The original Resident Evil is one of my favorite games of all-time. While the gameplay is a little clunky and the voice acting is unintentionally hilarious, the story is excellent, and the sense of atmosphere is peerless even today. Needless to say, I approached the sequel with anticipation and apprehension when it first released in 1999. There's a long history of sequels royally screwing up. My concern was baseless as Resident Evil 2 was fantastic as well, and the Dreamcast version released a year later is, no doubt, the best version of the game that you can get.
The story picks up two months after the events of the original game. The T-Virus infection had escaped the Spencer Mansion and infected Raccoon City itself. The game is played from the perspective of two new arrivals to the city, rookie cop Leon and Chris's sister Claire. Choosing who you play as has more weight than in the first game. Each character has access to areas and weapons that would never be available to the other character. The story changes based on who you choose to play as first. You even play as the other character after finishing with the first with the innovative zapping feature. What you do with the first character can impact the second character's experience. There's a weapons locker that both characters encounter halfway through the game; whatever the first character takes will be unavailable for the second. It's the forerunner to similar things seen in Until Dawn and was awesome. The voice acting is also noticeably better than the first game.
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The gameplay is largely unchanged from the first game aside from the zapping I mentioned. The tank controls are a little tighter; I wasn't getting stuck as much as in the first game. Unlike the first game where Chris and Jill were very unbalanced, Leon and Claire are very even in terms of ability. While Claire gets access to the very powerful grenade launcher, Leon's modified shotgun and magnum compensate perfectly. The puzzles are a bit more creative than before as well as more practical. There are also a ton of bonuses for doing well by the end ranging from alternate outfits to the famous Hunk and Tofu Survivor modes. Both Survivor modes involve getting through an enemy gauntlet with limited supplies and are awesome bonuses.
While Resident Evil 2 has shown up on nearly every console available at the time (even the infamous Tiger Game.Com!), the Dreamcast version is easily the best release. The visuals are the sharpest available anywhere. Character stats show up on the VMU screen, easing things up significantly. There are even additional modes not available anywhere else like the Arranged Mode. Playing the Rookie version of Arranged Mode gives you the most powerful weapons in the game with infinite ammo. While it does break the atmosphere, it can be tons of fun just blasting everything without care.
Resident Evil 2 is one of the greatest video game sequels of all time, and the Dreamcast version is the best version of it. While the original will always be my personal favorite in the series, I can't deny that the sequel is better in many ways. This is a game that simply must be in everyone's collection. It is one of the greatest horror experiences ever made.
