Hear me out. While it may be considered among the weaker Resi games, Resident Evil Zero has potential. Its promising story is told poorly and its combat is lacking, but the dual-protagonist gameplay is well worth exploring and its cast deserves a second chance. Whether you’re a fan of the general concept of videogame remakes or not, it’s easy to see why a lesser game is a better subject for revival than one that doesn’t need improving upon. So if Capcom really wants to remake more Resi games, I’d argue Resident Evil Zero is an ideal candidate.
The first game in the series’ narrative chronology, Resident Evil Zero, AKA Resident Evil Biohazard, is crucial to Wesker’s arc, the initial exposure to the T-virus, and the history of the iconic Umbrella research facility. It’s quintessentially Resident Evil: set in Raccoon City, and with myriad puzzles, it features back-and-forth exploration and a badass male-female duo whose relationship grows from mistrust to forced partnership to reliance. Theoretically, it’s almost everything you could want from Resident Evil, but the 2002 zombie game just misses the mark.
The combat and traversal are poor, and the tank controls certainly don’t help, especially in the extended train section. Sure, some of the series’ best zombie interactions occur in narrow corridors – those moments when you can hear but can’t see the enemy – but the awkward controls mixed with the claustrophobic setting are more a hindrance than a boon this time around. Even a basic interactive element like picking up items becomes a chore when they’re located so close to notes, typewriters, or other objects.
Bosses are a real low point too. Take Stinger, the giant scorpion, which requires you to stand still and unload round after round in its face as it slowly approaches. Then there’s Centurion, a bug that’s more of a nuisance than a threat. Even the late-game bosses don’t offer much of a challenge, but there’s potential in their design and in some of the more thrilling timed segments.
In our Resident Evil 4 Remake review, Ed ruminated on how the combat was vastly improved from the original. Our Resi oracle also lauds the Resident Evil 3 remake for its positive tweaks and changes. While both were based on already excellent games, we could still have something special if we applied that same progress to Zero, which has so much unrealized potential.
It may not be for everybody, but I always loved the dual-character gameplay. Of all the games in the series, only Re5 and Zero utilize this as a primary mechanic – and neither do it well. Your bumbling AI companion often gets in the way, and their dialogue outside of cutscenes is utterly emotionless. Zero, however, presents the ideal opportunity to perfect this concept, as it’s still lighter on action and heavier on puzzles than Re5, with the two protagonists working together to solve more complex and satisfying headscratchers in tandem.
While Zero fails to tell its story well, it still has potential thanks to its overall importance to the wider Resi narrative. The Umbrella characters – Wesker, Birkin, Marcus – and their history could be fleshed out and reworked. ‘Marcus’ himself, who looks like he’s jumped out of a Final Fantasy game, could be improved too.
Then there are our protagonists. Rebecca Chambers deserves to be regarded alongside Jill and Sheva. She’s young, driven, strong, and independent. Her backchat with Billy in the game’s early cutscenes gives her instant personality. She’s not there for sex appeal, and nor is she related to another character. She’s her own person, as she reinforces to Billy whenever he belittles her. Billy himself – an honorable scapegoat wrongly sentenced to death – has perhaps the greatest backstory of any Resident Evil protagonist, and it’s wasted on one of the series’ worst games.
Finally, there’s the simple fact that Resident Evil Zero takes place in Raccoon City. Classic Resi begins and, for me, ends with the puzzle and exploration-driven games set in and around RC. Zero still could be regarded as one of those greats. Now it’s up to Capcom to make it so.