RPD Dispatch Episode 10 - Resident Evil Zero

[Dot50Cal]

I had initially thought I'd go with the Wii version, but the fact the subtitles are burned onto the game without you being able to turn them off is a bit , so I'll be going with the Gamecube version. If I have time, Ill go into the Wii one, but I also want to hit the trial on Gamecube as well.

[LVL100 Merchant]

Would it be incredibly noobish to ask what day you'll be recording/taking calls for this podcast? Sorry for any trouble

[Dot50Cal]

Oh, well, we'll be taking calls SAT the 24th on our skype name "bifftannentruewinner". You can also record an mp3 and send it to me, before the record (SAT night). Email it to me at dot50cal(at)gmail(dot)com

[LVL100 Merchant]

Thanks gaming pal. Read the sticky about calling in but I wasn't sure when the last dispatch was recorded either. >_>

By the way, I really dig the pod casts. It's really great you guys have such great interactivity with the community.

[alf717]

You know usually the RPD dispatch threads get tons of replies. While this one is kind of dead.

I would like to play some Resident Evil Ø but I'm not sure if I'll be able to fit a playthrough in this weekend. BTW on a collectors stand point is it worth 60+ dollars to get a hold of the trial disc new? How were they obtained in the first place? Pre-orders?

[Archelon]

0 was a solid, yet unspectacular, entry in the series. I think one of the biggest mistakes Capcom made with it was releasing it a mere few months after the excellent REmake. Had Capcom waited a bit longer to release it, even if it was already complete, it would have received a better reception.

I kind of see the move from REmake to 0 like the move from RE3 to CODE: Veronica. REmake introduced so many new and interesting twists to the classic gameplay, but nearly all of them were stripped away for 0, much like CV lacking many of the gameplay enhancements 3 introduced. The faux co-op mechanic was an interesting idea, and I think it was implemented fairly well.

The ability to drop items anywhere, however, was not. In theory, it was great. In practice, not so much. While it was nice to be able to drop an item you didn't need right at that moment to make room for one you did need, it proved to be a real pain having hoard all of your items in one area and constantly backtrack to get them. It was particularly annoying when you had to move all of your weapons and items from the training facility to the lighthouse and then to the church, because if you didn't, then you would lose access to them for the rest of the game.

The story was also a mess. What was originally promised to be an explanation of what happened to the members of Bravo team before Alpha team was sent in to investigate turned out to do no such thing. We only learned the fate of one other Bravo member aside from Rebecca. Not to mention the introduction of James Marcus into the series canon threw a veritable monkey wrench into the existing history.

While you could explain the lack of mention of Marcus in any of the following games (chronologically speaking) as part of the cover up of his assassination, there's still no mention whatsoever of Edward Ashford in RE0, despite being one of the founding members of Umbrella and one of the co-discoverers of the Progenitor Virus. Speaking of the Progenitor Virus, did anyone else think the explanation for the creation of the T-Virus was really stupid? Combining the Progenitor Virus with leech DNA. Really? That's the best they could come up with? And why leeches?

I was personally disappointed to learn that it was Marcus who released the T-Virus into the Arklay Mansion. Especially after reading Wesker's Report II, I always thought it was Spencer himself who leaked the virus. It would certainly fit with Wesker's musings that Spencer wanted the virus to get loose and cause as much destruction as possible, hence why the mansion was located in the middle of a dense forest and why Spencer wanted the virus to have a 100% infection rate.

Wesker also surmised that Spencer knew an outbreak was imminent, which is why he left the facility shortly before the virus was leaked. Does this mean Spencer knew Marcus was still alive and was planning to spread the virus as part of his revenge? Or was Wesker just plain wrong? Or did Capcom originally plan to have Spencer be the one to spread the virus himself? I suppose it's possible we'll get answers to some of these questions in RE5, but I'm not exactly holding my breath.

[aris13]

I don't think that Spencer wanted to release the virus, he probably wanted to sell it and get the money.

[Archelon]

I don't think that Spencer wanted to release the virus, he probably wanted to sell it and get the money.

Granted, Wesker could have been wrong in his suppositions regarding Spencer, but Wesker's Report II seemed to hint strongly at Spencer having no interest in money. Or rather, no interest in selling the virus for money. It seemed more like Spencer just wanted total chaos and destruction.

[aris13]

If that's true then I'll have to change my thoughts on the Spencer character. We don't need another mad scientist who wants to bring chaos and destruction to the world, I hope that he'll explain his goals in RE 5.

What happened to the "Hans Gruber" type of villain who was doing it for the money....

[Archelon]

Maybe, to quote Alfred Pennyworth, he "just wants to watch the world burn."

[Mr_Zombie]

It was particularly annoying when you had to move all of your weapons and items from the training facility to the lighthouse and then to the church, because if you didn't, then you would lose access to them for the rest of the game.

Not exactly. I've played the game only once (I don't really like it), but from what I remember you could easily backtrack to the training facility even from the Sewege Plant (there was an elevator or something).

I agree with you about dropping items. At first I thought that it would be great that characters finally have the ability to drop an item and take another if they need. But when I was playing I so wanted the game to have chests. The worst thing was, you can leave only a limited number of items in one room, so I very often found myself finding new rooms where I can store my items.

And about the story, I hated it. Mainly because there was almost no story in the game. Both Rebecca and Billy just wander around some places not really knowing where to go next, Marcus is sitting in a dark monitor room for an entire game and Birkin and Wesker appears in only three cut-scenes.

Marcus was one of the worst villains they could have think of -- an old man that was killed and then resurrected thanks to his Leech Queen, was turned into a young men and gain the ability to control an army of leeches by singing... Really, what were they thinking when they created him :/. Marcus was also one of the most useless villains in the entire series; even Alfred attacked Claire several times during the game, but Marcus --- no; he just sits there in the monitor room and speaks to himself (or to his leeches, whatever) for an entire game. The only time Beccy and Billy interact with him is at the very end of the game, just before he turns into a giant meat blob... Really, what was the point of even putting a villain into the game when all he was used to was a final boss battle?

[Helegad]

Maybe, to quote Alfred Pennyworth, he "just wants to watch the world burn."

What movie was that out of?

[Archelon]

Not exactly. I've played the game only once (I don't really like it), but from what I remember you could easily backtrack to the training facility even from the Sewege Plant (there was an elevator or something).

Oh man, I totally forgot about the frickin' magic elevator. Gah.

Marcus was one of the worst villains they could have think of -- an old man that was killed and then resurrected thanks to his Leech Queen, was turned into a young men and gain the ability to control an army of leeches by singing... Really, what were they thinking when they created him :/. Marcus was also one of the most useless villains in the entire series; even Alfred attacked Claire several times during the game, but Marcus --- no; he just sits there in the monitor room and speaks to himself (or to his leeches, whatever) for an entire game. The only time Beccy and Billy interact with him is at the very end of the game, just before he turns into a giant meat blob... Really, what was the point of even putting a villain into the game when all he was used to was a final boss battle?

You've really got to wonder why he didn't just kill Wesker and Birkin. He knew where they were. He had the means. And to top it off, they were two of the three people he wanted revenge against.

What movie was that out of?

The Dark Knight.

[Skunky]

@Archelon
I agree with much of what you said.
But I think Zero is one of the most underrated games in the series...
The item juggling and dumping/collecting was a pain, especially the 1st time you play it. I think many fans gave up or lost interest because of it, which is a real shame because the game gets better later on. Or they soldier on and finish it once, then never return to it.
The game has its flaws but it does a lot of things well and I really like it. 'Singing Marcus' and the story as a whole wasn't great but gamers really should give Zero another chance.

Leech Hunter is fun. There's not much to it but it's a good demonstration of the creatures and combat mechanics (things the game does very well). Blasting crazy monkeys with the shotgun is incredibly satisfying and shooting leechmen with the magnum till they swell up and explode is one of the coolest things ever! ("look out... he's gonna blow!" ) And finishing it with the required leeches gives you goodies that make replaying the main game a lot more fun.
With unlimited ammo for every weapon you pick up, item management is no longer a problem and you can just have a good time exterminating everything.

It's been a while since I played it. I'm gonna play through again next week.
Anyone who hasn't played it or only did it once a long time ago, really ought to have another go.

[TheSelfishGene]

I won't be able to record because the day of the record I'll be driving interstate.
I won't even have time to replay 0 to be able to make a call in, because I'm moving house (moving countries )

I've played through Zero I think a total of 3 times since it game out. It's not great, but I found it to be enjoyable enough. I actually liked the gameplay, with 2 characters, as well as the lack of item boxes. I didn't find either to be a real hinderance.
My biggest complaint is the bosses and enemies. Big frog, Big centipede, big scorpion, big bat, big leeches. Big snooze if you ask me -ZzZzZzzZ

My main complaint with the game is how it convolutes the story so much. If you think about how simplistic the story was from RE1 to RE3, it's a shame what it's become. RE:CV complicated it alot, but RE0 introduces so much. If it didn't jump the shark in RE:CV, in Zero it just jumped over it on a turbo-charged monster truck with jets on the side, and fire and stripes painted on the bonnet .

Here's an artist's impression:


Don't forget to discuss Biohazard 0 for N64!

[Helegad]

Great picture. The next Mona Lisa.

[Henry Spencer]

About why Marcus never went after Birken and Wesker, maybe it was because he thought after he got to kill Spencer that he would be able to team up with them? It's been an age since I last played 0, but did Marcus particularly mention that he hated Birken and Wesker? Since I don't remember that.

[Nomad9026]

They were the one who killed him, he wanted them dead, really dead, all a long.

[Skunky]

My main complaint with the game is how it convolutes the story so much. If you think about how simplistic the story was from RE1 to RE3, it's a shame what it's become. RE:CV complicated it alot, but RE0 introduces so much. If it didn't jump the shark in RE:CV, in Zero it just jumped over it on a turbo-charged monster truck with jets on the side, and fire and stripes painted on the bonnet.

I know what you mean, Gene (Mean Gene?)
As a prequel, it disappointed. Rather than reveal a whole lot or tie things together or explain things that happen in later games, it was more like "Oh, btw, here's this all powerful Marcus dude and his pet leeches. Something we've never even bothered mentioning before..."
And we learn that before Rebecca was hiding under the stairs, waiting to hit Chris in the face with Bug Spray, she had killed hundreds of zombies, creatures and giant monsters. Also, none of which she had bothered mentioning before...

[Zombie]

And we learn that before Rebecca was hiding under the stairs, waiting to hit Chris in the face with Bug Spray, she had killed hundreds of zombies, creatures and giant monsters. Also, none of which she had bothered mentioning before...

I never get why this sudden change on Rebecca, don't make any sense, it's like the Zero team didn't play the Remake or the original game. I like Rebecca in Zero a lot anyways.