Release
Friday, July 25, 1997
Player score
78/100
Platform families
Not announced
Connected releases
Core game only
Editorial overview
Inside Resident Evil
What it is
The Sega Saturn version, released in July 1997, added an unlockable battle mode in which the player must traverse through a series of rooms from the main game and eliminate all enemies within them with the weapons selected by the player.
It features two exclusive enemies not in the main game: a zombie version of Wesker and a gold-colored Tyrant. The player's performance in the battle mode is graded at the end. The game's backgrounds were touched up to include more detail in this version. The Japanese version is the most gore-laden of all the platforms; after decapitating a crawling zombie with a kick, the head remains on the floor, and Plant 42 can cut the character before the game over screen; though the live-action footage is censored in the U.S. version.
The Saturn version also features exclusive enemy monsters, such as a re-skinned breed of Hunters known as Ticks and a second Tyrant prior to the game's final battle in Chris's game. Exclusive outfits for Jill and Chris were added as well.
The premise
On July 24, 1998, when a series of bizarre murders occur on the outskirts of the fictional Midwestern town of Raccoon City, the Raccoon City Police Department's S.T.A.R.S. team are assigned to investigate. After contact with Bravo Team is lost, Alpha Team is sent to investigate their disappearance. Alpha Team locates Bravo Team's crashed helicopter and land at the site, where they are suddenly attacked by a pack of monstrous dogs. After Alpha Team's helicopter pilot, Brad Vickers, panics and takes off alone, the remaining members of the team — Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Albert Wesker, and Barry Burton — are forced to seek refuge in a nearby abandoned mansion. Depending on which character the player chooses to assume control of (Chris or Jill), either Barry or Chris are separated from the rest of the team during the chase and do not make it to the mansion. The team decides to investigate the mansion to search for their missing team member.
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