There’s no doubt that Capcom’s Resident Evil is a huge success. It has etched itself in the annals in gaming history as one of the best horror franchises out there, going toe to toe against Konami’s Silent Hill.
The series is also no stranger to ups and downs. If there are good Resident Evil titles, there are also bad ones that the community dislikes, especially Resident Evil 6, which is often known as the “black sheep” of the series.
With the age of modern Resident Evil remakes, there’s one other title that sticks out like a sore thumb in the series: and that’s Resident Evil 3 Remake.
It’s one of the most bizarre cases of wasted potential, something that I deeply regret buying full price when it came out. Even after five years, playing the Remake still leaves a sour taste in my mouth, and I can’t believe Capcom decided to ship out an “incomplete” game.
It Was Just Too Short
One of my biggest issues with Resident Evil 3 Remake is how abysmally short it was. You can basically finish the game in one sitting if you’re that determined. While I enjoyed the wild goose chase between Jill Valentine and Nemesis, the novelty wears off after the first few hours, turning him more of a pushover than a formidable foe.
So Much Cut Content
I didn’t play the original Resident Evil 3 growing up, so I had no idea that an entire chunk of 3 Remake was cut until my friend told me. The Clock Tower and Raccoon Park are basically axed, taking two to three hours worth of playtime from the full game itself. This was potentially swapped with Carlos’ sections in the game, which added a separate action theme with some ‘tower defense’ moments later on. While I enjoyed his character as a whole, some of his parts felt forced into the story, sometimes feeling like a cop-out.
Cutting precious levels in the Remake really was a bizarre decision that truly annoyed me since I didn’t get to play the full version of Jill’s story.
Resident Evil Resistance Was a Let Down
Perhaps one of the things that added salt to the wound was Resident Evil Resistance, a special add-on game that came with your purchase of Resident Evil 3 Remake. My crackpot theory is that it was meant to offset the short playtime of RE3 Remake, so Capcom had to make a live-service asymmetrical horror game to make its $60 price tag worth it.
Unfortunately, it was not worth all that effort. Resistance felt like a Temu version of Dead by Daylight, and that’s a low bar. There were no dedicated servers, the gameplay felt monotonous, and it barely had any story since it’s considered ‘non-canon.’ As a result, the game wasn't well-received, and support for it officially ended six months after its release. Now, those who picked up Resident Evil 3 Remake during launch are left with only a six-hour game.
Would I have been okay to buy Resident Evil 3 Remake for $40? Yes. But $60 for a six-to seven-hour game? No. If I’d have known the add-on game Resistance sucks, I wouldn’t even consider buying it. But as a huge fan of the series and someone who hasn’t tried the original, RE3 Remake could’ve been that gateway for me. Sadly, it has only left me with a deep scar of betrayal, as buying it at launch is one of the biggest mistakes I made.
Capcom has since learned their lessons, and it gave us Resident Evil 4 Remake, which is by far one of the best modern remakes of a video game ever.
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