Every Resident Evil Game Ranked

There have been arguments for years that with a few adjustments, Resident Evil 0 could have been one of the standout titles in the series... But to me, that’s like saying with a few adjustments, I could have been a better basketball player than Michael Jordan. I only need to adjust my weight, skill, and age... Easy, right? Initially planned for the Nintendo 64, it faced a four-year delay and eventually launched on the GameCube. Serving as a prequel to the original game, it follows Rebecca Chambers after she’s separated from the S.T.A.R.S. Bravo-team and finds herself on a zombie-infested train. Good atmosphere, but that’s it. Bad gameplay, bad systems, tedious backtracking, and a mediocre experience overall. And it is at the bottom of our list, because it should be getting just as much hate as our next entry.

I am so excited for the day when Capcom remakes Resident Evil 6 so they can do things right, because this game should have been so much better than it was. This game should have been titled Resident Evil: Fan Service, because it features a stacked cast of iconic characters including Leon Kennedy, Chris Redfield, Sherry Burton, and Ada Wong, but not even they could save this game. By 2012, Capcom was firmly in the action mindset when it came to Resident Evil games, largely removing all horror from the series. Resident Evil 6 does everything it can to separate itself from what made the series great, instead taking inspiration from games such as Call of Duty and Gears of War with its mechanics, making it a very confused and cluttered mess. The audience reception dropped from Resident Evil 4 to Resident Evil 5, and Capcom should have gone “okay, okay, okay, we’ll go back to a more Resident Evil 4 style.” Instead they went “YOU DIDN’T LIKE THE NEW ANGLE, WELL HERE IT IS BUT WAY MORE INTENSE AND FAR WORSE.”

Resident Evil 5 marked a true turning point for the series, adapting the combat mechanics of the fourth entry into a full blown focus. While it improved on many aspects of its predecessor, Resident Evil 4, one significant flaw has tarnished its legacy: forced co-op gameplay. Those of us who grew up with siblings will appreciate Resident Evil 5 as one of our favourite entries on the list, but Chris Redfield teams up with Sheva Alomar, and when Sheva is controlled by the CPU, her shortcomings become apparent. She often wastes healing items and struggles to effectively assist her partner. This forced co-op mechanic frustrated many players and detracted from the experience. You poor only children had to suffer through this entry, and for that we are putting it at a mild 12.

After the success of the Resident Evil 2 Remake, which masterfully modernized the beloved survival horror classic, fans eagerly anticipated what Capcom would deliver next. However, the Resident Evil 3 Remake fell short of those high expectations. It's not a BAD game by any stretch of the imagination, but it felt like it was missing… something? The original Resident Evil 3 was celebrated for its branching gameplay paths and the relentless Nemesis, who pursued players across multiple rooms, creating a constant sense of tension. Unfortunately, the remake stripped away these features, along with several iconic locations, favoring a more linear experience that felt disconnected from the game that made it great. While it felt more like RE2, we didn’t want RE2 this time, we wanted RE3. Actually, I wanted Soul Reaver, but that’s not related, and also they won’t return my emails.

This is the game that started it all, but was also heavily improved upon... Not a roast, just a fact. In 1996, Capcom revolutionized the survival horror genre and launched one of the most iconic gaming franchises of all time, and the whole reason for this list. Initially conceived as a remake of Sweet Home, a movie tie-in NES game often regarded as the first survival horror title, it eventually evolved into Resident Evil, or Biohazard in Japan, or Shooty Zombie Bang Bang in Australia. Resident Evil laid a solid foundation for everything that followed. And what is a mansion, without a solid foundation.

Resident Evil Code: Veronica picks up after the events in Raccoon City, following Claire Redfield as she travels to Europe in search of her brother Chris. That's right! From the first game. It marked a major evolution for the series, transitioning to fully 3D environments instead of the pre-rendered backgrounds of earlier titles. Originally released as a Dreamcast exclusive, it later made its way to the PlayStation 2 after Sega discontinued its final console. Code: Veronica has divided fans. Some love it, while others are less enthusiastic, but many agree that a remake would be exciting. Too bad it’s already been skipped when we saw the Resident Evil 4 Remake… That being said, I’d have traded it for the RE4 Remake every single time.

It’s been tough to separate remakes and originals in this list, because for the most part (as much as die hard OG fans will get angry at me for saying) the remakes improve upon the originals. Resident Evil 3 however had a SOLID original that can’t really be beaten by the underwhelming remake. Resident Evil 3 brings the Raccoon City outbreak saga, which began with Resident Evil 1, to its dramatic conclusion. The game is most famous for introducing Nemesis, a relentless tyrant who stalks Jill Valentine across the city, even pursuing her between rooms. What sets Resident Evil 3 apart (as discussed earlier) is its branching gameplay, where player choices influence the story’s direction, leading to different locations and encounters. It’s a solid game that takes everything learned from the previous entries, and improves upon it massively.

The 2002 Resident Evil remake set the gold standard for remakes and remains the benchmark against which all others are measured. Capcom expanded on the 1996 original, enhancing every aspect without straying from its core essence. This remake brought to life the creators’ original vision, limited by technology in 1996. It introduced new areas, reimagined map layouts, additional enemies, and fresh storylines, all while staying true to the spirit of the original game. Of course, the RE2 remake and this remake are like night and day, but for the time THIS was how a remake should be done.

I’d like to be real clear with this, I WANTED TO SWITCH THIS AND THE NEXT ENTRY, but the public, and the commenters seem to think this is the way it should be… And I’m nothing if not a man of the people. Resident Evil 2 was EVERYTHING for PS1 fans. Building on the foundation laid by Resident Evil 1 two years earlier, the sequel improved on every aspect of it. Resident Evil 2 introduced two iconic characters, Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield, with Leon becoming one of the series' most beloved figures. The game also featured four unique scenarios, offering exceptional replayability. It’s no surprise that Resident Evil 2 became one of the most highly requested remakes among fans... But we’ll get back to that later.

When Resident Evil Village was unveiled in 2020, the internet erupted over the reveal of the towering vampire lady, Lady Dimitrescu, and this fan thirst led it through the majority of its promotional material, even though Lady D dropped out fairly early in the experience. Serving as the second and seemingly final chapter of Ethan Winters' story, the game picks up where Resident Evil 7 left off. Since its release, Village has expanded with DLC that takes players into the future, allowing them to step into the role of Ethan’s daughter, Rose. This new content hints at potential directions the series might explore in its next installment. From top to bottom, it’s the perfect blend of fan favourites Resident Evil 7, and Resident Evil 4, and it TOTALLY works.

Placing Resident Evil 4 at number four might stir controversy, especially for those who entered the series with this iconic game, but hear me out… Or don’t, you’ve probably watched enough for me to not get fired. Following Code Veronica, Capcom took a bold new direction, shifting from survival horror to a more action-focused experience. Leon Kennedy returns as a government agent tasked with rescuing the President’s daughter, Ashley. Resident Evil 4 is undeniably a masterpiece that redefined action games, setting new standards that influenced the genre for the next decade. It also popularized mechanics like Quick Time Events, which, love them or hate them, became a staple in gaming that pisses me off to this day.

The game that saved a series, the risk to go in a new direction is just that, a massive risk, but sometimes it works out perfectly. Five years after the underwhelming Resident Evil 6, Capcom brought the series back to its survival horror roots, this time adopting a first-person perspective instead of the traditional third-person view. The result was Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, the scariest entry in the series, filled with intense and unsettling moments thanks to the horrifying Baker family. We went from fixed cam, to third person, to first person, and all of them worked exceptionally well in their own way… But, first person is PROBABLY the scariest.

After the release of the Resident Evil 1 Remake in 2002, fans eagerly anticipated a similar treatment for Resident Evil 2. However, Capcom stayed silent for 17 years before finally delivering the Resident Evil 2 Remake, and the wait might have been for the best. This waiting and expecting has become a staple of the series now with two remakes following that, and fans eagerly awaiting an RE5 remake. The RE2 remake preserves the charm and magic of the original while modernizing it for a new generation. I for one NEVER played the original, and this game made me go back and throw the disc in my PS1, just to see. While the core layout and story remain faithful, the fresh twists elevate the classic. Despite minor issues like underwhelming B scenarios, the game’s overall quality more than makes up for them.

For many, Resident Evil 4 represents the pinnacle of the series, with over 12 million copies sold and serving as the entry point for countless fans. After the successful remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 3, anticipation grew for a remake of Resident Evil 4. Released in 2023, the remake exceeded expectations, staying true to the beloved original while addressing its flaws and amplifying its strengths. Some fans praise the original, treating it as the GOAT, but this game improves upon everything that entry created, so it’s hard to argue that this isn’t the best entry in the series… Or maybe it’s not? Pop off in the comments, king.