The PS1 classic that hunts you
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, the original the remake did not replace
- Critic score
- 75
- Player rating
- 4.7/5
- Main story
- 6.8 h
- Genre
- Action
In 1999 Capcom added to the Resident Evil formula an enemy you cannot shake off. The PS1 episode is in the Classics Catalog, and it still holds things its 2020 version left out.
Raccoon City is falling. Jill Valentine, a survivor of the first game's mansion, is trying to escape a city overrun by Umbrella's virus. The story starts a few hours before Resident Evil 2 and ends after it, making it the link between the two.
Its signature is the Nemesis: a creature built to eliminate S.T.A.R.S. members, which shows up at unpredictable moments, smashes through doors and chases Jill from room to room. You can flee, or fight it for rewards; either way, the fear changes nature. It is no longer dread of the next corridor, it is the feeling of being followed.
The game also introduces split-second choices. At certain points the screen freezes and offers two options — jump out the window or stand your ground, escape through the sewer or stay — that change the next scene, and sometimes the ending. On top of that come a dodge and an ammo-crafting system based on mixing gunpowders.
The 2020 remake opted for a tighter adventure and cut several locations, including the clock tower, along with those choices. The bonus Mercenaries mode, unlocked after the credits, is also unique to this version. If you played the remake, the original is not a rerun.
Fixed cameras, tank controls: it takes about an hour to get used to them again. After that, it is a short game, around six or seven hours, built for replaying, with items and puzzles that shift from one run to the next.