Capcom’sResident Evilfranchise is at the height of its popularity once again following the release ofResident Evil 4’s remake. There is a direction in this continuity of remakes that seems obvious for Capcom to pursue at this point. Meanwhile,Resident Evil’s mainline continuityhas a number of different directions it has the opportunity to pursue. BecauseResident Evilis as popular as it is and can stand on its own merit, though, it would be a great opportunity now for Capcom to exhume a long-dead franchise and remake its ‘panic horror’ title,Dino Crisis.
Dino Crisisis often lauded as beingResident Evilwith dinosaurs instead of zombies, and its adherence to the survival-horror genre is perhaps its best asset. Characters such as Regina, Gail, Rick, and Cooper are all as interesting as Jill, Chris, Barry, Wesker, and Brad from the originalResident Evil, and fans are still left unsure whyDino Crisisnever got its own modern reimagining or sequels afterDino Crisis 3. If Capcom wished to revisit any of its older titles, it could have great success revivingDino Crisislike theResident Evilremakes orEA Motive’sDead Spaceremake.
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What Dino Crisis Could Learn from Resident Evil’s Remakes
Resident Evil’s remakes have been popular for their return to a third-person perspective while still maintaining the survival-horror mechanics that the original games had. This change helped to make gameplay feel modern, which was favorable for many players.
Rather, the only concern fans have ever had withResident Evil’s remakes is whether the reimagining would adapt the original faithfully, meaning that it needed to have the same narrative beats and include all the beloved content fans have a nostalgic connection to—not unlikeDino Crisis. TheResident Evil 2remake had arguably lackluster B-side scenarios with either Leon or Claire compared to the original game, but because it wasResident Evil’s first third-person remake it won a lot of praise for everything else it managed to faithfully reinterpret.
Resident Evil 3’s remake then disappointed fans with how starkly it detoured away from the original game’s content, andResident Evil 4’s remake has clearly been the most faithful reimagining overall.IfDino Crisiswas to follow inResident Evil’s path, a remake would do well to adapt the original as closely as possible.
Dead Spacedid not have as large of a hurdle to leap asResident Evil 4when it came to its own remake, but the subtle improvements and additions made to it are leaps and bounds more accessible and engaging than in the original. Thanks to the quality-of-life improvements that were already introduced inDead Space’s sequel, EA Motive’sDead Spacealready had a template to draw inspiration from for its zero-gravity flight and Kinesis impalement among other mechanics.
Otherwise,Dead Space’s remake was also far greater in terms of its graphical fidelity, with volumetrics and lighting making a huge impact on the atmosphere and tone aboard the USG Ishimura.Dino Crisis’ low-poly fidelity is obviously not the modern standard for games, and imagining what its dark facility corridors and horrifying dinosaurs could look like with today’s graphic capabilities is enough for fans to want a remake.
Thefan-made Unreal Engine 5 remaster forDino Crisisis likely only a taste of what an official remake could look like, for example, as big-budget horror games continue to be more immersive and satisfying in that regard. EitherResident EvilorDead Spacecould be phenomenal templates for aDino Crisisremake, especially after how successful and well-received they have both been lately
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