What makes the original Resident Evil games scary? My 10-year-old self would have said it's the slow oncoming zombies that bring a certain demise or the powerful mutated beings that seem impervious to heavy weaponry.
To a young gamer, imagination fills in a lot of the blanks and supercharges the frights, creating nightmares and a fear of desolate buildings and eerily quiet places. Playing those games today, I’d probably feel embarrassed being scared.
But those old games worked well when they were released and just because they might not be as scary today, doesn’t mean they should be ignored or discarded. In fact, they remain very popular for their engaging characters and compelling storylines, which have helped set the bar for games today.
An increasingly common sight in gaming these days is the remaster. These take the original game and either give it a visual facelift or remake it from the ground up with new mechanics and modes of play. Some of the most beloved horror game titles such as Resident Evil 2, Dead Space and Alan Wake have all received remasters or remakes in the past few years.
While remasters aren’t strictly for horror games, they seem to be the ones received most positively by games, but why is that?
The scares evolve
Horror is subject to constant evolution. But unlike other genres, it is usually the first and fastest to do so. Films, literature and, more recently, horror video games are usually made with minimal budgets, focusing more on form and method to achieve scares.
There have been examples on every console, even going back to the days of text-based games. In the mid-1990s, horror games took off due to the PlayStation's popularity and more Japanese games making the crossover to global markets.
Games like Silent Hill, Fatal Frame, Clock Tower and Dino Crisis all utilised different methods to make their games frightening for players. In Silent Hill, for example, the original PlayStation's limitation to show long distances made the developers use a fog-like effect to create a claustrophobic experience, becoming a staple of subsequent games.
But scary then is not scary today, so a remaster tends to be necessary to invigorate those thrills. In 2019, Capcom remade its extremely popular Resident Evil 2, with the story of the original remaining in place while everything else has been renewed to suit modern standards. The remake received an incredible reception, prompting Capcom to pursue remakes of Resident Evil 3 and 4.
What made the remake so successful is that it built on a solid foundation in the original game and yet transformed the scares and eerie environments to make them even more frightening. Playing both games, it is easy to see that the remake takes all its cues from the original but translates them well for a fresh horrifying adventure.
Rising popularity
Gaming today is a very accessible experience. Anyone can play a game from any time in the past 30 years and have a trove of guides and clues to aid in their pursuit. This has allowed for all kinds of cult classic horror games to suddenly experience a resurgence.
Some games might have been moderately popular on initial release, but their legend has grown as more people discover and play them, sharing their experiences online. This continued interest has made certain titles increasingly sought out, making them prime candidates for a remaster or remake.
Last year had the release of many remasters and remakes including Resident Evil 4, Dead Space, System Shock and Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse. In the coming months, gamers are anticipating the remastered versions of Silent Hill 2 and Dead Rising, further proving that the genre will keep taking its origins and making them a contemporary experience.
Jordan cabinet changes
In
- Raed Mozafar Abu Al Saoud, Minister of Water and Irrigation
- Dr Bassam Samir Al Talhouni, Minister of Justice
- Majd Mohamed Shoueikeh, State Minister of Development of Foundation Performance
- Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research
- Falah Abdalla Al Ammoush, Minister of Public Works and Housing
- Basma Moussa Ishakat, Minister of Social Development
- Dr Ghazi Monawar Al Zein, Minister of Health
- Ibrahim Sobhi Alshahahede, Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Environment
- Dr Mohamed Suleiman Aburamman, Minister of Culture and Minister of Youth
Out
- Dr Adel Issa Al Tawissi, Minister of High Education and Scientific Research
- Hala Noaman “Basiso Lattouf”, Minister of Social Development
- Dr Mahmud Yassin Al Sheyab, Minister of Health
- Yahya Moussa Kasbi, Minister of Public Works and Housing
- Nayef Hamidi Al Fayez, Minister of Environment
- Majd Mohamed Shoueika, Minister of Public Sector Development
- Khalid Moussa Al Huneifat, Minister of Agriculture
- Dr Awad Abu Jarad Al Mushakiba, Minister of Justice
- Mounir Moussa Ouwais, Minister of Water and Agriculture
- Dr Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education
- Mokarram Mustafa Al Kaysi, Minister of Youth
- Basma Mohamed Al Nousour, Minister of Culture
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
Book%20Details
%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3EThree%20Centuries%20of%20Travel%20Writing%20by%20Muslim%20Women%3C%2Fem%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EEditors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiobhan%20Lambert-Hurley%2C%20Daniel%20Majchrowicz%2C%20Sunil%20Sharma%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EIndiana%20University%20Press%3B%20532%20pages%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MATCH INFO
Inter Milan 2 (Vecino 65', Barella 83')
Verona 1 (Verre 19' pen)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May
The years Ramadan fell in May
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA
Price, base / as tested Dh150,900 / Dh173,600
Engine 2.0L inline four-cylinder
Transmission Seven-speed automatic
Power 211hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 1,200rpm
Fuel economy, combined 6.4L / 100km
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