The Resident Evil Podcast

Episode 98: Happy Birthday Resident Evil Outbreak File #2 - Wild Things & Underbelly

Welcome back to the Raccoon City outbreak, this time with the somewhat overlooked Outbreak File#2 and its first two scenarios - Wild Things & Underbelly.

In true REP fashion in these happy birthday podcasts, we take you through each chapter, beginning to end reliving our experiences (and in some cases, demise) both at the undead Raccoon City Zoo and then in the Underground station.

How will we all get on and can the addition of a very large stalker enemy and possibly the most annoying enemy in the entire series (the fleas) dampen what is at heart a traditional Resident Evil survival horror experience? 

In the news we look at the recent releases of Resident Evil 2 and 3 on the GoG Store whilst shedding some light on some new live action movie rumours for good measure. 

Please enjoy!

Episode 97: Resident Evil & Its Influences

Welcome to a somewhat experimental episode of the Resident Evil Podcast where the team looks back specifically at the original PSX trilogy and the influences in horror gaming that our beloved title drew from. This means an examination of some older horror titles that shaped the industry before Biohazard including Sweet Home, Alone in the Dark and Clock Tower with an analysis on what aspects worked to bring the scares in a low polygon era.

We then discuss why Resident Evil was so special and despite perhaps not being the first "survival horror" title (albeit the game that coined the phrased), the OG trilogy in particular became the benchmark in jump scares, tension and cinematic gaming.

The conversation then switches to the games that were influenced by Resident Evil - and boy are there many! From the obvious like Dino Crisis and Silent Hill, but also some obscure titles like Deep Fear and Run Like Hell that have really flown under the radar!

In the news we also share our thoughts on the recent fan film - The Keeper's Diary and theBatman reveals the creation process for his recent REmake mythology! 

Musical credit to WackySB for the incredible remixed save room themes (https://tinyurl.com/ye2acphr)

Enjoy!

REP Presents: Resident Evil Afterlife Audio Commentary

We've held out long enough and today we are back with our audio commentary of the 4th live action Resident Evil movie, Afterlife. With P.W.S Anderson back in the director's chair and fully embracing 3D as well, join Neptune, Rombie and first time viewers of the film, STARS TyranT & George Trevor in this watcha-along.

 

How does this film stack up some 14 years since release? Can we make any sense of the storyline where Extinction left us and how effective is the use of 3D - Neptune is watching along in 3D for this one for a unique perspective!

 

As always with these audio commentaries, they are designed to be listened to whilst watching the film. So grab yourself a beverage (you may need one), dust off your old blu ray and strap in as we go into the afterlife...

Episode 96: Resident Evil: The Mold Saga (2016 - 2021)

After a short break, the team return to tackle head on the soft reboot that is the Mold Saga. Following the bloated bioterrorism era, many welcomed the return of a more personal story with Ethan and family and (another) new virus/parasite/agent taking centre stage - this time in the form of Mutamycete or the Mold.

Whilst the story may start off self contained, we soon see the return of many Resident Evil hallmarks such as a new Umbrella, spies, paramilitary teams and of course Chris "yes, that's him" Redfield ultimately leading to an interesting cliffhanger in Resident Evil Village. 

Like our recent Bioterrorism Era podcast, we take each year in turn, starting in 2016 as the Mold and E-001 gains a strong foothold in Dulvey, Louisiana. How does this Mold work? Is it consistent between it and the Mold seen in Village? And what's the deal with Blue Umbrella and the BSAA? Can we learn more from some obscure airsoft pamplets?

All of this and more including a discussion on recent RE-REmake rumours plaguing the interweb.
Enjoy!

Episode 95: Happy Birthday Resident Evil Outbreak - Decisions, Decisions

Welcome to the final part of our 20th birthday celebrations for the original Resident Evil Outbreak. This time we focus solely on the final scenario; Decisions, Decisions, and set foot in Raccoon University with just hours to spare before the sterilization operation obliterates Raccoon City for good. As ever we dive deep, investigating all possible routes, puzzles, enemies, and story implications... all before hoping to escape before the missile (or is it missiles?) hit...

This episode is supplemented by a comprehensive review of Resident Evil 4 Remake VR by STARS_TyranT.

Please enjoy. 

 

Episode 94: Happy Birthday Resident Evil Outbreak - The Hive & Below Freezing Point

Our Resident Evil Outbreak's 20th anniversary birthday celebrations continue with a look at the next two scenarios; The Hive and Below Freezing Point. Join us as we return to Raccoon City General Hospital where strange leeches run amok and the bloody elevator is broken... Just how do you find those pesky elevator codes again? Then it's swiftly onto William Birkin's underground laboratory in a storyline taking place several days before Leon and Claire ever got there and at a time long before NEST was ever a thing. 

Neptune's calamitous quiz returns and in the news we briefly discuss the impending release of Remake 4 Gold Edition and break down the Infinite Darkness: The Beginning prequel. Please enjoy. 

Episode 93: Happy Birthday Resident Evil Outbreak - Outbreak & Hellfire

On REP's 12th anniversary, we begin to celebrate 20 years of the Resident Evil Outbreak sub series that was first released in December 2003 in Japan. The game, which started off life advertised as Network Biohazard or Resident Evil Online quickly stoked the imagination of RE fans across the world, especially those that had bet on the franchise remaining on Sony's console post PSX. 

There was a lot of hope and expectation that Resident Evil going online would revolutionise the series. What transpired was not quite what was promised in the early trailers with many lamenting the lack of internet infrastructure for the PS2.

Fast-forward 20 years and both Outbreak File 1 and 2 have a dedicated fandom, with clever minds keeping PC servers alive so these games can be played as they were always intended.

In the first of our year-long celebration, we will be applying our usual Happy Birthday playthrough standard to the Outbreak and Hellfire scenarios. The first of course acts as an extended tutorial, but throws players in at the deep end. Hellfire meanwhile chronologically at least takes place at the same time, but players face the dreaded Lickers in the Apple Inn.

The team have therefore either fired up their PS2s (waited an eternity whilst it loads) or headed online to bring you our experiences of these chapters. Expect some contrasting views with a detailed look at the tank controls, graphics and mechanics and the hidden lore.

Episode 92: Resident Evil: The Bioterrorism Era

Welcome to our end of year podcast where we see out 2023 with a deep dive into one of the more controversial eras of the series chronology. RE5 went out of its way to end several long-running, major plot points and left something of a blank slate for the storyline moving forward after killing off its main villain. Since then we've had a ton of media, not just new games, but also manga books and CGI movies, to progress the storyline from 2009-2015 in what we are calling the 'bioterrorism era'. We look at the various incidents and plot aspects that occurred during this period, analyzing what works and what doesn't. Just what is the difference between Blue Umbrella and Neo-Umbrella, what are the dangers and advantages of retroactive storytelling, and does Resident Evil now have a villain problem? Umbrella and Wesker are gone and yet the series seemingly struggles to leave them behind. 

In the news, STARS_TyranT offers his early impressions of Remake 4 VR. Please enjoy.

Episode 91: REmake REflections

With the undoubted success of all of Capcom's REmakes, especially the recent Resident Evil 4, the time has now come for the team to reflect upon the impact these games have had both for Biohazard and for the wider industry.

In the spotlight for this podcast are not only the RE Engine remakes, but also the original and arguably still the bar to beat - 2002 REmake. The aim here is to discuss in some detail how these remakes came to be and the legacy they now leave, whilst highlighting the bits they did better that their original counterpart.

In hindsight does REmake 2 stick out with its more re-imagined approach to the lore compared to the other titles, did REmake 3 leave too much on the cutting room floor and is REmake 4 the final straw or are more remakes inevitable?

Helping us breakdown and reflect on these questions are you guys -through a series of polls conducted by STARS TyranT on Twitter/X. The results are....surprising to say the least but offer a fascinating insight into how parts of the community are feeling.

Finally we end with a remake themed quiz where the questions only have 2 answers. What could possibly go wrong?

Please enjoy our final say on the REmakes (at least until Code: Veronica is announced!)

Episode 90: Resident Evil 4 (Remake) Separate Ways Review

Perhaps one of the most anticipated DLC's in quite some time, Separate Ways is out now and the REP Team are bringing you their review of Ada's quest in Southern Europe. The original side quest for the base game certainly added some much needed context to the Plaga and specifically Wesker's involvement - can the revised version pull the same trick whilst applying the bells and whistles of the RE Engine? With emotions running high at REP over Remake 4 itself, will Neptune have a more enjoyable time? Will TheBatMan continue to applaud the changes from Capcom? Has Rombie burnt himself out on the game attempting his Platinum run and will this be the straw that breaks STARS TyranT's back? So strap yourselves in, activate your IRIS and get ready for the last tango in Spain for Luis. Our Separate Ways review starts now!