident Evil, but ultimately, it wasn't that at all. The classic formula was strong for RE1 and RE2, and though cracks were showing with 3, it wasn't a huge back breaker. In their own rights, 3 and CV were good games and 0 was passable. RE4 was fantastic, but in the very next game, the series plummeted to a new low.

Do they just not know what to do without Mikami to guide them?

The decisions to add forced co-op and go all in on the summer blockbuster tone killed the series, I'd say. RE4 was still creepy and single-player, with brilliant level design and a lot of humor. The same can't be said about any of the games since.

I wouldn't have minded more games like 4.

But we didn't get those.

The middle third of RE5 is actually pretty reminiscent of RE4 (while the first third rips it off wholesale). And though they don't come anywhere close to recapturing its magic, the Revelations games do feel like they tried, at least.

Really, though, I recommend playing The Evil Within. It gets a bad rap due to its framerate and high level of difficulty, but it feels just like the true RE4 sequel we never got. Absolutely brilliant game that was criminally overlooked last year. (While I recommend picking it up for PS4, Xbone, or PC if possible, my first playthrough was on the PS3, and it was still tons of fun. Just make sure to patch it before playing - whatever system you're using.)

[talonmalon333]

I sometimes think game players don't know how to properly articulate things, which helps lead to franchise crashes. The reason RE4 worked so well was because of how it balanced the horror elements that define RE with fast paced tension. But all Capcom seemed to hear was the fans ranting about how awesome the action packed gameplay was, and thus downgraded the horror into almost nothing with RE4's immediate sequel. The series has now come into full collapse and Capcom seems to be trying to get it back on its feet by recalling its past successes, through remastering REmake and remaking RE2.

It's similar to Final Fantasy. Storylines thrived on a balance between lightheartedness and seriousness. But when Square heard fans screaming about how dramatic FFVII was (particularly because of Aeris' death), they dropped the lighthearted parts and made VIII overly moody and melodramatic. Though that was more than a mere franchise crash and was basically an entire genre crash. And yes, I blame FFVIII for killing the JRPG. That game can go die in a river.