Resident Evil 2/gameplay

Summary	Plot	Gameplay	Development	Marketing	Reception	Credits	Gallery	Translation errors	Further notes

Overview

The Resident Evil 2 remake is a re-imagination of the original PlayStation console release in 1998, completely rebuilt from the ground up.

Camera & Character control

The game uses the same over-the-shoulder view from Resident Evil 4 through Resident Evil 6 which is dubbed as "Behind View" here, but mixed all three game's mechanics into one.

For instance, the character control resembles that of Resident Evil 6, with the player being able to move freely toward any direction without needing to face it first. The player can also move while aiming but that will increase the weapon's spread.

Playable character uses a flashlight that behaves similarly to that of Resident Evil: Revelations. It will turn on automatically when the player gets to a darker place, and turns off by itself when the player is in a brighter environment. The flashlight cannot be manually turned on or off by the player. Both Leon and Claire can physically hold a flashlight similar to that of the scrapped Resident Evil 3.5; additionally, having the flashlight on won't stop the character from aiming their weapon, even if they are using a bigger weapon such as a shotgun or grenade launcher.

Inventory Management

The game uses the RE Engine, which is the same engine that was created and used to develop Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. Not only are the graphics in both games similar, but its UI and even item design have a striking resemblance. For example, the Handgun Ammo icon in the remake uses the same model that was used in RE7.

The knife can be used as a defensive weapon similar to Resident Evil (2002) and can also be acquired back if the enemy is defeated.

The inventory in the game is similar to Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, which start out with 8 slots but can be expanded to the maximum of 20 slots by collecting the Pouch scattered throughout the game. 

Ammo no longer stacks up to 255 as the original, each of ammo type have the maximum stacks of their own. For example, Handgun ammo only stacks up to 60 bullets per slot.

Combat Mechanic

As with Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, a lot of the action aspects of RE4-6 have been toned down or completely removed from the combat system. For example, the player cannot melee zombies after stunning them or putting them on the ground.

Another feature based on an earlier Resident Evil game is the return of defensive items. If either Leon or Claire are grabbed by an enemy and they have a defensive weapon in their inventory, a prompt will show up on-screen and if pressed the item will be used as a defense weapon which takes the enemy off of the player. However, in this game, the knife can always be acquired back by killing the enemy that was stabbed and interacting with it, something that wasn't always possible in the other remake.

The knife also has a new gameplay mechanic with a durability rate, similar to the non-knife, melee objects used in Resident Evil Outbreak and Resident Evil Outbreak File #2. In the inventory screen, below the knife icon, there is a small gauge that represents how much the current knife has been used. Once the gauge is empty, the knife will break and a new one needs to be acquired. The knife can also be equipped without going into the inventory menu and there are multiple of them in the game.

The health status in the remake only shows up in two ways: while in the inventory screen, or whenever the player takes damage. Additionally, going into the inventory screen pauses the game, but reloading weapons must be done in real time.

An example of tearing off a zombie's limbs.

Thanks to the RE Engine, features such as photorealistic visuals are possible; enemies react in real time taking instant visible damage, limbs can be ripped off of enemies and the character shows bite marks when they take damage.

When the character is being grabbed, the camera will zoom into them (this being a key feature of the Behind View) and, similar to Resident Evil 0, more than one enemy can grab the player at a time.

A new gameplay mechanic that wasn't featured in the original Resident Evil 2 but is similar to the one in Resident Evil Outbreak File #2 "Desperate Times" scenario is the inclusion of Wooden Boards. These boards can be used on windows to block enemies from passing through them, and there are several throughout the game that can become quite handy once the player knows which windows spawns zombies when they walk by them.

The layout of the maps have also been changed and even brand new areas have been added while also remixing item locations. Both veterans and new-comers alike will have their share of new challenges and scares.

The zombies are also a bit different from past games. They have more health and are able to get up multiple times after lying on the ground for a while. They don't spawn a small pool of blood when dead anymore and if they detect the player, they are able to chase the character from room to room. When grabbed, Leon doesn't stomp their heads like in the original game, and will just kick them out instead.

A new herb combination is available in the game: Red Herb + Blue Herb. This gives the character invulnerability to poison and makes their defenses stronger until the effect wears off.

There are no loading screens in the game apart from the first build up; it's all in one seamless experience.

The 4th Survivor and The Tofu Survivor are also present in the remake but not as paid DLC. Additionally, one of the features from the Deluxe Edition, Collector's Edition and Premium Edition of the game is a "Soundtrack Swap" option where the game can be played with the original game's soundtrack.

The game can be saved without using Ink Ribbons. However, higher difficulties will behave like the original game where Ink Ribbons must be used in order to save.