The big picture: The original Resident Evil was an absolutely groundbreaking game when it launched on the PlayStation more than two decades ago. It's often credited with defining the survival horror genre and established several elements that persist in modern games.
Capcom in the summer of 2015 greenlit a remake of Resident Evil 2. Now nearly three years later, we're finally hearing more about the highly anticipated project.
During Sony's PlayStation E3 2018 showcase, Capcom shared the first trailer for the game's reboot. Developed using Capcom's proprietary RE Engine, Resident Evil 2 is said to offer a fresh take on the classic survival horror saga complete with breathtakingly realistic visuals, immersive audio, modernized controls and a new over-the-shoulder camera.
Resident Evil 2 takes players back to Raccoon City as rookie police officer Leon Kennedy and college student Claire Redfield attempt to survive in the zombie-infested city. Each will have their own separate playable campaigns, allowing gamers to experience the story from both characters' perspectives.
Live gameplay footage wasn't shown although content in the trailer was entirely 3D-rendered. Given the new controls and camera, it sounds as if this could feel a lot like Resident Evil 4.
Resident Evil is Capcom's flagship game series with more than 83 million in total unit sales since the original entry dropped back in 1996. Resident Evil 2 is the fourth best-selling game in the franchise with cumulative sales of nearly five million units.
Capcom's Resident Evil 2 remake is set to land on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on January 25, 2019.