Retronauts Episode 494: Resident Evil Ranking Hootenanny

Whoa, this podcast is DANGEROUS!

The saga of Resident Evil began in 1996 and reaped immediate dividends for Capcom. Already an established name in the video game world, the Osaka-based developer and publisher gambled on releasing a more violent, mature game for the then-new Sony PlayStation, a far cry from the likes of Mega Man or Street Fighter. The game moved millions of copies and established a new genre: Survival Horror.

26 years later, Capcom has continued to bet big on Resident Evil, releasing ten "main" games but also twice as many spin-offs, ports, and remakes. The series remains wildly popular to this day, but even the most die-hard of fans will admit that not all scares are created equal. Which Resident Evil games are top-tier shriekers, and which are forgettable snoozers? It'll take an old-fashioned hootenanny to figure that out! While we couldn't possibly rank every single Resident Evil game ever made, we did narrow down the selection to 15 releases, including the 21st-century remakes of the original trilogy.

Joining host Diamond Feit this week are regular contributor Stuart Gipp and returning horror game expert SuperGreatFriend. We also reached out to Resident Evil superfan Alex Aniel for his thoughts, given that he has written an entire book titled Itchy, Tasty on the series' origins and has strong opinions regarding its highs and lows. Unfortunately, he was unable to join our recording, but he still sent along his personal rankings of the games, adding his valuable data to our own. And if there's one thing the Resident Evil series is all about, it's observing and collecting data from conflict.

Description: Wow, what a hootenanny! Host Diamond Feit recruits Stuart Gipp and SuperGreatFriend to enter the world of survival horror and rank every canonical game in the Resident Evil series.

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Artwork for this episode by Leann Hamilton and editing thanks go to Greg Leahy.