Today, another classic Resident Evil title joins the ranks of RE1 and has been brought up to modern systems thanks to GOG. As announced and promised previously, the original Resident Evil 2 from 1998 is now available for PC on GOG, alongside a whole bunch of Quality of Life improvements to bring compatibility for modern systems.

The list of new features include:

• Full compatibility with Windows 10 and Windows 11.
• 6 localizations of the game included (English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese).
• Improved DirectX game renderer.
• New rendering options (Windowed Mode, Vertical Synchronization Control, Gamma Correction, Integer Scaling and more).
• Improved audio volume and panning.
• Improved cutscenes and subtitles.
• Improved savegame manager.
• Improved game video player.
• Issue-less game exit.
• Improved game registry settings.
• Improved key-binding settings and audio settings screens.
• Improved end credits in the German version.
• Fixed issues with Rooms 114 and 115 (missing text), Room 210 (invisible diary), and Room 409 (looping sound).
• Full support for modern controllers (Sony DualSense, Sony DualShock4, Microsoft Xbox Series, Microsoft Xbox One, Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Switch, Logitech F series and many more) with optimal button binding regardless of the hardware and wireless mode.
• 4th Survivor and Tofu modes enabled from the very beginning.

Some sources online have confirmed that this release is specifically based on the original 1999 Capcom/Virgin release, instead of the SourceNext port from 2004 which is compatible with Classic Rebirth and the Seamless HD Project. It's still unclear if the developer in charge of Classic Rebirth, Gemini, will port the patch or not into this new official release. Compatibility with Seamless HD Project remains to be seen as well.

fyi as expected, Resident Evil 2 GOG is the 1999 Capcom/Virgin release, not the 2004 Sourcenext release pic.twitter.com/TbAF8RdN6i

— Jake Baldwin (sj33) ボールドウィン・ジェイク (@sjake333) August 27, 2024

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Resident Evil 2 on GOG
Resident Evil Bundle on GOG

 

[Silterpy]

Bought it a couple of hours ago.

 

[Robert Newbie]

Resident Evil 2 is one of the best games ever made. Whether it's the original 1999 Capcom/Virgin version or the 2004 SourceNext port, more ways to play it are always appreciated. Kudos to the GOG team for improving its compatibility. $9.99 USD isn't a terrible price for the game, so any sale price is bound to be a steal.

For the record, my personal favorite version is the Dual Shock Edition on PS1.

 

[SDA]

Finally, it's here! Whee!

 

[Halbour]

yarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

 

[ZeroFX]

yarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Haaaarrrrrr

 

[RedColoredStars]

I've played the first three og resident evils so many times that I have zero interest to replay them regardless of qol features. Not trying to say they're crap or pointless. This is a great release for a lot of people.

 

[Necron]

I wonder if this will work to make it function with classic rebirth.

https://www.nexusmods.com/residentevil21998/mods/28

 

[dalmatian666]

All three brilliant games. Praying they release Code Veronica next on GOG since it doesnt have a PC port and Capcom couldnt give a shit about doing a remake for it seems.

 

[Robert Newbie]

All three brilliant games. Praying they release Code Veronica next on GOG since it doesnt have a PC port and Capcom couldnt give a shit about doing a remake for it seems.

CODE: Veronica is going to be a tough case. It didn't get a PC port, and it's among the few mainline games that didn't get a remake. I'll wait for the day that Capcom decides to remake RE1 a second time. That'll be a trip.

If Capcom wants a remake of CV to stand out, they should make the opening playable. Navigating an office corridor with a helicopter firing into the building would be memorable.

 

[ShadowOne333]

All three brilliant games. Praying they release Code Veronica next on GOG since it doesnt have a PC port and Capcom couldnt give a shit about doing a remake for it seems.

CODE: Veronica is going to be a tough case. It didn't get a PC port, and it's among the few mainline games that didn't get a remake. I'll wait for the day that Capcom decides to remake RE1 a second time. That'll be a trip.

If Capcom wants a remake of CV to stand out, they should make the opening playable. Navigating an office corridor with a helicopter firing into the building would be memorable.

Yeah Code Veronica for some reason never got a PC release. I think it's the only main series game that never got one, interestingly enough.
All we could hope for is that they either re-release the PS2 or Dreamcast CVX version through emulation.
I still hope that Capcom would one day make the CV HD version available for current systems, but that's hardly gonna happen.

 

[ShadowOne333]

I wonder if this will work to make it function with classic rebirth.

https://www.nexusmods.com/residentevil21998/mods/28

I tested this yesterday near midnight.
I can confirm it works, I managed to get both Classic Rebirth and SHDP working, all that on Steam Deck btw.

However, I think this is basically converting the entirety of the Virgin release to the SourceNext one, complete with assets, so it's hardly doing anything except adding in missing assets and replacing the executable with the SourceNext one.

 

[Necron]

I tested this yesterday near midnight.
I can confirm it works, I managed to get both Classic Rebirth and SHDP working, all that on Steam Deck btw.

However, I think this is basically converting the entirety of the Virgin release to the SourceNext one, complete with assets, so it's hardly doing anything except adding in missing assets and replacing the executable with the SourceNext one.

I took a peek at the files and wondered the same about the assets/exe. Also the legality in that lol

 

[ShadowOne333]

I took a peek at the files and wondered the same about the assets/exe. Also the legality in that lol

Yeah it's dubious at best. But that's hardly patching anything, more like completely converting the whole Virgin release to the SourceNext one.
I did notice that when converting it to the SN version, you no longer have the Specials stuff unlocked (EX Battle, 4th and Tofu Survivor, Gallery), I got an empty option once I clicked on Specials when I converted it.

One thing I want to check though is if I can make it work by just putting the SourceNext updated EXE (by renaming bio 1.01.exe to RELauncher.exe) and the Classic Rebirth DLL.
I wonder if the assets from the Virgin release would work from the get go with that.

 

[Robert Newbie]

Yeah Code Veronica for some reason never got a PC release. I think it's the only main series game that never got one, interestingly enough.
All we could hope for is that they either re-release the PS2 or Dreamcast CVX version through emulation.
I still hope that Capcom would one day make the CV HD version available for current systems, but that's hardly gonna happen.

Oh man, I forgot about RE:CVX HD for 7th gen consoles! According to IGN, "The game has been converted to run on Capcom's newer MT Framework engine which allows for widescreen high definition graphics, smoother lighting and dynamic shadows." So, it doesn't make any drastic changes to the core game, but it might be the best-looking official version.

It's funny that CV is the most unchanged of all the mainline RE's. I remember when there was a ton of hype around the game because it was going to be a killer app for the Dreamcast. Great graphics, sequel to a major franchise, etc. Now, it feels pretty forgotten. (Not by legacy fans, of course) Strange times.

 

[ShadowOne333]

Oh man, I forgot about RE:CVX HD for 7th gen consoles! According to IGN, "The game has been converted to run on Capcom's newer MT Framework engine which allows for widescreen high definition graphics, smoother lighting and dynamic shadows." So, it doesn't make any drastic changes to the core game, but it might be the best-looking official version.

It's funny that CV is the most unchanged of all the mainline RE's. I remember when there was a ton of hype around the game because it was going to be a killer app for the Dreamcast. Great graphics, sequel to a major franchise, etc. Now, it feels pretty forgotten. (Not by legacy fans, of course) Strange times.

I still remember Code Veronica to be quite prominent back in the day when it came to Resident Evil games, it was surely the one every PS2 owner had that I recall.
It still was pretty relevant up to when Resident Evil 4 got released, and after that it just blip'd into obscurity until the HD release, only to be forgotten again.

Code Veronica does need a re-release urgently, it's not available for modern audiences at all. Hell not even the original trilogy was available until GOG re-released them, and that's thanks to the PC ports, otherwise we would still have nothing.

 

[Robert Newbie]

I still remember Code Veronica to be quite prominent back in the day when it came to Resident Evil games, it was surely the one every PS2 owner that I recall.
It still was pretty relevant up to when Resident Evil 4 got released, and after that it just blip'd into obscurity until the HD release, only to be forgotten again.

Code Veronica does need a re-release urgently, it's not available for modern audiences at all. Hell not even the original trilogy was available until GOG re-released them, and that's thanks to the PC ports, otherwise we would still have nothing.

Exactly. This is what I experienced too. Resident Evil 4 made such a big splash that everyone got on the RE4 train and forgot about the OG Resident Evil train.

I said this in another thread, but RE1 inspired so many games, from Fear Effect and Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare to Silent Hill and some of Capcom's own games (Onimusha, Dino Crisis, and Devil May Cry). I'm convinced games like Parasite Eve wouldn't have existed without RE's surprise success either.

When RE4 came along, Capcom influenced the industry again, and we started getting games like Dark Sector, Cold Fear, and Dead Space.

CV really did mark the end of the classic era, and according to VGChartz, CV was among the least successful of the RE's. With that in mind, I guess it's no surprise Capcom keeps passing it over. The thought of it doing so poorly during such a popular time in the series' history really does baffle me.

 

[ShadowOne333]

Exactly. This is what I experienced too. Resident Evil 4 made such a big splash that everyone got on the RE4 train and forgot about the OG Resident Evil train.

I said this in another thread, but RE1 inspired so many games, from Fear Effect and Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare to Silent Hill and some of Capcom's own games (Onimusha, Dino Crisis, and Devil May Cry). I'm convinced games like Parasite Eve wouldn't have existed without RE's surprise success either.

When RE4 came along, Capcom influenced the industry again, and we started getting games like Dark Sector, Cold Fear, and Dead Space.

CV really did mark the end of the classic era, and according to VGChartz, CV was among the least successful of the RE's. With that in mind, I guess it's no surprise Capcom keeps passing it over. The thought of it doing so poorly during such a popular time in the series' history really does baffle me.

It amazes me that it was the least successful too, I swear I saw it everywhere where there was a PS2 owner, and I'm baffled that it didn't sell that well given my experience with it.
Still, I do agree, Capcom has influenced the gaming sphere quite a good amount of times, and I even dare say they have done it more than Nintendo has at this point.

 

[Robert Newbie]

It amazes me that it was the least successful too, I swear I saw it everywhere where there was a PS2 owner, and I'm baffled that it didn't sell that well given my experience with it.
Still, I do agree, Capcom has influenced the gaming sphere quite a good amount of times, and I even dare say they have done it more than Nintendo has at this point.

Ha, thanks for reading that huge post.

I'm trying to think of the factors.

• Low Dreamcast sales lead to poor CV sales
• Low interest in PS2 port (still baffles me)
• Overpriced GameCube port ($39.99 USD!)
• HD port overlooked

If all of those are true, CV may be the most unlucky sequel ever. Plus, the game isn't infamous for being bad or poorly received. (I would still argue that the 6 on IGN was harsh on the reviewer's part.) At least we know why Capcom keeps passing it over.

With game dev budgets high/risky, CV/CVX will be lucky if it gets a port let alone a remaster. A remake is definitely off the table.

 

[dalmatian666]

Ha, thanks for reading that huge post.

I'm trying to think of the factors.

• Low Dreamcast sales lead to poor CV sales
• Low interest in PS2 port (still baffles me)
• Overpriced GameCube port ($39.99 USD!)
• HD port overlooked

If all of those are true, CV may be the most unlucky sequel ever. Plus, the game isn't infamous for being bad or poorly received. (I would still argue that the 6 on IGN was harsh on the reviewer's part.) At least we know why Capcom keeps passing it over.

With game dev budgets high/risky, CV/CVX will be lucky if it gets a port let alone a remaster. A remake is definitely off the table.

I pray youre wrong, but the lack of news is disheartening to me. imho RE CV is the 3rd best RE game ever made, behind REmake and OG RE2. I heard mumbles a few months ago that they were 'working' on it but capcom has been silent on everything since. RE5 was controversial even when it came out in 2009, so honestly it makes sense for them to do CV before it regardless. Would be a lot easier for them to remake that without backlash than a RE game literally set in africa where you have Chris blasting away Africans.