There’s a whole lot to be said about the original release of Resident Evil 2 on PlayStation One all the way back in the early days of 1998. It’s arguably one of the most acclaimed titles in the now long-running Resident Evil franchise, and up until today’s release, was one of the most demanded remakes of any Capcom game that I had ever seen. But even with the remake finally here, there’s still something about the original release that can’t be ignored — and I’m not even talking about the game.
In 1998 to coincide with the release of Resident Evil 2 in Japan, Capcom called on the immense talent of zombie horror flick legend George A. Romero, best known for the Night of the Living Dead films, to bring a 30-second commercial for the game to life. Filmed in live-action formatting, the commercial showcased both Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield with a slew of iconic camera angles to perfectly capture the nature of zombie horror in true Romero style.
In many ways, the commercial did an excellent job of capturing the game’s cinematic approach, and perfectly blurred the worlds of video game and film, especially for its time. But as it turns out, there are just as many people over at Capcom that appreciate the beauty of the trailer too, with the modern remake team paying homage to the history of the game with an all-new live action trailer in a similar vein to Romero’s work.
While the new live-action trailer certainly takes a slightly different approach to George A. Romero’s original commercial, extending and changing basically all of the original, it is cool to see them do this. For a commercial originally only made available in Japan to have enough impact to warrant Capcom to make this, it really does speak volumes about the skill of George A. Romero as a filmmaker.
Resident Evil 2 is now available worldwide on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Those interested in checking out further information, be sure to check out the game’s official website.