When discussing survival horror, Resident Evil games are probably the first titles that come to mind of practically any gamer. From the old original games to the spin-offs and remakes, the Capcom Resident Evil Series was successful in making its own way into players’ hearts. 

It may be for its playable characters, the gameplay style, or the horror atmosphere, but Resident Evil games revolutionized the survival horror genre. During over two decades of Resident Evil history, the entire series created patterns that many other franchises used as inspiration.

Now, we are about to look at the whole Resident Evil series to determine which are the best Resident Evil games ever released. That way, we intend to help new players choose the best survival horror game for them to start playing – considering the first Resident Evil game, released back in 1996, to the latest title, Resident Evil Village, released in 2021.

Before we start, keep in mind that the Resident Evil mainline series has the original RE titles from the end of the 90s but also passed through remakes released this last decade. These remakes are good and different enough from the original Resident Evil games to appear separately.  So, while you await the next Resident Evil remake, join us in the fight against the zombie apocalypse, as we are about to have all the Resident Evil Games ranked!

• Release Date: October 2, 2012,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
• Metascore: 74 (PS3), 69 (PC), 67 (Xbox 360)

At that time, fans could see that the fantastic and remarkable titles the Resident Evil franchise had produced so far stayed behind. Right after the failure of the fifth game (which we will discuss soon enough) came Resident Evil 6 (if we don’t consider other spin-off titles like Darkside Chronicles and the Good Resident Evil Revelations). And, well, the game is a complete mess.

RE6 was deprived of the traditional horror roots of the best Resident Evil games. They divided the game into three short campaigns. Leon Kennedy, Chris Redfield, and Jake Muller are the protagonists of this nonsense Capcom calls a video game. What we can say is that the entire game is a mess where only Leon is not forgettable, and there is a kind of zombie threat happening. For some, it couldn’t be appropriately named Resident Evil.

If RE5 already represented a threat to the entire franchise, fans saw how lost the main series was with this new game. But, even though the stories presented aren’t worth a thing, the game brings some interesting combat mechanics and technical advancements that, a long time after, resulted in Resident Evil 7.

These features are not enough to save it from being a bad game, mainly when considering RE5 previous entries. Apart from all the problems, Resident Evil 6 is still the third most-sold Resident Evil game, losing only to Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, and Resident Evil 2 Remake.

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• Release Date: March 5, 2009,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC
• Metascore: 86 (PC), 84 (PS3), 83 (Xbox 360)

And if we begin with RE6, let’s discuss its predecessor, which is another controversial title. For many, Resident Evil 5 is far from being that great Resident Evil game. For others, it is still a fun experience. Differently from all the mainline games so far, Resident Evil 5 distances itself from the survival horror games and goes for a shooter played in the third-person perspective.

But also different from other original Resident Evil games, Resident Evil 5 brings a big focus on the multiplayer experience. In Resident Evil 5, you will follow Chris Redfield and Sheva Alomar on their journey to Africa, where the two characters will hunt the bio-terrorist Ricardo Irving.

Still, the hype about the game was huge, and the expectations were far from being matched. Highly focused multiplayer gameplay was not bad, but forcing it even when you didn’t have a partner was exaggerated. This Resident Evil ended up far behind previous games of the franchise. All the unnecessary changes gave the fans indications of the identity crisis the series was passing through, leaving the horror for action-oriented gameplay.

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• Release Date: February 3, 2000,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: PS2, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Dream Cast, GameCube, Xbox 360
• Metascore: 84 (PS2)

As we advance in our journey to have the best Resident Evil games ranked, we need to go back in time to the year 2000. It is time to talk about Resident Evil Code: Veronica. This was the first game to bring real-time 3D environments to the series and a more dynamic camera, leaving the fixed camera angles in the past. 

Code Veronica looks a little weird, probably due to the lack of experience and technological resources to produce a perfect Resident Evil game, especially considering the game was released for Sega Saturn.

Code Veronica is the first Resident Evil to bring some action genre characteristics that we see in RE games nowadays. The game has other elements that work well, such as the Ashford twins, two of the most remembered villains the series ever presented. But problems absent in other games, such as poor voice acting, bring the game down.

In RE Code Veronica, players follow the story of Claire Redfield, who escaped the destruction of Raccoon City we see in Resident Evil 2. Now, while she searches for her brother, Chris, she end-up in a jail run by Umbrella Corporation and must find a way to escape. After so many years, players will notice the graphics aren’t as incredible as they once were but, considering all of its limitations, it is still a good Resident Evil Game.

• Release Date: September 22, 1999,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: Playstation, PC, GameCube, Dreamcast
• Metascore: 91 (PlayStation)

Going even further back in time, we get to Resident Evil 3 Nemesis, which, despite the graphics, we can truly call a horror game. That is because of the addition of the Nemesis, a creature worse than many of the monsters we have seen. This monster was let loose on the streets of Raccoon City and hunted the players during the gameplay. 

Resident Evil 3 Nemesis forced us to deal with constant choice-making, as we had to decide to fight or flee from Nemesis, saving ammo and resources going for exclusive rewards. This item management decision was only one of the choices you had to make. Jill Valentine was equipped with more weapons than ever and could execute new moves, such as dodges. Ammo crafting was also introduced in Resident Evil 3. It may not have been perfect, but it was a great game.

• Release Date: January 21, 1998,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: PlayStation, PC, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast
• Metascore: 89 (N64, PS), 77 (DC), 59 (GC)

Following, we go one more step down the ladder to talk about Resident Evil 2, not the remake, which you will see here soon, but the original game. Resident Evil 2, released two years after the first game, didn’t present a big advancement in features compared with the original RE but showed how the premise of the game was right.

The game brings new characters with great development, including Leon Kennedy, which became a fan favorite. It presents a new environment in Raccoon City, a wider enemy variety, and gives us two protagonists that follow entirely different stories, making a standalone game that could be considered two games. It introduced the concept of monsters chasing the characters over the whole game and was the basis for horror games for many years after.

• Release Date: April 3, 2020,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: PS4, PS5, XONE, XSeries, Switch, PC
• Metascore: 84 (Xone), 79 (PS4), 77 (PC)

The first RE3 is good enough to have a position of its own. But the great work made in the remake is responsible for making the third title of the franchise reappear better placed. Things get scary with the Resident Evil 3 Remake and are still full of action, as the game has an outstanding balance of both worlds. The game brought back all the horror of Raccoon City, allowing us to re-explore it with new graphics and reshaped atmosphere. 

Yet, we were able to fill the puzzle-locked progression presented in the first title. The only thing fans complain about it is that even though Nemesis is scary, it's not as unpredictable as it was in the original game. Nemesis now appears in big fights and significant action moments, but it's not like it will find you anytime in the game. It was a good attempt but kind of cut all the surprise of being eventually found by the big monster. Yet, this is a good game and deserves a sweet spot just as this in the ranking.

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• Release Date: January 11, 2005,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: PS2, PS4, PS4, GameCube, Switch, Wii, PC
• Metascore: 96 (PS2, GC) 82 (PS4), 80 (Switch), 79 (PC)

Leaving the remake entries aside for a while, we get to the last game of the mainline entries that was able to bring what the RE series wanted for its players, at least until Biohazard. Resident Evil 4 is one of the reasons why the fifth game had such hype. 

As Leon, we must rescue Ashley Graham, daughter of the United States president. This entry was the first time the franchise left the horror aside to focus on another aspect, far closer to action. 

Even though it seemed strange, bringing the point of view to Leon’s shoulder was a great move of Capcom for Resident Evil 4. It ensured us a new view of the zombies and all the enemies we had to face. This is easily a game anyone could play today. 

Resident Evil 4 had an approach that never let the protagonist rest and made us move with fear through every corner. Capcom saw how good it was and tried to replicate the same exciting and fun feeling in some of the future games. But trying to bring the same formula back isn’t enough, and RE5 and RE6 clearly had something missing in comparison with their predecessor.

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• Release Date: March 22, 2002,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: GameCube, PS3, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PC, Wii
• Metascore: 91 (PC)

We are generally used to the new and awesome Resident Evil remakes. However, we can’t forget the first RE remake ever made has 20 years, as it was released in 2002, and ran on Gamecube, being remastered from Playstation. You can take the place of Chris Redfield or Jill Valentine. This first RE game proves how good Resident Evil ideas are if rightly executed. 

The thing players praised most was its incredible graphics for the time, which still impresses nowadays if we consider all the limitations. The game also included new gameplay features, revised puzzles, additional exploration areas, and a revised plot, for instance, with cuts and new additions. 

And when we say addition, we mean the Lisa Trevor plotline, which you will see is extremely disturbing. The game is so good that it was remastered again later, coming for other consoles, such as Nintendo Switch, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Playstation 3, and Playstation 4.

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• Release Date: May 2, 2021,
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: PS4, PS5, X360, XSeries, Switch, PC
• Metascore: 84 (PS5), 83 (PC, XSeries), 81 (PS4)

And if any fan missed the survival horror that made the RE series so famous, we have finally come to Resident Evil Village which shows that Capcom still now how to distillate fear from us. The graphic quality, many times, gives life to many of the newest Resident Evil entries offering us a cinematic experience and, with Village its no different.

The game offers a great set of characters for us to enjoy, such as Lady Dimitrescu, and Ethan Winters, who is searching for his daughter in a village overrun by mutant beings. And you will see how quickly Ethan finds himself in a nightmare as things run out of control. The game brings other features, such as the upgrading system. Village also features an over-the-top ending that left the fans impressed. This game is proof that great characters, story development, and horror are enough to make a great entry.

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• Release Date: Jan, 2017
• Developer: Capcom
• Platforms: PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PC
• Metascore: 86 (PS4, XONE), 83 (PC)

After Resident Evil 6, the series fans were full of doubts about the franchise’s continuity. The answer we were waiting for came in 2017, with Resident Evil 7 Biohazard – the first accurate shot of Capcom since Resident Evil 4. The move was responsible for bringing the horror back to the franchise, ensuring a perfect balance with the action-based gameplay Capcom wanted to keep in their games.

The Baker family scares even the biggest horror lovers. Besides that, this was the first time we could play the story from a new point of view, as Biohazard was the first game with a first-person perspective. It helped players feel more immersed since the creatures would now jump into our faces. Another thing everybody like is the solid power progression of our character, as he could find great weapons while exploring Baker’s house.

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RE2 was already considered one of the best games in the Resident Evil franchise. Imagine if Capcom could remake it to bring all the incredible features back with new graphics! Well, guess what? We just got our hands on the release of Resident Evil 2 Remake. Not only the best Resident Evil ever but one of the greatest horror survival games ever made.

We can see the destruction of Raccoon City in a way we never did before. The over-the-shoulder view from Resident Evil 4 was back, and the story was turned into something even better than what it was. Capcom finally showed what they could do with action-based gameplay – the game is still terrifying and scares us as barely anything before.

Mr. X, the predecessor of Nemesis in the first release of Resident Evil 2 and 3, was reimagined and became one of the most insane things we could ask for. The work put into the game is impeccable, the vibe it brings is outstanding, and it is hard to imagine how it could be better. This proves that the best horror video game can be born from the same traditional ideas when perfected.

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And that’s it! From nuclear disaster that blows Raccoon City out of the map to hell, Ethan Winters witnessed in Village. From the great success of the franchise’s early days to the darkest moments of RE5 and RE6, we have seen this great franchise pass through everything. And we finally covered and saw some of the best Resident Evil games. Now, any newcomer will have a great idea about where to start.

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