Resident Evil 3’s Real Nemesis Is Its Length

The word “remake” can make any gamer’s blood run cold, but Capcom has pulled off quite the feat by remaking the wild popular Resident Evil 2 last year and now Resident Evil 3. This isn’t just a new coat of paint for 2020; it’s an entire overhaul of the previous version of the game, including gameplay and presentation.

As soon as you hit start, the visuals and eerie environment lure you into hell on Earth, aka Raccoon City. Much like Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, you can’t take your eyes off the screen. The character models are outrageously realistic and intimidating, while the environment’s detail and lighting play a pivotal part in scaring you at any given moment. Combined with the effective use of silence and other creepy audio cues, it wrecks your senses as you spin around trying to see if there’s something behind you.

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The locations are familiar, but Resident Evil 3 doesn’t necessarily start off the exact same way as 1999’s Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, though the premise is the same. The zombie apocalypse comes to town and former Special Tactics and Rescue Services (S.T.A.R.S.) member Jill Valentine meets the mountain of toxic dung known as Nemesis, who chases her around like a bogeyman with plans to return for the sequel. Jill escapes and runs into Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service’s (U.B.C.S.) Carlos Oliveira, who eventually realises the Umbrella Corporation is slightly less evil than pharmaceutical giants but still bad.

You play predominantly as Jill in third-person shooter gameplay, while you also get the opportunity to control Carlos. It isn’t quite all-action warfare, though, as you’re forced to preserve ammo and dodge the zombies where possible – much like Biohazard and 2019’s Resident Evil 2. Instead, you’re given missions where you need to interact with the environment, sniff around for clues and items, and complete tasks to help the city. Of course, Nemesis looms around every corner, with every intention of smashing your head into the pavement.

Then, it ends. Abruptly. Look, maybe we’re getting spoilt as gamers, but Resident Evil 3 is short. As YouTuber Jeremy Jahns highlighted in his review of the game, it’s effectively the same length as the DLC for 2018’s Spider-Man. Six hours of gameplay for a full-price game does feel excessively expensive. What you do experience in those six hours is fantastic and absorbing, but it isn’t enough to justify the retail price.

Similarly, the multiplayer accompaniment, Resident Evil: Resistance, isn’t as absorbing as the single-player campaign. Most people playing Resident Evil are there for the campaign and not multiplayer in the first place, and the asymmetrical co-op isn’t going to occupy too much of your time (especially considering the lack of crossplay). Interestingly, Resident Evil: Resistance isn’t even considered a mode of the main game, but a separate application altogether.

Resident Evil 3 has left me in quite the predicament. On one hand, it delivers the standard we expect from the franchise and thrills as it should. But then, there isn’t enough of it to justify the retail price. It’s a game that’s certainly worth your time, but it might be in your best interest to wait until there’s a price reduction.