Remaking Resident Evil 1-4: Four Shades of Horror

In 20 years, Capcom made remakes of their first four Resident Evil games. With each of them, a new vision, a new way to remake a classic, but also a new type of horror. From atmospheric thrills to urban post-apocalyptic vibe, let's dive back into what made the original games so powerful, and discuss how Capcom proves again and again their mastery in bringing them back to modern standards.
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0:00 - Intro
0:56 - The original games (1996-1999)
2:46 - Resident Evil 1 Remake (2002)
5:20 - Resident Evil 2 Remake (2019)
9:09 - Resident Evil 3 Remake (2020)
13:44 - Resident Evil 4 Remake (2023)
16:43 - The next remakes? (TBC)
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All Resident Evil visuals and music used in this video are © Capcom.
Sources:
Resident Evil 1-4 remakes footage recorded directly from yours truly.
Developers' quotes from the following interviews:
survivhor.biohazardfrance.net...
www.siliconera.com/resident-e...
Resident Evil Zero & Code Veronica trailers:
• Resident Evil: Code Ve...
• Resident Evil 0 HD - O...
Original Resident Evil 1-3 gameplay footage originally from LongPlay Archives:
• Longplay of Resident E...
• Longplay of Resident E...
• Longplay of Resident E...

[@RetroToHero]

I am absolutely blown away by the positive responses this video is getting! Thanks a lot, and don't hesitate to let me know here what I could further improve on (I'm still new to this) or what remakes you'd like me to cover next! ❤

[@zygmanfroid9709]

You gotta be like the only youtuber who knows resident evil 1 was remade already

[@LikeButton7]

But it needs the over the shoulder remake. Like 2 3 and 4

[@showtime1235]

everyone knows it already had a remake but ppl want another

[@arustyitalianhairyasscheek5305]

@@showtime1235 Thats because ppl are dumb and stupid , instead of encouraging creativity and doing new stuff by moving on to the next thing , they encourage this bad practice of remaking everything that moves . Even if has already been remade and remastered at the same time.

[@showtime1235]

@@arustyitalianhairyasscheek5305 yea i’d be lying if i said i wouldn’t play the absolute shit out of re1 remake remake but i agree id rather see a new game at this point

[@nifftbatuff676]

Given enough time, every game of every genre will be enventually remade in a third person over-the-shoulder shooter.

[@fettywaifu7313]

This is such a high quality video and here’s hoping that the algorithm pushes it out to all RE fans

[@RetroToHero]

@@fettywaifu7313 wow thanks a lot for the positive comment! I'm still getting started so this is super encouraging! it was a type of format I enjoyed a lot scripting and editing :)

[@jimvjoon3547]

I agree! I would love some similar videos from you

[@RetroToHero]

@@jimvjoon3547 thanks a lot! Definitely working on it!

[@Septqmber]

Personally nothing beats how scary RE1 is, from the fixed angles to the constant quiet-ness and the occasional ambient music. Even without the presence of enemies, the game through it's atmosphere alone had you in a constant choke-hold, making you look over your shoulder and second guess every single little door and item. No other titles(even within the RE Universe) have come close to replicating the utter dread and suffocation that RE1 put you through. What a masterpiece....

[@RetroToHero]

That is beautifully put! Exactly how atmosphere really played with our emotions

[@lightningmonky7674]

Good to see another refined gamer who enjoyed re3 remake!

[@demonhead1610]

I disagree on Nemesis: I was fully expecting him to be a faster stalker in a more open space which would have been super intense but fun.

[@RetroToHero]

I honestly wonder if it wasn't the initial direction they'd have taken, if not for how the RE2 team decided to have a different approach to its prequel.

[@tyrians]

Sadly everything about the RE3 remake was disappointing, especially right after RE2. If we'd got the RE3 remake first, I imagine it wouldn't have been so harshly critiqued. But following after the remake that was RE2... Yeah... Really left a sour taste in the mouth.

[@emptymelodies3316]

What a fantastic video! You nailed each game on the head, I feel. That’s a sub.

[@RetroToHero]

@@emptymelodies3316 wow, thank you so much!

[@KyudoKun]

I feel like RE3R is not a remake but an entirely different game.

[@RetroToHero]

@@KyudoKun it is different yeah, a real " retelling" of sorts, and that's a direction I actually quite like in remakes (I.e. FFVII)

[@dietrichrache1975]

And a bad game

[@KyudoKun]

@@RetroToHero The only difference I believe us that FF7 remake is not actually a remake but a sequel to Advent Children.

[@RetroToHero]

@@KyudoKun it could make sense, and that's what I loved about this "remake": it is super open and ambiguous as to whether we're seeing the same story being retold, or a new one unfolding. It has its own shortcomings but I liked the approach, and I'm sure other developers will be inspired by this in the future

[@PsychicSpark]

It's actually a reimagine and not a real remake because of the cut content

[@Billy_The_Kid-]

I got recommended this. It is a good video. I look forward to seeing more of your work

[@RetroToHero]

Thanks a lot! Will try not to disappoint!

[@balcazarsalasmiltondavid7933]

Great video! Loved your point of view on the re3r

[@RetroToHero]

@@balcazarsalasmiltondavid7933 thanks a lot! I know this point of view is not the majority. But I feel this game deserves a little slack from time to time haha!

[@ParUhDroyd]

Thank you! I’ve been a fan since the original ps1 trilogy and I love the remakes but was always in the camp of wanting more from RE3 remake but the perspective you put here is great and gave me a lot more appreciation for the remake.

[@RetroToHero]

@@ParUhDroyd thank you!! Glad my perspective makes sense also for the fans who felt let down by the remake! I definitely get where you're coming from

[@ypunk__]

I hope the years will continue to be kind to RE3, is one of my favorites and seeing it being recognized for what it is really makes me happy. I recommend the Noah RE retrospective, 7 hours straight of resident evil

[@RetroToHero]

Happy my perspective makes sense to know RE3 inside too! And thanks for the link to the retrospective! 7-hour, wow!

[@psycho7045]

I miss the classic style of Re games. Give me back Hard puzzles Fixed Camera angles and low amount of ammo n items to make think , should I run pass an avoid these zombies

[@cobraregala4571]

Nice video, comrade

[@RetroToHero]

@@cobraregala4571 thank you very much!

[@cobraregala4571]

​@@RetroToHero i hope re 1 r isn't remade again. We already have these games remade. No need for another remake for the four games. They should remake re 5 and 6 then stop.

[@RetroToHero]

I agree for RE1-4! I'm still hyped for Code Veronica though, this game didn't get through attention it deserved, and Zero was also a missed opportunity imo

[@tyrians]

The one I'm looking forward to most is the Code Veronica remake for sure. Would be nice to get the outbreaks with PC co-op, or even Zero with PC co-op honestly also.

[@CEddyAV19]

This is not a video of a guy with 14 subs, very nice retrospect boss

[@RetroToHero]

@@CEddyAV19 thank you so much!!! I am really getting started on KZbin but am glad to see my previous experiences in writing and video editing led to something watchable! Will definitely keep it going

[@pipboysandlightsabers5478]

Dusk Golem has been wrong many times id take anything with a grain of salt

[@RetroToHero]

Yeah, as is with all leakers. I really hope he is right though, and Capcom remaking those two games next would be a pretty reasonable move. But yeah... grain of salt 😅

[@TheOneCrispy1533]

Fuckk bro, take my sub !! ❤️❤️❤️

[@imanafshari6128]

So re2-4 remade (built from the ground up reimagined) re1 remastered (a visual and audio upgrade with slight differences and quality of life updates)

[@m1garand164]

My gripe with the 3 remake was that it felt lazy. Nemesis was mr cutscene man and the team that made it didn't bother to implement ANY physics to the zombies. They fell and died with the same single canned animation and froze in place and you couldn't do any limb damage at all. It was too short and cut out whole sections of the original and the fights with nemesis were a joke. It felt like a regression from 2 in every way. I did enjoy the game but it was a huge disappointment. Btw good luck with the channel! Great video especially for someone just starting out. I have a feeling you'll go far if you keep at it. 👍

[@RetroToHero]

Thanks a lot for the support! I'll definitely try to keep it up! And you're right, there are definitely some things that were rushed in RE3R, unfortunately

[@siddhanthiyer8016]

I am really happy they focused a lot on characterization in re3r, and that’s what made Jill one of my favorite characters ever!

[@RetroToHero]

@@siddhanthiyer8016 yeah exactly! Jill took on a whole new level in the series thanks to this remake! And I hope to see more of Carlos in the future.

[@Ilovew00d]

I’m happy we’re getting remakes of these classic games that everyone fell in love with, I’d personally like a director’s cut of RE3R and RE2R, the team that made RE2R cut enemies and the library puzzle that everyone forgot about along with mirroring the A/B scenarios and removing the zapping system. RE3R’s team cut lots of content from the original and toned down Nemesis, so I’d appreciate it if Capcom went back to these projects and added the missing content in these games, that’s all I ask of them. RE4R and RE1R on the other hand are good just the way they are. These 4 remakes actually improve on almost everything. The soundtracks are improved on, the effects and graphics are improved on (RE3R may need a small update to RE2R’s gore and design but still good), character development and voice acting is excellent and not bland unlike the originals. The remakes pretty much improve on everything except content, that’s literally it. RE1R and RE4R nailed the content so they’re off the hook, but RE3R and RE2R’s content is stopping them from being considered better than the originals unfortunately. But hey, whether people like it or need these games are great and almost everything is improved on from the OG games.

[@coolfool183]

it's funny that you say at 17:20 that "'all four remakes lessen their survival roots". I definitely do not think that is the case for 4 remake. im one of the poor fools who got tricked into playing it on hardcore my first time around, because it recommends you to do that if you've played to original. In my opinion, 4 remake takes the action horror feel and cranks it way up. knife durability, increased speed and aggression of enemies, and reduced chance to stagger enemies all make that game way more tense. for me, going back to professional mode in the original 4 feels like little baby Training wheels Leon

[@RetroToHero]

That's a fair point. As a gamer with good memories of the OGs but less time to play a lot of modern survival-horror games, I didn't feel I qualified for the hardcore mode. But bringing up the difficulty levels makes sense, you're right, and that's not something I really considered in my analysis, unfortunately.

[@thetinker.15]

I am very excited to see this video as it's very interesting but I just want to point out that re3 remake is not scary at all it more like a parody version of the OG and the OG is absolutely terrifying at least for me

[@RetroToHero]

That is one possible vision haha, although I'm not sure that's what developers wanted to achieve unfortunately

[@MacyP]

I’ve played damn near every resident evil original or remake games even survivor but only played RE4 once and never picked it up again. Should I play the remake for 4 or original first?

[@RetroToHero]

@@MacyP given how the remake is so close from the original, and unless you are big on retrogaming, I think just playing the remake is perfectly fine :)

[@Demigod_3scrub]

0,1,2,4,5

[@Daringloki]

However, I think code Veronica needs a remake more than anything. The game is underrated, and no one’s ever sat down and fully beat the game. I’ve done it.

[@RetroToHero]

Beat it too back then, but it's been so long... as soon as the remake is announced I'll definitely go through another playthrough!

[@tyrians]

What do you mean, no one's ever sat down and fully beat the game?... Huh? Do you really think you're the only person to ever complete Code Veronica?

[@Daringloki]

@@tyrians no I was just saying no new fan is going to play the game because of the tank controls not only that the game is very underrated

[@tyrians]

@@Daringloki That's not true either though tbf

[@hzkjoncee]

RE3R is my go to game anytime I feel the ResidentEvil itch. Quick, enjoyable, beautiful to gaze at and action survival. I like to set my own challenges everytime I play it as well.

[@RetroToHero]

Yeah there's something easy-going about this game that, paradoxically, I enjoy

[@Zombiezay]

Solid vid ! I also love love love re3r but woah does it have the potential to be a better remake…… On its own it’s absolutely solid but the moment you bring its original counterpart into this it becomes a disappointment I honestly don’t understand the rush Capcom had with rushing it It was clearly going to do well after the major success of re2r 🤦‍♂️

[@RetroToHero]

Thannks! And yes I agree there's something weird about Capcom's strategy here.

[@carloshurtado955]

When got to the re2 remake part definitely you didn't play the harcore mode :(

[@RetroToHero]

That is very true: I'm actually a wimp when it comes to (modern) horror games so I didn't have it in my to try the harder difficulties hahaha 😂

[@DaRealLetterH]

I agree so much with you especially on RE3!!! I love RE3 so much (especially Jill lol i fucking love her so much) But i have played RE4 original now for the first time recently and finished it (i did play the remake a while ago after 2 and 3) and i really love how the remake became. One of my fav details is that you can find the sacrificial ritual location from the beginning cutscene inside a mountain. You arrive there and know what happened there it's a weird feeling and RE2R is definetly my fav RE game in general (I noticed ur a small channel so THANKS YT ALGORITHM)

[@RetroToHero]

Thank YOU for your engagement! Wow I actually didn't know about the sacrifice location. Nice!!!

[@DaRealLetterH]

@@RetroToHero it is in the mountain next to the hanging wagons. I'm not sure if it is that location or smth inside the castle

[@elderjose9662]

I don't understand why most fans hate the action era of the franchise, like dudes you don't remember but at the time of RE3 the ps1 was SATURATED with survival horrors in the RE style, how the RE formula is relativelly simple to reproduce rival companies do A LOT of RE clones in the ps1 era, from vampire countdown to galerian everybody wants a piece of RE sucess, because of that RE Sales become smaller and smaler to the point of code veronica the first RE released for ps2 having horrible sales, the survival horror was a saturated genre and people where tired of the genre and mecanics so they decide to inovate and change everything we see before, and then 4 comes with the action horror formula that saved the franchise in the 2000s, so we should be tankful to 4 and 5 for saving the franchise and mading it be revelat for more than a decade until horror genre desaturaded, persobal taste is something, blind hate is another, yeah we know that the action horror culminate in re6 but the classic era culminate in zero as well and that game was bad, so don't hate an era or genre because of the fruits instead try to apreciate it by what this is by itself

[@nickreed3924]

I love re3make. The story is really well done, and the gameplay feels great. It's more survival action than survival horror, but that's perfectly fine. It's a little breath of fresh air for the franchise.

[@RetroToHero]

Exactly my feeling!

[@Daringloki]

If they remake this game again, it would literally be improving the horror and besides, we haven’t seen Joe Valentine in a game since resident evil five sure we got death Island, but I don’t really count and that movie also hinted the first remake

[@RetroToHero]

Yes I wouldn't be surprised if a new remake is in the works. But as RE1 remake is already so good, I'd actually prefer if they tried something completely different. I think the writing of the OG could be improved on (characters, play with the lore a bit more). But it will ve very difficult to top the 1st remake's atmosphere and classic gameplay

[@Daringloki]

@@RetroToHero they could remake it again but change it a little bit but keep the some stuff the same as the original game

[@a5tro-b0y]

I want the re0 remake to be a co-op game like obscure from the ps2 and re5

[@thomaskphillips2582]

Resident Evil one of greatest videogame franchises ever after streetfighter 2

[@LikeButton7]

God everyone always jumps on the “RE3 remake sucks!” Bandwagon. Most people didn’t feel that way until they were told to feel that way.

[@LikeButton7]

28 days/weeks and world war z was not zombie movies

[@PsychicSpark]

Capcom need to Remake Resident Evil 2 with the zap system like the original one. Resident Evil 3 also needs a full remake, because of the 80% missing sections. It will also be nice to remake Resident Evil 1 Remake with RE Engine.

[@Fami_Salami]

Re1 modern controls are inferior

[@handsolo1076]

RE3R was it's own shade of horror. A shit shade.

[@RetroToHero]

@@handsolo1076 haha that's a good one! It has its shortcomings but personally I had fun playing it! As I said in the video, just like watching a chill zombie flick ^^

[@THE_INFECTED]

Nah RE3R represents the horror of budget cuts

[@handsolo1076]

@@RetroToHero If I hadn't played the original so much I'd probably be less critical.

[@RetroToHero]

@@THE_INFECTED true that's also something worth digging a bit more. There are the official discourses around the game's production, but the game's length and how it cut quite a lot of content/locations from the OG do raise some eyebrows

[@RetroToHero]

@@handsolo1076 yeah I understand. I also played more RE3 than the first two back then, but I was quite open to seeing them move away from the OG in the remake to some extent. I definitely understand those who were disappointed

[@elderjose9662]

sorry classic games fans but for me and enfase on ME MYSELF (well and for some people I think) the classic games aren't scary anymore, sorry but if you don't grow up in the ps1 era that low poly grafics aren't that scary and the fact that the classic games take place more at well iluminated spaces do to hardware limitations and have simple mecanics that you can get after some few training this make this games more annoying than scary, again that's WHAT I THINK! MY OPINION! for me the classic games aren't scary, I lile the vibe they have with the epic soundtrack and the amazing sound design, but FOR ME that low poly grafics, well iluminated spaces and cheesy performances from the voice actors take me a lot off the game, the RE1 remake make it better but for me the tank control and fixed camera angles where more annoying than scary, I don't know I don't fear zombies because they barelly look like a menance with that slow moviments and weakness, I do grow up with re3 claesic but as a child I aways play on easy mode because I think it was funnier and when I finally play on hard mode as an adult I barrely fea anything because again the grafics limitations make the game don't scare me at all, I love the vibe of the games and I love they because they are fun to explore, but I don't really few scaried at this games and for me the remake of 2 is scarier than the original because of mr. x, but again THAT'S JUST MY PERSONAL OPINION!!!

[@zZiL341yRj736]

2, 3 and 4 can't be considered in the same league as the RE1. These are just darker games with all the heart and soul ripped out it. Half baked version with less contents and fun from the original.

[@uhuhuh1966]

I disagree with 2 & 4. 2 actually had much more content than the original, the only complaint was the way A & B scenarios effected each other, and 4 remake was just a better game overall

[@Zombiezay]

This is a wilddddd statement Considering Re4R is re4 to a T but better lol

[@cackle529]

​@@uhuhuh19662 remake having more content than the original? That is just straight up false. The only sections that got expanded were Ada's and Sherry's while Leon and Claire got the short end of the stick - especially their B runs.

[@uhuhuh1966]

@@cackle529 dude lol the maps are SIGNIFICANTLY smaller in the original compared to remake your nostalgia is blinding you. Play them back to back in one sitting you will be shocked how little there is in the original, the boss battles are far more expansive in remake as are the cutscenes, the sewers are like an entirely new level compared to the 5 minute long original sewers.

[@Ilovew00d]

I disagree with your take on 4, literally everything from the original was added into the remake, in fact some of that content are details you may notice if you play the remake of RE4. RE2R and RE3R may need director’s cuts but I disagree with these 3 remakes being soulless and heartless, the remakes improve on pretty much everything (RE2R and RE3R don’t improve on content and Nemesis but improve on everything else). Soundtrack, graphics, effects, design, character development, voice acting, animation, EVERYTHING is improved on. I don’t think you’ve played these remakes at all because nothing about these games are soulless or heartless at all.