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Resident Evil.

A name that will be familiar to anyone who likes playing video games. Whether you’ve personally played any of the titles or not, the Resident Evil franchise is big enough that you’ve certainly heard of it in some way or another.

Resident Evil changed the face of the survival horror with its launch on the original PlayStation all the way back in 1996. Although there were plenty of horror games made before it, Resident Evil was the game that popularized the genre. 

It was partly the limitations of the PS1 hardware that gave Resident Evil its signature look - fixed cameras and pre-rendered backgrounds. The PS1 wasn’t a particularly powerful console, so instead of using hardware-based rendering to create backgrounds, Capcom used high quality static images to present the game’s locations. Everything in the game apart from character models and items are just .jpeg images, while the game’s fixed camera and tank movement system was used to convey a sense of real perspective when exploring.

The mix of the stunning backgrounds, memorable story and characters, puzzle-based exploration and the incredibly creepy mansion propelled Resident Evil to instant fame. Several sequels were released in the next few years to equal success. Resident Evil 4 which released in 2005 was a particular standout as it is still to this day considered one of the best games ever made.

With over two dozen titles released in the franchise since 1996, it’s no surprise that there have been both ups and downs in the quality of games and fan reception for certain titles. After a series of badly received games in the late 2010s, Capcom took a little break and looked back at the original Resident Evil and what made the game so endearing to players. This resulted in the very well received Resident Evil 7 and also the much fan-requested full remakes of the original trilogy of RE games.

Capcom - both as a company and as games developers - have been doing much better in recent years. They seem to be listening to what the fans want, and have released hit after hit. The soon-to-be released Resident Evil 8 is one of the most anticipated games of 2021, and has already garnered huge interest from gamers all over the world.

We can only hope that both Capcom and the Resident Evil franchise continues on this strong streak for a good long time. The next title after RE8 is expected to be the highly anticipated full remake of Resident Evil 4 - one of the highest crowns of gaming right up there with the remake of Final Fantasy 7. 

About the author: Maldivian Gaming League is a team of e-sports organizers and competition promoters based in the Maldives. For more information, check them out on Facebook or Instagram.