Review – Resident Evil 2 Deluxe Edition on Switch 2

If Resident Evil 7 was the series’ renaissance, then 2019’s Resident Evil 2 reinforced its unstoppable modern appeal by starting an ongoing celebration of the past. Its popularity not only began a new wave of remakes for Resident Evil, but also inspired many other developers to revisit their classics. Its influence on the industry is arguably just as impactful as the original title on which it was based.

Until now, Nintendo Switch owners have only had a wonky, cloud-based version of Resident Evil 2. Seven years later, its arrival on Switch 2 is Capcom’s chance to finally guarantee all Nintendo fans a seamless way to enjoy the game. For players of the excellent RE7, Village, and Requiem ports, it should come as no surprise that the developer has once again managed to squeeze yet another high-tech experience onto Nintendo’s machine with next to no compromises.

 

 

Players begin by choosing between Leon Kennedy, a newly recruited police officer embarking on his first day of service, and university student Claire Redfield, who is searching for her missing brother. After separately arriving in Raccoon City, the two meet on a fateful night after stopping at a gas station overrun with zombies. They flee together and head to the Raccoon Police Department, but are separated by the surrounding chaos.

The RPD is far from the sanctuary they were hoping for, and searching the dilapidated building for survivors means contending with the flesh-eating undead that roam its halls. The many locked doors and obstacles throughout the station also necessitate exploration, as players need to find keys and other crucial items to access more areas. Wherever you go, it won’t be as simple as shooting your way through.

 

The “T” is for “terrifying”

 

These zombies are the result of a leak of the Umbrella Corporation’s secret t-Virus experiments, and they’re far from the stereotypical cannon fodder popularized by countless other modern games. It’s possible to put them down for good, but it costs a lot of precious ammunition to do so. Even with skillfully placed headshots, it can sometimes take an entire handgun clip to kill one, and the scarcity of bullets means that this is not a go-to for every encounter.

The map will quickly become your best ally, allowing you to identify the routes you plan to retread and therefore precisely which undead fiends to take down. Other times, you’ll want to conserve by firing just one or two rounds to stun and run past, or shoot kneecaps to sever their legs and prevent them from walking.

These zombies are formidable, they are relentless, and most importantly, they’re scary as hell. Their decaying forms are horrific to look at, and their guttural screeches are the stuff of nightmares. Even after several playthroughs, it’s hard not to flinch when one unexpectedly grabs you from behind, or when a lying corpse suddenly grabs you by the ankle.

 

 

Enemies with a new Licker paint

 

Then there are the Lickers: grotesque, skinless creatures that have reached an enhanced stage of the t-Virus mutation, equipped with razor-sharp claws and long barbed tongues. Being blind but extremely sensitive to sound, creeping around these monsters is always tense, and much easier said than done when another nearby threat closes in and forces you to run or shoot.

Zombified dogs, on the other hand, are best put down as soon as possible, as unlike their humanoid counterparts, they retain the speed of a typical aggressive canine and are difficult to dodge. You’ll want to keep your distance from the G-Creatures (large mutants that dwell in the sewers), which can grab and poison you, as well as the fearsome Ivy Zombies, which can kill you instantly at close range if you have no defense weapon. There are a number of enemies missing from the original release, with no infected crows, giant spiders, or overgrown moths, but there’s still enough variety in terms of scares and combat possibilities.

Puzzles were a core part of the original Resident Evil trilogy, but became less prominent in newer entries. This isn’t the case in this remake, as there are plenty of memorable mind-bogglers that will test your ability to recall, observe, and deduce. On the RPD’s ground floor, outdoor zombies can also smash windows and make their way inside. You can prevent this by boarding them up, but you only have so much wood to spare. On top of all this, your inventory space is limited, making strategy key.

 

 

You’ll constantly need to think carefully about where to go, what to carry, when to fight, which key item you need, and how to get back to a safe room alive. Even when you think you’ve got it all figured out, a curveball can hit you at any time. It’s grade-A survival horror and quintessential Resident Evil — at least for the first few hours.

 

From X-cellent to X-hausting

 

Later, the T-00 Tyrant — which commonly goes by the nickname “Mr. X” online — enters the building to relentlessly stalk the player. Seven feet tall, machine-like, and invulnerable to gunfire, the only viable option is to run to a safe room which it cannot enter. At first, it effectively ramps up the suspense, cutting off safe exits and forcing you to flee to more dangerous areas.

After a while, however, the Tyrant starts to outstay its welcome when you are forced to hide and wait for it to pass, or take a much longer alternative route just to complete a simple objective. Its dreaded presence gradually becomes an irritation, especially on 2nd Run mode where he is introduced much earlier.

 

 

Save for one monster encounter in the sewers which is reduced to a disappointing, minute-long obstacle course, the scripted boss fights are much more enjoyable. Umbrella researcher William Birkin is both the creator and Patient Zero of the aforementioned G-Virus, and is a hulking mutated monstrosity by the time you encounter him. Birkin continues to transform as the story progresses, with each form and change in environment demanding a different approach to victory.

 

Oh man, I shot Marvin in the face

 

It’s not all teeth and claws at the RPD, though, as players are quickly greeted by Lieutenant Marvin Branagh. Leon’s boss has been bitten and is determined to use the little time he has left to help the leading character make their escape. Marvin’s role has been meaningfully expanded for the remake, upgraded from being a short-lived exposition-dumping vehicle to a compelling ally and a truly tragic figure. Some goofy lines aside, this version of Leon is a convincing take on our hero at his rookie beginnings: good-natured enough to root for and humanized through his naivety. Vulnerable child characters in games can often be a burden or a source of irritation, but Sherry is thankfully neither.

Sadly, that’s about all the praise I can muster for the game’s cast. Claire is drained of the warmth and charisma that made her unique, instead given a grittier demeanor and a penchant for heavy profanity to sell her as a hardened heroine. Corrupted police chief Brian Irons, who once had a gradual and compelling downward spiral into madness, is now cartoonishly vulgar and despicable from the second he is introduced. William’s wife Annette goes from being a flawed but devoted mother to being downright malevolent in her neglect for her daughter. Ada used to have a soft heart under her rebellious and elusive nature, but is now so needlessly hostile that the idea of her being a believable love interest for Leon is more far-fetched than the bus-sized alligator roaming the city sewers.

 

 

Leon and Claire follow the same main beats, with a few cutscenes, areas, weapons, and support characters unique to each campaign. There is just about enough differing content to make playing through both campaigns worthwhile, but it’s definitely a downgrade from the more personalized paths and intertwining narratives from the original release. Capcom may have made a striking visual showcase with its splatters of red, but it forgot to add delicate strokes of gray to its cast’s personalities. It’s purely a script issue, though, as the characters are not hindered by the performance of the excellent voice actors.

 

A feast of flesh and a feast for the eyes

 

Capcom is a master of its craft when it comes to graphics, and the remade RPD is one of its greatest visual showcases. You can feel the atmosphere change instantly from room to room, from the oppressive aura of the darkened hallways and rundown bathrooms to the mysterious aura of the brightly lit library and detail-packed S.T.A.R.S office. There is environmental storytelling everywhere you look, and it’s easy to imagine how the outbreak went down with every splatter of blood, hastily constructed barricade, and broken furniture you come across.

The sewers are about as visually appealing as sewers can be, and the brief outdoor segments are effective at communicating a city in ruin. Umbrella’s secret underground laboratory has been revamped, and while it’s not lacking in atmosphere, it’s new spotless, clinical look certainly isn’t as effective as the industrial yet vibrant facility from the original.

The high-quality visuals also help make Resident Evil 2 one of the goriest games in the series. Flesh is ripped, limbs are mangled, and guts are spilled in unsettlingly realistic fashion. It never holds back on character deaths, including those of the protagonists in game over sequences. It’s not for the queasy, but it’s a delight for horror fans.

 

 

The horrific scenery is elevated by exceptional sound design. The Lickers’ high-pitched war cry, the eerie singing of the G-Creatures echoing underground, and the Tyrant’s pounding footsteps from several rooms away will ensure you are constantly uneasy. The same cannot be said for the music. Whereas the original RE2 has some of the most memorable melodies in gaming, the remake’s soundtrack may as well not exist.

The new tracks are incredibly bland and quiet, and while this minimalist approach occasionally works, having no reorchestrations of the amazing 1998 tunes is baffling. The fact that the iconic “Ada’s Theme” returned in RE6 and the RE4 remake but not in the remake of its origin feels like a crime. Thankfully, the original soundtrack is an option in the Switch 2 version (no longer locked behind paid DLC), providing a much better auditory experience even for those who have no nostalgic attachment to the old music.

 

Horror goes handheld with no hands held

 

Resident Evil 2 looks and performs on Switch 2 just as it did when it first released, with very little sacrificed in the transition. Playing portably feels just as smooth as playing docked, with the game comfortably hitting its 60 fps target most of the time. One caveat is that the animation frame count of zombies drops rather low when far in the distance, but given that most encounters occur in close proximity and narrow spaces, this doesn’t happen very often.

There is plenty on offer even after exhausting both campaigns, with unlockable weapons, costumes, and playable “what-if” side-stories. The higher difficulty modes, challenges, and the return of The 4th Survivor and The Tofu Survivor minigames will also satisfy those looking for a challenge.

There are plenty of people less critical of the Resident Evil 2 remake than I, many of whom consider it to be a modern masterpiece. If that person is you and you simply want to pick it up again for Switch 2, you can rest easy and add a couple of points to this review score. While I personally consider the game too flawed to place it among the series’ best and would always recommend the original first, I’m happy this remake, and this version, exists. It’s a solid survival-horror experience that hasn’t lost its bite on Switch 2, even with the ability to take it to the bright outdoors.

 

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