"If I have to hear the word 'S.T.A.R.S' again..."

The Resident Evil series, in my opinion, has been the pinnacle of survival horror games for the past seven years, and it's only gotten better. Capcom may not have created the genre with these successful games, but they definitely established their place in gaming history.

I admit that I under appreciated this game in the past, but after replaying it on the GameCube I realized that I was sadly mistaken. Resident Evil 3: Nemesis certainly IS a great game.

Story: 10/10

After the outbreak of the T-Virus in the mansion, Raccoon City is overrun by zombies. Jill Valentine, a member of S.T.A.R.S Alpha Team, is caught up in the mess as she tries to search for answers. This is her last chance to escape from the city alive, and you'll be living the nightmare along with her. If that wasn't bad enough, Jill is being pursued by a monster...a monster after S.T.A.R.S members *cue eerie music.* Naturally, you will meet a few more characters along the way, and you might even need their help.

Of course, to get the full effect of the story, you'll need to have played RE1 and RE2. By itself, you may not understand exactly what is going on. For those who have played at least RE2, this game takes place at around the same time, or more specifically, the day before and the day after the setting of RE2.

Now, as many people may wonder, will this game scare you? Well, that all depends. If you are easily unnerved by the walking dead and mutated killing machines, then yes. If you constantly worry over the thought of disfigured creatures jumping out at you from nowhere, then you may feel the oh so sweet fear that this game has to offer. As for you arachnophobic spider haters out there (and I'm one, too), you'll be a tad freaked out as well. If you've played any of the RE games before, then you'll know basically what to expect. If not, then you're in for a whole new experience.

Graphics: 8/10

The graphics are quite a bit outdated, but they get the job done. The reason is because this is a port of the Playstation game, at least I assume it is. I remember the Dreamcast version had much more polished graphics than what you'll see in this version, which looks almost identical to the Playstation game. Why did they not just remake this game like they did with RE1? I have no clue, but the lack of better graphics is not something that really annoyed me at all. To tell the truth, after about thirty minutes I barely even noticed anymore.

Aside from being outdated, the graphics are nearly perfect. I was expecting a bit higher resolution here, but the occasional blockyness is nothing that will make your eyes bleed. The characters are very well animated, especially the undead creatures. The zombies move slowly and in an uncoordinated manner, the Hunters are swift and deadly if they come in contact with you, and the Cerberuses move very...well, doglike. Even our good friend Nemesis moves like a psychotic killer with tentacles waving in every direction. It will literally send chills down your spine as you watch him mercilessly run towards you at full speed.

The backgrounds are decent, but that's mainly due to the nighttime setting. Since the majority of the game is set in the dark or in dimly lit areas, you won't be paying attention to more than what's in the immediate area. Since the backgrounds are pre-rendered, the interiors of each building and room look almost photo-realistic. Even the streets of Raccoon City look surprisingly real. The RE series has always been about realistic monsters, and it continues to feature equally realistic environments.

Gameplay: 9/10

Personally, I think the controls for this game have been greatly improved upon for the port. Somehow it is much easier to maneuver around than in past RE games even though the button configuration really hasn't changed a bit. There also seem to be many more save rooms than in previous REs, but that may be due to the higher threat of a sudden death around the corner in this game. Item boxes are also in large supply, so don't worry about having to tote around useless-at-the-moment items for too long.

There are two difficulty levels that you can play through: Easy and Hard Mode. Easy Mode supplies you with plenty of ammunition and a few weapons near the beginning, along with better defense, unlimited ink ribbons, and somewhat easy undead creatures to kill (well, okay, Nemesis isn't exactly simple to take on.) Hard Mode is almost ridiculously hard your first time through the game, and possibly your second. You have very little ammo to spare and are walking bait every time you step into a room. It's a huge transition from Easy Mode, so be cautious.

As I said before, the controls are identical to previous games, but customized to the GameCube controller. In all honesty, the GCN controller was made for RE games. Tilting the control stick in any direction will cause Jill to move in that direction no matter which way she's facing. Some may say that makes the controls too literal, but I wouldn't have them any other way. You also must first press the R button to aim your gun before you can shoot it; the same goes for slashing or stabbing with the knife. The 180 degree turn with the C-stick is always helpful as well, so make good use of it when you can.

One welcome addition in the game is the ability to make your own ammunition with different powders. Mixing certain powders (named ''A'' and ''B'') and combining them with your reloading tool will result in anything from handgun ammo to grenade rounds. There's a short tutorial on powder mixing that you can find early in the game, so read that and experiment with different powders for various results.

Another new feature in RE3 is the ''Live Selection'' screen that appears at different points in the game. You'll be presented with two choices each time (usually when you're being attacked) that will result in what immediately happens next. Choosing one over another will not effect the ending of the game, but it will effect certain plot points. Choose wisely.

As for difficulty, I thought RE3 on Easy Mode was easier and shorter than the overall of the previous installments. Hard Mode was quite the challenge though.

Sound: 8/10

Wow, just wow. RE games have always had very realistic sound effects, and this one is no different. The blasting of guns, the explosions, the groaning zombies, it's all so real! Okay, I've never heard a real life groaning zombie and truly hope I never do, but I'm sure that's what one would sound like. Most of the time you'll be in an area that is quiet...TOO quiet. The next thing you know there is the sound of a body dragging itself across the floor, or a pack of dogs feasting on a dead body, or the sound of someone grunting ''S.T.A.R.Ssss...''

The voice acting is less than perfect. Now, I don't want to scare anyone with memories of the voice acting from RE1 (not the REmake), so I'll just say that it isn't that bad (I don't think anything could be.) All of the voices are acceptable except for Jill's. Perhaps it's just me, but she sounded as if she really didn't care about what was happening around her most of the time. When she did, it was much too over-dramatic, you could clearly tell the voice actress was doing just that: acting. I'm not one who usually criticizes voice acting, but I think that needed to be said. If you can overlook it, then it isn't a problem.

Replay: 9/10

As with the previous titles, upon completing the game you'll have access to different costumes to replay through in. This will also be your chance to choose the ''Live Selection'' options that you didn't before. If you didn't find all of the files the first time around, you can start again and do so or play through on Hard Mode if you didn't already.

If you want to try something different, a Mercenary Mini-game will also be opened up once the main game is finished as a way to collect money for new weapons.

Overall: 9/10

This may not be worthy of the title ''Best Resident Evil Game'', but it is worthy of your time. If you've played and enjoyed any of the past REs then there's no reason you won't enjoy this. If you're new to the series then you may not want this as your first choice, I would recommend RE1. Either way, Nemesis deserves a place in the game library of any survival horror fan.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/29/03, Updated 07/29/03