Kadoi explains that, because of advances in graphics
technology and player expectation, videogame settings
have to be more believable today. When I first played
Resident Evil 2 as a teenager, I never questioned the fact
that the RPD was headquartered in an elaborate old
building filled with arcane puzzles. But these days, Kadoi
says, people question this stuff more, which led to
additional backstory being written for the station.
“The building in the centre of town wasn’t always a
police station,” reads a tourism pamphlet you can pick up
in a waiting room. “In fact, it used to be an art museum.
Various features like the unusual clock tower and the
goddess statue in the main hall remind us of a bygone
era.” This idea is also reinforced by the oil paintings, old
statues, and other artefacts you find littered around the
station – often in storage rooms with dust sheets draped
over them. Wherever you look there are clues to the
building’s past.
“The RPD main hall has some weird gimmicks, like
hidden passages that wouldn’t be conceivable in a normal
police station,” says Kadoi. “So I think positioning them as
part of a more attraction-oriented space such as a
museum or gallery makes that more convincing and
believable within the game world.” Of course, a lock-and-
Leon’s ‘curtains’ hairstyle, making
him look less like a member of a boy
band. But there are a few clues
scattered around that remind you of
when the action takes place. “The
most obvious example is the
computers,” says Kadoi. “They are
the kind of bulky beige monitors that
were common at the time. There are
some other small period-accurate
props scattered throughout the
station that tie into the setting too.”
FAN FAVOURITE
There are a lot of reasons why the
RPD building is a great setting. The
way it’s built around a central hub,
which helps you build a mental map
as you play. The gorgeous
architecture and moody, atmospheric
lighting. The nostalgia hit you get if
you played the original. The
tension-breaking moments of calm,
suddenly interrupted by an
unexpected zombie tumbling
through a window. The way it
subverts your expectations, such as
when zombies appear in the main
hall, your precious safe haven, in the
B scenario. And, of course, the
looming presence of the Tyrant.
I ask Kadoi why he thinks the
police station is such a beloved
setting among Resident Evil fans- and what makes it unique. “Police
stations are places we see a lot in
movies and TV, so they feel real to
us,” he says. “But they weren’t used as
often in games at the time Resident
Evil 2 was released, which made it
quite a novelty. But mainly I think it’s
the idea that police officers, whose
job it is to protect citizens, have
transformed into zombies. There’s
something very impactful and ironic
about that.”
scarier place to explore, particularly when you’re turning
one of those blind corners in the dark. For this aspect of
the station’s design, Kadoi tells me that the two key words
for the artists were “darkness” and “wetness”.
“We wanted to create that feeling of something
glistening in the dark,” he says. “This gives players a sense
of a hidden presence waiting for them out of sight.” This
curious visual philosophy is felt all over the station,
whether it’s a corridor partly flooded by a leaking water
pipe, or the gruesome glistening effect when your
flashlight catches a pool of crimson-coloured congealed
blood. These effects are also a showcase for the
impressively natural lighting effects that Capcom’s
in-house RE Engine is capable of.
Playing the game, there is a sense that the building
has been designed with a survival horror videogame
firmly in mind. There are more blind corners and narrow,
winding corridors than would make sense in a real
building. But it doesn’t dampen the authenticity of the
setting, thanks to the fidelity of the visuals and the
cinematic use of light and shadow.
A less obvious, but still important, design element was
evoking the game’s late 1990s setting. Overall it’s quite
subtle with its references to the time period, even tamingDEAD SET
Other Resi locations I’d
love to see remakes ofRACCOON CITY
The success of the Resi 2 remake means a
new version of the third game could be in
the works. I hope so, because I’d love to
see more of the zombie-infested Raccoon
City in three dimensions.ROCKFORT ISLAND
I’ve always loved the setting of Code
Veronica: a remote prison island flooded
with zombies. You’re landlocked in most
Resi games, but the island setting here
adds to the claustrophobia.SPENCER MANSION
Yes, Capcom’s remake of the original
Resident Evil is fantastic – but it still uses
2D pre-rendered backgrounds. I’d love to
explore the creepy mansion from the first
game in full 3D, powered by the RE Engine.key system based around playing
card suits is still weird, even for an
old building like this, but it’s a little
less distracting thanks to this added
touch of world-building.
Another important design
element for the new station was,
despite the shift to an over-the-
shoulder camera, keeping the same
feeling of suspense created by the
original’s fixed camera angles.
“Creating a sense of space you can’t
see into was part of the fixed camera
angle system in the original game,”
says Kadoi. “But in the remake we
used blind corners and darkness to
set up a similar feeling, as well as
directional audio to give you a sense
that there is something out there, but
you can’t see where it is yet.”
LIGHT SOURCE
One of the most dramatic differences
between the 1998 and 2019 police
stations is the use of lighting. For the
most part, the original station is
brightly lit. But in the remake, many
of its corridors and rooms have been
plunged into darkness, forcing you to
use a flashlight. This makes it a much
Raccoon City Police Department
FEATURE