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Resident Evil 2

Kamiya on Resident Evil 2 and its impact on Okami and DMC

And how a single improvised line for its original voiceover changed RE: Code Veronica.

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With last Sunday marking the 20th Anniversary of the release of the original Resident Evil 2, many fans were expecting news on the upcoming RE2 Remake (which was officially teased back in 2015) during the weekend, but nothing really happened, even if there have been some recent clues pointing to its proper showing.

However, there are some who were involved in the original that won't keep the silence, and of course among them is the ever-talkative Hideki Kamiya, who actually directed the classic survival horror. In a lengthy series of tweets posted recently, the Japanese creator thanked the community for the celebration messages before looking back at the game's development to share some anecdotes and dev stories.

First off, Kamiya recalls "I was only 25 at the time and had very little experience" when given the task, at the same time meaning the very first game he directed. "I didn't really enjoy the job", he admits, due to the added pressure. In a very outspoken way, Kamiya also recognises "I also made many wrong decisions, and I'm sure you all know we even had to start from scratch at one point (the canned version later became known as Resident Evil 1.5)".

At that point in time, RE1 director Shinji Mikami and scenario writer Noboru Sugimura "came to my rescue", and thus they were able to carry it through at last. Kamiya adds that it was Sugimura who "advised me to start over", but at the same time "he gave us all the courage".

Apparently, Sugimura's teachings in terms of scriptwriting were then used by Kamiya on genre-defining games such as Devil May Cry, Viewtiful Joe, and Okami. Here are some words from Kamiya to his mentor:

"Unfortunately, Sugimura passed away just as I was working on Okami. To this day, I still wonder what he would've told me if he'd had a chance to play that game".

RE2 also marked "the first time at Capcom for recording English VO overseas", which was a somewhat rocky session, and there's a nice anecdote for fans as well:

"During the session, I added Claire's line 'Chris, I have to find you' without getting Sugimura's approval, and since he was already writing the story for Code: Veronica, he yelled at me because he had to change the script just because of that line".

Kamiya also unveils the reason why Resident Evil 2 came in two CDs, as "recklessly introducing the 'zapping system' suddenly forced us to put the game on two discs instead of one" very late in the project. The 25-year-old lad was so stressed-out that he "started drinking brandy on the rocks every night, arriving at the office with a hangover the next day, and sleeping in an empty meeting room during lunch break".

So that's how a classic came to be. Kamiya-san is not involved in the remake, but what do you think of the original's development and how it impacted both the series and other games?

Resident Evil 2

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Resident Evil 2Score

Resident Evil 2

REVIEW. Written by Roy Woodhouse

"It's satisfying to control and the story is amazing, and the whole thing is wrapped up with great sound and excellent visuals."



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