As South Africa enters its 21-day lockdown (UPDATE: Now extended by two weeks) in order to combat the spread of the coronavirus, it has left many civilians in the isolation of their homes. Many see this as a great opportunity to spend quality time with some family and loved ones, while others cherish diving into forms of entertainment to occupy their time and pass the weeks (when not working remotely, in that case). To cushion some of the tedium, Nexus has decided to create a daily feature in which we recommend games of varying lengths and content that could pass the time. Our seventeenth recommendation in Lockdown Gaming asks "what makes a good Jill Sandwich?" with Resident Evil Origins Collection.



The grandfather of survival horror, Resident Evil, has seen several changes since its debut on the PlayStation 1. With more recent entries, it has bounced back and forth between survival horror and action, with emphasis constantly switching between those for an unbalanced, albeit enjoyable, experience. It seemed like the roots of the franchise would soon be forgotten to nonsensical high-caliber action with the release of the awful Resident Evil 6, but then came the HD Remake of the first game, and quickly put those doubts to rest. With the Origins Collection, fans were given both Resident Evil Remake and Resident Evil Zero beautifully remastered for current-gen, but did a new skin actually benefit the games or fall victim to some of the recurring problems with modern remasters?



Fans will be all too familiar with the stories behind both Resident Evil and Resident Evil Zero. The former is a retelling of the moments leading up to and revolving around a group of elite soldiers called S.T.A.R.S., who become trapped in a mansion following an investigation into the outskirts of Raccoon City, the site of an impending zombie outbreak. Players assume the role of either Chris Redfield or Jill "Sandwich" Valentine, two task force members who must investigate the zombie and monster-infested mansion and uncover various secrets to ensure their survival. Zero serves as a prequel to the first game, retelling the events that happened to the previous S.T.A.R.S. Bravo Team in the Arklay Mountains, and touching on Albert Wesker's motivations clearly.

The first game, while generally regarded as a classic, had its fair share of problems in regards to story and characters - and I'll be the first to admit this. Certain events and twists seemed too coincidental, and often pulled players out of the experience. The remake doesn’t necessarily fix those problems, but remains true to the spirit of the original, and that’s not always a bad thing either. Just in the context of how kinda B-movie Resident Evil actually is, it's not the greatest thing either. Though understandably, I probably wouldn't have it any other way.



Over time, we’ve come to love those inconsistencies, and the remake wholeheartedly embraces that. The general problem with the first game was the horrendous voice acting, which has vastly been improved for the remake. The storytelling doesn’t seem as jaded as it was due to technological setbacks, but thankfully the Origins Collection does a lot to utilize next-gen hardware to tell a more fluid story this time around. The only flaws I found were largely due to the main characters of Resident Evil Zero, Billy Coen and Rebecca Chambers, who aren’t the most likable folks initially and don’t really make an effort to win us over like Chris and Jill, whose gleefully oblivious but forcefully stoic personalities make the first game an infinitely better character study (Barry aside).

Another daunting concern with the remakes were whether the limitations of the previous consoles, such as the often frustrating stilted camera and tank controls, limited movements and draw distance, would be carried over to this port. Fortunately, the remakes actually make great use of the stilted camera to add razor tension to the game, and limited field of vision means entering every new area was met with sweaty palms and a few well-timed jump scares.



This removes a bit of the "magic" that made Resident Evil Zero fun to play, sadly. With the high amount of polish here in on the HD port, it feels like some characteristics were lost from the original. Maybe it's just me. The anticipation of not knowing what lurks behind the darkness is replaced with, well, actual darkness because technology can afford to clean up atmosphere now. The environment is definitely more open to explore without foreshadowing of an impending surprise death by the obligatory hidden zombie, but it thankfully doesn’t detract too much from the overall experience. It’s still as relentlessly scary and fast-paced as the original, while the first game prides itself in being slow-paced in favor of tension build-up over quick and easy trigger-happy kills.



However, in not forgetting its roots, both Resident Evil games are still pretty damn challenging, especially Zero which, even on the lower difficulties, doesn’t hold your hand and barely provides enough resources to get through certain segments. The difficulty is, however, one of the strongest aspects of the games. It demands players to be on high alert at all times, and quick reflexes are the only things to keep you alive between reloading a weapon for a quick headshot or being nibbled down by a brain-hungry zombie. I often put down my controller after I couldn’t tap the reload button fast enough to shoot a crawling beast who took its time to feast down on my beautifully rendered Jill Valentine, who showed as much emotion during being eaten alive as an inconveniently placed Lego block meets the back-end of your foot. It’s charming, actually.



Where the Origins Collection truly shines is in its polished presentation and immensely improved graphics. The blocky limitations of earlier consoles are gone, which means facial animations and reactions to events add greatly to the shock and horror of the game. The character models are well detailed, with the highlights being Chris and Jill who are both crowd-pleasingly lively this time around (thank goodness), less resembling a feat of architecture in Minecraft but rather actual people. Of course, zombies and monsters are given a great graphical boost too, making them scarier and more intimidating. The environments of the mansions and Arklay Mountains (even the infamous infinite train) are beautifully rendered with more smoothened textures. In short, both games are gorgeous, and benefit from the graphical boost of current-gen hardware.



Resident Evil Origins Collection is a sweet loveletter to fans of the series. It treats its foundations with utmost care while carefully not straying too far off from the formulas we’ve grown to loathe and love simultaneously. With an industry plagued by horror shooters revolving around intense action and how many clips you can empty into the back of an unsuspecting zombie’s skull, it’s utterly refreshing to get a dose of the past again with this Origins Collection, the golden age of survival horror that favors tense gameplay and scarce resources (and thankfully, it looks like Capcom is once again shifting back into form!). It’s good to have you back, old friend. Now please give me more than one bullet and a toilet plunger to kill this undead giant snake.

Other Lockdown Gaming Features:

Lockdown Gaming Day 1: Skyrim Special Edition
Lockdown Gaming Day 2: Persona 5
Lockdown Gaming Day 3: Fallout 4
Lockdown Gaming Day 4: NieR: Automata
Lockdown Gaming Day 5: Bloodborne
Lockdown Gaming Day 6: Anthem & Fallout 76
Lockdown Gaming Day 7: Alien: Isolation
Lockdown Gaming Day 8: Final Fantasy VII
Lockdown Gaming Day 9: Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Lockdown Gaming Day 10: Portal
Lockdown Gaming Day 11: Resident Evil 2 Remake
Lockdown Gaming Day 12: Limbo
Lockdown Gaming Day 13: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Lockdown Gaming Day 14/15: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Game of the Year Edition
Lockdown Gaming Day 16: Ratchet & Clank (PS4)

Remember to visit the South African Coronavirus Website for more information on safety and prevention tips. Stay safe!

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