Top critical review
2.0 out of 5 starsResident Evil 2 for the Gamecube
Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2006
Resident Evil 2 is easily one of the most fun and enjoyable games that has come out in the past decade. It scares you enough to keep you on the edge of your seat, but the difficulty level is set exactly right so it doesn't get you frustrated. Not to mention that both of the playable characters have two missions, and once you complete those, there are several different gameplay modes rewarded to the player for completing the missions. This enhances the game's replay value quite dramatically.
So assuming that you have played this game on the original Playstation, I bet you're wondering what is different about the port offered on the Gamecube?
Well, disappointingly enough, not much. The RE2 port is just that - a port. Naturally, however, the Gamecube is a much more advanced system capable of handling much faster polygonal rates, shading, texture, and load times. The overall look is a bit smoother, but not enough to make you say "wow!". More like "hmmm...interesting". The blood is not so polygonal, and the characters are a bit smoother. If there really is any difference in the load time, it is minimal. The controls are about as good as the original - pending that you can get used to the game on a Gamecube controller. The CMVs are not changed at all. Nothing smoother, nothing overdubbed, nothing brighter or duller, not faster or slower. This can either be a curse or a blessing for you, depending on how devoted you are to the original CMV's, as the CMVs are identical to the Playstation's in every way.
So while I can't really justify owning a copy of Resident Evil 2 for the Gamecube, I would recommend it to anybody who has never played the game or does not have access to the PS version of it. Resident Evil 2 is a great game, and it continues to hold its value even to this day. If Capcom would have just done the same thing for RE2 and RE3 that they did for the original, I think we would have probably the best series in history on our hands. However, CAPCOM got lazy and decided to port the rest of the titles. Too bad, so sad.
So to sum it up, if you currently own Resident Evil 2 for the Playstation, save your money because the Gamecube version is really not all that much better.
Original game rating and contents = 9/10
"lazy" Gamecube port rating = 2/10
final score on the re-release for the Gamecube = 4/10
