We have arrived at my favorite version of Resident Evil: Resident Evil for the Gamecube, also known as Resident Evil Rebirth. Released in February of 2002, this was the reason I bought a Gamecube, along with many others. I was instantly sold on this game after seeing the special trailer first released in the Fall of 2001. The graphics were amazing. For longtime fans, it was great fun to dissect the trailer trying to figure out what area was which compared to the original. A great time to be a Resident Evil fan!
Rebirth came about as the first game in a deal between Capcom and Nintendo to put 5 exclusive games on these system to help convince gamers that the Gamecube was the system to get. Gamers were excited and Resident Evil Rebirth was very well-received, actually rated higher than the original by Famitsu. But who cares about that?! What do I, a premiere game reviewer, think of it?
The storyline in Rebirth has been described as being 70% new by Shinji Mikami. I don't think this true, but the story has been greatly expanded. The backstory now incorporates more of Albert Wesker's and William Birkin's backstory. There is also the tragic story of George Trevor, the Mansion's architect. A certain daughter of George also has a new and prominent role, one that was to grow more significant in the Resident Evil overall storyline even after this game.
To properly describe how excellent the graphics are in Rebirth, I need to mention some other games; Super Ghouls and Ghosts and Soul Calibur. These are games that looked excellent when released, and not only hold up today but actually rival some current games' presentation in terms of what the visuals are able to accomplish, not merely how they look. A lot of today's games have excellent graphics to be sure, but they are oddly sterile at the same time. Full of oomph, but little substance. A good analogy is to compare a Dreamworks animated film to one by Pixar. Dreamworks feel as if they are missing a soul, the je ne sais quoi that the very most superlative works of a medium always possess. Resident Evil Rebirth possesses this.
Everything is excellent about RE's graphics, the lighting, the character models, the motion capture, the enemies, the environments: all of it is just... great. No one area of the game better exemplifies this than the Aqua Ring, it has been transformed into a totally new and frightening environment, with new puzzles to deal with the giant shark, Neptune. Definitely awesome and my favorite part of the game.
Music unfortunately does not garner the same praise from me as do the graphics. Rebirth is the official beginning of what I refer to as the downfall of Resident Evil scores. FAR too much of the score is ambient, and perhaps worst, many areas have little to no music at all! The Umbrella lab is mostly noise and even the mansion main hall is silent! Ugh, I actually prefer the symphonic score of the Dual Shock edition over this! At least the sound effects are nice. The weapons have suitable punch to them, especially the assault shotgun. I also like the great sound effects for the new defensive weapons. They sound painful to hear the enemy when the player uses them.
Rebirth's gameplay is pretty much the same as the original. A big change is the new defensive weapons to ward off enemy attacks just as they are about to damage you. Chris makes use of the dagger and grenade, while Jill's unique weapon is the stun gun. Fun stuff to use and actually quite helpful. There is also the quick turn, first introduced in Nemesis, but no dodging ability. It is a neat ability and more of the RE games should have had it.
The biggest changes to the gameplay are the new areas of the mansion and the many new puzzles that will even give RE veterans trouble at first. I like how many existing puzzles have been replaced by similar ones to mess with the player.
Challenge in Rebirth is high at first due to many sudden changes designed to throw off the player. As you move through the game, the game starts to feel familiar. By the end of the game, this version is actually easier, due to some of the choices you can make and how they really change things up for the better.
Replay value is quite high in this new Resident Evil. You have your standard unlockable weapons, that make future run-throughs cake. There are also some neat bonus modes, like Invisible Mode and Real Survival.
Invisible Mode is just what it sounds like, enemies can't be seen and you must use shadows and sounds to locate them. Best to play it on easy mode the first time...
Real Survival is actually based on one of the earliest concepts for Resident Evil. Item boxes do not link to each other, what is put in one stays in one. Early testing for the original RE found that gamers did not like this handicap, so it was removed. It has been added to Rebirth to give gamers a taste of the added difficulty.
To me, these modes are a fun diversion, but really only worth playing through once. Overall, Resident Evil Rebirth is a must play for fans of the original and the best version of the first game available. It has pretty much everything one could wish for in a remake. Of course, we all kingdom for more unlockable weapons like in Nemesis, and of course we all wish that the Samurai's Edge was what it should be...
8.8/10.0
-Ugly Bob
article id: 322 | poster: uglybob
