some brief thoughts on resident evil two:

have played a few hours of this (my first foray into the horror genre), and as impeccable as its presentation is my god is it a miserable play.
pure, unrelenting peril, in a way that has never felt so visceral to me.
the distant, indistinct moans of zombies; the abrupt sounds of windows being loudly rattled; the intense claustrophobia and sense of entrapment; the isolation; the uncomfortably realistic and unforgiving environment- but above all the fear of the unknown, which is what all horror is ultimately founded on; the fear of things that exist outside your conciousness or comprehension

still there’s so much about this to praise.
the death screen sticks out to me in particular- “you have died”. damn.

amazing game, but how do people enjoy playing this? i’m willing to give this a few more hours (so long as the sun is out and my cat is within a metre of me) but goddamn guys.
are you guys seriously this masochistic? or am i just a complete wuss

only about three hours into the gameplay so far- and i have to say, this is pretty immaculate so far.
you could argue that it’s a bit unambitious or one-dimensional conceptually, and on the surface i agree; but i really admire unpretentious art (yes video games can qualify as art) that knows what it is and focuses on being the best version of itself that it can be

this game’s presentation is incredible.
the eerie sound design is effectively subtle and restrained; never overbearing or clumsy, really adding to the sense of realism and coldness this exudes. the stark contrast between the silent halls (where only my footsteps can be heard) to the sudden loud, and often distant noises of unknown creatures is terrifying.

this film does an amazing job of putting us in the shoes of the story’s protagonist; that feeling of paranoia and dread as you venture through the unknown.
also there’s something hauntingly blunt about that death screen: "you are dead". chills, every time.

the gore is pretty effective (and i’m far from the queasiest) and the creature design is also strong (i imagine the latter gets more exciting as the game progresses).

the police station setting works very well; its intimidating size is pretty daunting and is the main source of the strong sense of entrapment and isolation throughout this.
being all alone in the unknown; nothing more terrifying than that.

the lighting choices are also great.

the story itself is pretty uneventful so far, but i can’t judge the game on that front yet cus i’m so early into the game.

enjoy the detail put into a lot of the in-game features.

shooting is fine. i hate having to be this conservative with bullets but i like the challenge.

as for my experience playing this, pretty miserable.
i never know what’s going to be barging through the door, coming out of a locker, the ceiling, or where that distant noise is coming from. there is just no break; it’s an unrelentingly stressful experience that is just too much for me and unenjoyable in large doses.
consequently i don’t see myself playing this all that much in the future. maybe when a friend comes over, but otherwise idk