Resident Evil 3 Quick Review
Summary - an elevator pitch to sum up the experience
Resident Evil 3 builds on the concept first delivered in Resident Evil 2 of an unstoppable Nemesis that hunts you throughout the game. This brings tension into every moment and makes you consider the layout of each environment to use it for possible evasion and escape.
What does Resident Evil 3 do well?
There’s a confidence here, coming hot off the Resident Evil 2 remake, that sees Resident Evil 3 start strongly and keep the pace and pressure up for its entire length. This is a no-fat Resident Evil, with anything that does not serve the narrative and gameplay left out. As such, it’s a very short experience, with a campaign lasting just over four hours, a little more if you want to find everything possible.
There are also environmental hazards that can take out groups of zombies or cause the Nemesis to falter long enough to escape. The usual explosive barrel is the most obvious one, but also introduced are electrical generators that arc out when hit by gunfire. I found these particularly useful against dogs, which are my most hated Resident Evil foe.
The game is designed generously. Safe rooms are plentiful throughout its very linear campaign and each main encounter or change up is clearly telegraphed – every time you come across a stash of flame or explosive ammo for the grenade launcher, you just know a boss fight is coming – so equip that baby! These fights are never too difficult and each sequence between save points is short enough to allow for brief sessions.
I had a real blast with RE3 and found the streamlined experience just as enjoyable as the meatier campaign offered by Resident Evil 2. If you go into this knowing that the original game was also very short, then you should gain a lot of enjoyment from this punchy sequel.
What's something not so good?
Sometimes the frame rate dips a bit low (I reviewed on Xbox One S), although I rarely found that this impacted gameplay. I don’t usually suffer from Master Race jealousy, but this would be a very nice game to behold on a beast PC.
The other main issue is that after completing it in just a few sittings, I didn’t feel much incentive to replay, certainly not like other entries in the Resident Evil library. You earn points during play by completing certain challenges, and you can then spend this virtual currency on unlocks and concept art. However, once you’ve beaten the game, the thought of replaying immediately to unlock, say, an infinite rocket launcher, just doesn’t seem that appealing, especially given how linear the game is. That said, the sparsity of unnecessary filler might see Resident Evil 3 become something of a quick yearly banger during quiet release periods, with unlocks serving as little bonuses as you revisit.
Who is this game for?
There’s no doubt that RE fans are the main audience. However, Resident Evil 3 is so easy to get into and so respectful of players in its design that newcomers need not be too frightened to give it a try. I’d even suggest playing this before Resident Evil 2 if you’re a more casual gamer. The shorter run time will keep you glued to each sequence and then if you find a newfound appreciation for this kind of horror, there’s the much more involved offering of Resident Evil 2 waiting for you.
Whichever order you play them in, there’s no doubting the quality of these remakes. They have managed to respect what made the originals a large part of people’s gaming memories, and yet the playful nature of these remixes keeps them feeling fresh and modern as well. I’m sure this isn’t an easy feat, so kudos to Capcom for the work they are doing. It will certainly be interesting to see which Resident Evil title they rework next.
