Resident Evil 2 (0)

Overview

Resident Evil 2 (or Biohazard 2 in Japan) is a game that was originally released in 1998 by . Resident Evil 2 primarily utilizes the same mechanics and gameplay styles as the previous , but with updated graphics and a new story set only three months after the original.

On August 12th, 2015, was finally announced after years of high demand from fans.

Gameplay

Overview & Controls

The gameplay of Resident Evil 2 is virtually the same as the gameplay of the first one, and features a mix of combat, exploration, and puzzle solving. Players move via a series of and control their character with '', much like most survival horror games of the era. Combat as such is rather rudimentary, as players simply aim their weapon with R1 and shoot with X (default PS1 controls). They can aim up or down this way as well, though with the assistance of auto-aim (which can be turned off) combat is a relatively simple affair. To make up for it, however, ammunition is scarce, and thusly forces players to choose between whether it's worth engaging in combat or attempting to flee.

The story is largely portrayed via cutscenes, both in-game and CG, however there are also a number of Files (diaries, memos ect.) players can collect. These will often provide additional insight into the goings on across the overall narrative, but some are more vital as they will provide information pertaining to solving puzzles or maybe hinting as to where to go next.

Difficulty Settings

There are two difficulty settings available across most ports of Resident Evil 2 -- Rookie and Normal. Normal plays much like how the game was intended, whereas Rookie lessens enemy health and gifts players some additional handgun ammunition and first aid sprays in the item box.

The PC version features a Hard difficulty setting, which increases enemy health and damage. The N64 version also has available an Arranged mode that mixes all of the items in the game around, similar to the mode found in .

Playable Characters

Like the original Resident Evil, there are two playable characters to choose from -- , and , sister of . However unlike the original, the two characters do in fact coincide and have varying storylines from one another, whereas both Chris & Jill's were essentially the same minus a few details.

Mechanically-speaking the two characters are now practically identical to one another. They both can withstand the same degree of damage and have the same maximum inventory slots. The story itself dictates the differences, as it'll take each in slightly different directions of the , and they each feature their own set of unique puzzles to solve, weapons to collect, and characters to meet.

Leon's story will bring him into contact with femme-fatale, Ada Wong. Claiming to be a civilian on the search for her boyfriend, she will provide assistance to Leon throughout the game. On two occasions she will follow as an invincible AI companion for a short time, armed with a HP browning pistol. Alongside being invincible, she has infinite ammo (though must at least reload when necessary) and will help kill any enemies the two encounter through their travels.

Beyond those sequences, players will also be forced to take control of Ada on two occasions for story purposes. She controls exactly like Leon and Claire, and has available her HP Browning pistol and a single first aid spray. However her weapon stance is different from both characters, and it gives her an increase in firing rate with her pistol.

Claire too has a playable supporting character, however her's is the twelve year old Sherry Birkin. Like Ada, she too will function both as a friendly NPC and as a playable character. However because she is only twelve, she has no means of attack available. When following as an NPC, players cannot run off too far otherwise Sherry will crouch down and cower, awaiting Claire's return. When standing still Sherry and Claire will hold hands, though they will let go once Claire starts moving again.

As a playable character she once again has no means of attack (she does at least have a first aid spray) and must attempt to avoid enemies. Though because of her small stature, zombies at least will not be able to bite her and will only attempt to vomit acid on her instead, which does considerably less damage. As well as having no means of attack, Sherry has a slower running speed than all the other characters in the game.

For the PS1 version their stories are restricted to their own disc--one for Leon, one for Claire--however most physical ports since then have compiled them onto one.

The A and B Scenarios

Resident Evil 2 featured four different scenarios; the first two were labelled as Leon A and Claire B scenarios, where Leon entered the police station through the front entrance and Claire through the back door. The second two scenarios, labelled as Claire A and Leon B, had the roles reversed with the plotline slightly altered. Each scenario provided a different experience such as meeting with and on Scenario A, and being stalked by the T-103 'Mr. X' during Scenario B.

Players first only have access to Leon & Claire's A Scenario, though upon completing either will then be asked to create a new save slot for the alternate character's B Scenario.

There are a handful of player choices that can carry over from A Scenario to B. As either character, they will eventually stumble upon a minipack and submachine gun. The A Scenario character can choose to take it with them, or they could instead leave it for the B Scenario character to collect instead. There is also a room located within the Umbrella Lab near the end of the game that requires two hand print IDs to open. As such, it can only be opened once both Scenario characters have registered their hand print and then placed their hand on the scanner, allowing the B Scenario character to its contents.

They are the two most notable crossovers, though there are smaller effects as well, such as leaving the zombified Marvin Branagh alive in Scenario A, which will then have him continue to persist in the alternate character's B Scenario.

Since Resident Evil 2 featured several different combinations of events and endings, it was for a time left ambiguous as to which ordering was the true version. However it was eventually confirmed by Capcom via the official Resident Evil timeline in that the canon order is the Claire A & Leon B telling.

During Claire's B Scenario, there is only one segment of the game where players must control Sherry, as opposed to two in the A Scenario.

Inventory

All characters across the game carry the same inventory space of eight slots, though each character also has a unique item in a static ninth slot. Leon at first has a lighter, which must otherwise be acquired within the RPD as Claire, and Claire has a lockpick. Though unlike Jill's capabilities in Resident Evil, Claire can only use it to open up locked drawers to acquire some additional supplies. Leon must instead locate small keys to open the drawers. Leon will also eventually replace his lighter with a G-Virus vial, though it is only carried for narrative purposes, serves no mechanical use, and is only temporary at that before he throws it away and finds himself with his lighter again.

Supporting characters Ada & Sherry each only have a photograph; Ada's is of her and her boyfriend John, while Sherry's is of her and her parents, William and Annette Birkin. The photographs serve no mechanical use, however.

There are certain weapons that will take up 2 slots as opposed to one like everything else. These are:

• Submachine gun
• Flamethrower
• Spark Shot
• Gatling Gun
• Rocket Launcher

Besides the character's inventory, there also exist a number of where players can store unwanted items. Item boxes are often located within save rooms (though not always) and items will persist throughout all item boxes across the game.

Health & Herbs/First Aid Sprays

A character's health can be seen via the inventory menu, with an Electrocardiograph Machine showing a character's status. The different statuses are:

• Fine (Green) - The character is in good health.
• Caution (Yellow) - The character is roughly at half health.
• Danger (Red) - The character is approaching death.
• Poison (Purple) - The character is poisoned and their health will slowly deplete.

Besides the EKG, players may also note the character's stance. If a character is in the Caution zone, they'll hold their chest, but move at the same speed as if they were perfectly fine. On the other hand if they're in the Danger zone they'll hold their chest and limp, moving incredibly slower than before.

Carrying the tradition set by the original Resident Evil, characters use a small variety of s to heal themselves and cure poisons. s are also available, though they only have the singular purpose of healing the character fully. There exist three herb types, all of which can be combined in some way for different degrees of healing:

• Green Herb - On its own will restore 25% of health.
• Blue Herb - On its own will cure poison, though will not restore any health.
• Red Herb - On its own does nothing.
• Green + Green Herb - Mixed will heal the character by roughly 50% of health.
• Green + Green + Green Herb - Mixed will heal the character completely, though not of any poisons.
• Green + Blue Herb - Mixed will heal the character 25% of health and cure any poison.
• Green + Green + Blue Herb - Mixed will heal the character 50% of health and cure any poison.
• Green + Red Herb - Mixed will heal the character completely, though not of any poisons.
• Green + Red + Blue Herb - Mixed will heal the character completely including poisons.
• Red + Blue Herb - Mixed will do nothing.

Saving

Like the original, Resident Evil 2 requires that players find one of the many typewriters located throughout the environments to save, and must also have at least one ink ribbon item in their character's inventory.

Story

Main Characters

One of two protagonists, Leon is a rookie cop who managed to avoid the massacre of the Raccoon City police force--as first detailed in --via serendipity after sleeping in on the day he was supposed to show. Despite his lack of experience as a police officer--with this literally being his first day on the job--Leon is a surprisingly capable individual, and has underwent weapons training for a number of firearms at the academy crediting to his variable weapons skills.

While he can be aptly described as 'wet behind the ears' and even a little naive, Leon is still a good-natured soul, and will try with all of his might to assist any fellow survivors in any way he can.

• Voiced by .

Nineteen year old sister to officer and fellow protagonist to Leon, Claire is wrapped up into the Raccoon City nightmare by unfortunate happenstance. Arriving by motorbike in her attempts to find Chris, who unbeknownst to her had left for Europe to investigate the Umbrella Corp., she must quickly adapt to the horror and use all of her instincts to survive.

Being something of a tomboy, Claire had spent many a time practicing with firearms at a firing range, and has also been tutored by Chris himself. Claire is as such strongly independent and resourceful, and will also have to exercise her sisterly instincts whence she comes into contact with twelve year old Sherry Birkin.

• Voiced by .

A mysterious young woman whom Leon eventually encounters amidst his search of the Raccoon Police Precinct, she claims she is but a lost civilian that is trying to locate her boyfriend, John. The aura of mystery that surrounds her, however, hints at an ulterior motive.

Exceptionally capable and a fine marksman with a pistol, Ada quickly proves to be a valuable ally throughout the game, regardless of what her true intentions may be.

• Voiced by

A lost twelve year old girl, Sherry has managed to evade danger and get around via the air vents. However she is eventually cornered by Claire, who takes it upon herself to try and protect her. The daughter of Umbrella scientists William & Annette Birkin, she is completely unaware of their involvement with the Raccoon City disaster.

Before the outbreak Sherry was rarely given any attention from her parents, whom were always far too enveloped in their work. As such, Sherry is shy and finds it difficult to open up to people.

• Voiced by .

A journalist and contact of Ada Wong, Ben has willingly locked himself up in a Police Department jail cell in the hopes that it'll better provide safety against the zombies and other monsters that have plagued the station.

Ben was originally working on uncovering corruption within the R.P.D., and as such is weary and standoffish towards police officers.

• Voiced by .

The Chief of Police for the Raccoon Police Department, Brian at first presents himself as someone merely trying to survive and make sense of the horror that has engulfed the city. However it is soon revealed that he is not only something of a sadist, but is in fact receiving bribes from the Umbrella Corporation.

His closing of the case surrounding the Mansion Incident from Resident Evil--while refuting any accusations towards Umbrella's involvement--is what lead to the remaining S.T.A.R.S. members to disband and investigate on their own.

• Voiced by .

An Umbrella scientist, mother of Sherry Birkin and wife to William Birkin, Annette is riddled with grief over the Raccoon City disaster. In part because of what has happened to William, but also as she frantically tries to locate Sherry for reasons that aren't entirely the instincts of a loving mother.

On the surface she seems like any sympathetic mother trying to find her daughter, but her paranoia concerning the enigmatic , and her devotion to William, slowly begins to consume her.

• Voiced by .

One of Umbrella's top researchers and the creator of the G-Virus, William is soon betrayed by Umbrella, and in a desperate act to survive an attack by their agents he injects himself with his own creation. As such, William has become something other than human, and will continually come into conflict with Leon and Claire throughout the game.

• Voiced by .

Premise

Resident Evil 2 follows the story of rookie cop and during the zombie outbreak in . On his first day on the job, Leon finds a dead body on the road as he enters the city and leaves his car to investigate. Claire Redfield, sister to leading hero from the original Resident Evil Chris Redfield, also arrives in the city at the same time by motorbike in her attempts to find her brother.

The two are soon enveloped by an onslaught of zombies; Leon is ambushed by zombies on the Raccoon City streets, whereas Claire encounters the undead while exploring a deserted diner. The two soon meet up with one another and commandeer an abandoned police car; Claire then collects the Browning HP pistol from the cruiser's glovebox. They begin driving through the city only to be caught in an accident due to a zombie hiding in the car's backseat, while also colliding with a truck that's being driven by a man in the midst of turning into a zombie. The accident forces Leon and Claire to split up and decide to rendezvous at the police station.

Plot

Note: This plot description specifically details the canon Claire A / Leon B sequence of the story.

Claire Redfield

Upon escaping the wreckage, Claire takes shelter in a nearby gun store from the encroaching horde of zombies. There she meets the owner who offers his store to act as a safe haven. However it isn't long before zombies smash through the window and devour Kendo.

Claire is once again able to escape and eventually reaches the Raccoon Police Department. There she encounters a mortally wounded police officer, , who hands her a keycard to unlock the doors. Marvin also briefs Claire about the events of the original Resident Evil, while also stating how the surviving officers--including her brother--have disappeared. Claire attempts to assist Marvin, however he instead forces her to leave the room at gunpoint and then locks the door once she leaves.

With the keycard in hand, Claire is able to unlock the main hall doors and begin her exploration of the precinct. Upon the STARS office, she finds Chris' diary, detailing his leaving of the city to head to Europe to further investigate the Umbrella Corporation. When exiting the office, she encounters a small girl; the girl then reactively runs away out of fear. Claire gives chase but loses her, though is also then reunited with Leon in the nearby corridor, who hands her a radio so they can better keep in touch. While disheartened by the discovery that Chris isn't in Raccoon City, Leon states that they both need to scour for survivors and then ultimately escape the city. Claire agrees, and the two part ways.

Determined to find the little girl, Claire continues her search. She is eventually able to access Chief of Police Brian Irons' office, where he himself still resides. On his table is the corpse of the mayor's daughter; Brian admits that he killed her, but only because she was turning into a zombie. Brian then asks that he be left alone.

Claire decides to explore the backroom that leads out of Irons' office. Inside is the little girl, who Claire finally manages to corner. Claire reassures her that she's not a zombie and merely wants to help. The little girl says her name is Sherry. After the brief introduction, Sherry states that she is looking for her parents and that there's more than just zombies roaming throughout the station. A load roar can be heard, which startles Sherry and forces her to run away again. Claire then heads back to Irons' office, only to find both he and the corpse gone. His diary is left on his desk chair; reading it reveals Irons' sordid activities involving hunting and trapping other police officers, as well as his involvement with the Umbrella Corporation. Behind his desk is a strange puzzle requiring three square stones to be placed.

Heading deeper into the station, Claire investigates the station's underground. There she again encounters Sherry, who thinks she heard her father calling for her. Crawling through a small opening in a fence, Sherry once again goes off on her own against Claire's wishes. While exploring the area, she locates some supplies for Claire, but again decides to go off on her own in search of her father.

After locating all three stone pieces, Claire returns to Brian Irons' office. There she is reunited with Sherry, who Claire pleads that she stay close. After setting the stones, it unlocks a secret passage in the wall; Claire tells Sherry to wait in the office while she climbs down the ladder. Claire is then held at gunpoint by Irons', who explains his frustration that Umbrella have destroyed his ''beautiful town'' and his involvement with the company. He also lets loose that the creator of the G-Virus, William Birkin, is the father of Sherry. Noticing that he's at his rope's end and believes he's going to die, he decides that he's going to take Claire with him.

However before he can act, Brian begins to convulse with pain as his chest is torn apart by a parasitic larvae. Heading down the ladder leading towards the sewers, the larvae then begins to grow into a large, humanoid monster. Claire is able to best the creature and it ultimately disintegrates. Returning to Sherry, the two continue through the sewers; Claire also radios Leon that Brian Irons' office is accessible, and thet she's heading to the sewers with Sherry. However Sherry is once again forced to split-up with Claire as she accidentally falls down a drainage gate. On her own, Sherry explores throughout the sewers, but falls down into a large garbage pile and falls unconscience as she limply calls for Claire. A large, monstrous creature then appears and infects Sherry with a parasitic larvae.

Amidst Claire's search for Sherry, she encounters her mother, Annette Birkin. While holding Claire at gunpoint, Annette explains Umbrella's betrayal of she and her husband William Birkin, and how William injected himself with his own G-Virus after an attack on his life by agents. The G-Virus turned him into a monster as he soon slaughtered the U.S.S. agents, minus one -- . This attack let loose many T-Virus vials, which were feasted on by rats. This then set into motion the T-Virus infection of Raccoon City.

After Annette claims that William is likely searching for their daughter Sherry, the two split-up to find her first. Claire manages to locate Sherry unconscience on the garbage pile, however she must first fight her way past a giant alligator. Once that's done, she helps Sherry up, both of whom are unaware of Sherry's larvae infection.

The two continue onward, finally managing to escape out of the sewers and coming upon a hidden Umbrella factory. There the two board a stationary tram as it heads downwards, taking the two to an Umbrella Laboratory. However as the tram descends, Sherry starts to feel sick and passes out. Furthermore, a large claw strikes through the tram only just missing Sherry. Claire leaves Sherry in the tram while she investigates outside.

Upon investigating the tram platform, the monstrous William Birkin jumps from atop the tram after further mutating. Claire does battle with the monster and is able to force him to collapse and bleed out. The tram then arrives at its destination; from there Claire takes Sherry to the receptionist office of the lab. Giving Sherry her biker jacket ''for protection'', Claire leaves Sherry in the office while she goes on to explore the lab.

Claire eventually bumps into Annette Birkin once more, who proclaims that Sherry may have been infected by William in his attempt to create offspring. However William himself ambushes Annette; Annette, who has been slowly driven insane, tries to embrace what used to be her husband, but is viciously murdered by him. Claire is able to locate a file detailing the creation of the cure Sherry needs. Entering William's own lab, she is able to create the cure to eliminate the infection. With the cure in hand, the self-destruct mechanism also goes into motion. Unlocking all doors, this also opens up the emergency exit. After radioing Leon to bring Sherry to the emergency exit, Claire goes on the move to meet them.

After locating the elevator that'll take her down to the escape train, William Birkin bursts through the wall above and mutates even further. Now taking the form of a kind of huge canine creature, it attacks Claire. With a five minute timer ticking down, Claire is once again able to defend herself against Birkin. As it begins to decompose, Claire boards the elevator. The train has already begun to move, with Leon shouting for Claire to jump on. She does so and administers the cure to Sherry; it works, providing relief for both Claire and Leon.

Leon S. Kennedy

After escaping the wreckage, Leon finds himself much closer to the police station than Claire and enters via the back. Upon entering the station, however, a helicopter can be seen trying to rescue a police officer. However zombies arrive and begin to feast on the officer, all the while he erratically begins to fire his submachine gun, killing the pilot and forcing him to crash.

Making his way past the destruction and entering the station, another helicopter soon arrives, but instead drops a large container containing the Umbrella created T-103. It slowly begins to walk towards Leon and attacks him, forcing Leon to kill it.

Amidst his exploration, he encounters a small girl who quickly runs away. He gives chase, but she escapes via a small hole in the wall. Heading back down to the corridor he is reunited with Claire. Leon hands her a radio so they can keep in contact, while stating that they must search for fellow survivors and escape the city. Claire agrees, and the two split-up once more.

Heading down to the station's car lot Leon is shot at by a woman, though she misses. She apologises after mistaking him for a zombie and introduces herself as Ada Wong. She is searching for her boyfriend John. Leon offers to help, and the two are then able to push a parked truck out of the way so as to gain access to the station's jail quarters.

From there they meet Ben Bertolucci, a journalist who was investigating corruption within the RPD and is a contact of Ada's. He has purposely locked himself in a jail cell to help provide protection from the zombies and other monsters roaming the station. In a bid to help them escape the city, he suggests that their best bet would be the sewers. Ada then rushes off on her own.

Leon attempts to catch up to Ada via the sewers and suggests they work together. Noticing a crawlspace up top, Ada asks Leon to give her a boost to investigate. He complies, and allows Ada to go off on her own. Upon entering through the crawlspace she encounters a small girl. The surprise forces the girl to drop her pendant and run away. Ada collects the pendant, and upon opening it up notices a small vial containing a purple substance.

Ada locates some supplies to which she throws through the crawlspace to Leon, but then opts to head off on her own as she can't reach the crawlspace from her end. Nearby is a door that leads further into the sewers, only it's locked with a strange chess piece puzzle mechanism. Leon explores the station for the pieces required, though throughout his travels he is continually hounded by the T-103 tyrant. Leon is able to successfully defend himself each time, though it still continues to show up despite the damage it is dealt.

Upon returning to the underground Leon hears Ben scream in terror. Arriving to his aid, he notices Ben bloodied and battered. Ben gives Leon evidence incriminating Chief Brian Irons' involvement with the Umbrella Corporation, and the corporation's nefarious schemes. Ben shortly dies from his injuries.

Returning to the locked chess piece door, Leon encounters what looks to be a man. The man then begins to mutate and grow a large eye into his right arm. He then pulls off a pipe and begins to slowly advance towards Leon. Leon is able to do enough damage to the monster to force it to fall over the edge into the sewers below.

Unlocking the door and entering the sewers himself, Leon again encounters Ada. He scolds her for running away and asks that they stick together. Ada complies, stating she'll ''do things your way, for now''. The two continue through the sewers, however after heading down an elevator Ada notices a female scientist. She chases after her but the scientist begins firing; Leon then quickly dives in front of Ada, while being shot in the process. He falls unconscience while the scientist runs away. Ada then gives chase.

Finally managing to catch up to her, the scientist shoots Ada's weapon out of her hand and identifies herself as Annette Birkin. She tells of Umbrella's betrayal of she and her husband William Birkin, and how William injected himself with his own G-Virus after an attack on his life by Umbrella Security Service agents. The G-Virus turned him into a monster as he soon slaughtered the U.S.S. agents, minus one -- . This attack let loose many T-Virus vials, which were feasted on by rats. This then set into motion the T-Virus infection of Raccoon City.

After discovering that the woman she is talking to is Ada Wong, she coldly states that her boyfriend John is dead and became a zombie. Being aware of her true intentions, Annette then attempts to kill Ada; the two engage in a struggle, with Ada slapping Annette forcing her to fall over the edge of the railing. Ada attempts to grab her hand, but to no avail and sarcastically responds with ''too bad''.

Leon manages to wake up and goes after Ada despite his injuries. Finding her nearby to where she fought with Annette, she thanks Leon for his bravery in saving her from being shot and patches up his bullet wound. She also shares with him her discovery of John's fate, and asks that they get out of here.

The two continue through the sewers until locating a tram, which takes them toward an abandoned Umbrella factory. There they encounter another tram, only this one stays motionless on a platform that descends down to Umbrella' secret laboratory. However as it descends, William Birkin attacks the two. He first strikes through the tram's wall, managing to graze Ada and knocking her out. Leon then heads outside and does battle with William and is once more able to defeat him.

Returning to the tram Ada has awoken, although the tram has stopped midway and hasn't managed to reach the lab. Leon suggests that Ada should stay and rest while he looks for a way to kickstart the tram. After climbing through the vents, however, the tram inconveniently begins to work and continues its descent with Ada still inside. With no other alternative but to make his way down, Leon is able to restore power to the area and the nearby elevator, and use it to reach the lab. Noticing the tram, Leon enters but finds that Ada has disappeared.

Leon will eventually come into contact with Annette Birkin, who while holding him at gunpoint states that Ada is in fact a spy and is trying to acquire the G-Virus. Leon doesn't believe her, though Annette doesn't seem to care either way as she then prepares to kill him. Just before she pulls the trigger, the T-103 tyrant arrives on the scene, forcing Annette to run away. Leon is able to once again deal enough damage to temporarily down the creature, and tries to find Ada.

Heading towards the power room, Leon is again ambushed by the T-103 tyrant. Only this time Ada arrives for assistance and tries to gain its attention to save Leon. The tyrant does so and grabs her; Ada manages to shoot it in the face, however, forcing it to toss Ada away at a large machine console before it accidentally falls into a vat of molten liquid below.

The collision between Ada and the machine dealt enough damage that it instigated the self-destruct sequence. Leon rushes to Ada, who appears to be dying, and the two share an intimate kiss before she bleeds out.

Leon soon receives a radio call from Claire, asking him to retrieve Sherry from the receptionist office. He does so, and takes the elevator down to the emergency escape train, which has become accessible due to the self-destruct sequence. He lets Sherry rest on the tram and then heads back out to turn on the power. Upon doing so, however, the T-103 tyrant arrives, having gone through a severe mutation that has given it two large claws and made to be much more aggressive. The battle occurs in the midst of a five minute timer, with Leon just barely able to defend himself until a silhouette of what looks to be Ada drops him a rocket launcher.

Leon picks up the rocket launcher and fires it at the tyrant, destroying it completely. Making his return to the train now that it is powered, he turns on the train. As it begins to pick up speed, Claire arrives and jumps onto the train just in the nick of time. She quickly administers a cure for Sherry, who was infected by William, which appears to take effect and heal her. With the ordeal behind them, Leon heads to the driver's compartment and says his goodbye to Ada.

However the train quickly rumbles as an alarm sounds. Leon heads back to Claire and Sherry asking what's going on, and heads to investigate the other compartments. Reaching the very end of the train, William Birkin--now an amorphous blob--pours onto the train and slowly slithers towards Leon. With the door locked behind him as a precautionary measure put into effect by the train, Leon is forced to unload everything he has into the monster. After enough punishment it begins to disintegrate, as the door also conveniently unlocks behind Leon.

While on his way to return to Claire, William Birkin strikes back into action, forcing all three characters to split-up. Claire is left hanging off the bottom of the train, Leon crawls across the top, and Sherry rushes to the driver's compartment. Leon is then able to reach the driver's compartment and tell Sherry to turn on the emergency brake. She does so, allowing the three to reunite and quickly run out of the tunnel before the train self-destructs.

With the nightmare finally over with, the three rest their weary legs. But only before Claire rises up again and states that she still has to find her brother Chris.

Epilogue

As first detailed in Claire's unlockable epilogue file in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, Leon opposes Claire's idea to quickly rush into action so soon to find her brother. Insulted that she opts to abandon them for the sake of her brother, Leon tells her to go and that they [Leon & Sherry] don't need her help. Claire understands that they require medical attention, yet sets out anyway, while promising that she'll return one day.

Alternate Scenarios

While Claire A & Leon B is the canon ordering, players can still alternatively play through the opposite sequence, where Leon in fact heads through the entrance and Claire enters from the back. This then switched certain character roles, such as Claire coming into conflict with the T-103 Tyrant, and Leon encountering the characters of Robert Kendo and Marvin Branagh. Though the results are the same, there are certain character fates that differ slightly during this ordering of the Scenarios:

Leon A

• Leon first reunites with Claire in the STARS office.
• Ben Bertolucci dies by being infected with a parasitic larvae that bursts out of his chest.
• Leon will alert Claire that the underground carpark and jail department is now accessible.
• Ada is left to rest in the receptionist office much like Sherry was.
• After learning of her true nature, Ada Wong holds Leon at gunpoint and demands he hand over the G-Virus vial he collected from Annette. However after letting down her guard after a short talk, she is then shot in the chest by Annette and ultimately falls over the edge of the walkway.
• Annette then passes out due to her injuries from a couple of pipes landing on her head after the self-destruct mechanism was initiated.

Claire B

• Claire first reunites with Leon in the STARS office.
• Brian Irons dies by being pulled down a ladder by William and then torn in half.
• While Sherry still accidentally falls through the sewer grate, she isn't infected with the parasitic larvae and reunites with Claire at the factory tram.
• Claire first meets Annette as she clambers out of the sewers, barely able to talk, and then passes out. She is thusly not able to detail the origins of the T-Virus outbreak in the city and William Birkin's transformation.
• Sherry is left in the descending tram much like Ada was.
• Claire notices Sherry cornered by the T-103 tyrant on a CCTV monitor. Annette also arrives and states that Sherry's pendant houses a G-Virus vial, which is what the tyrant is after.
• After rescuing Sherry from the tyrant, they then encounter Annette lying on the floor, badly wounded after the pipes landed on her head. She apologises to Sherry for not being a good mother, and then dies from her injuries.
• At the very end, Leon will instead get up and state that it's up to them to take down Umbrella.

Weapons

Combat Knife

A starting weapon for both Leon & Claire, the knife is traditionally a last resort tactic and even then the player should probably choose to run away instead. It does minimal damage, has a short reach of attack, and the player may often accidentally have it collide with the scenery leaving the player vulnerable for a second.

Leon & Claire each use the knife differently, with Leon choosing to jab it as opposed to Claire's swipe -- which may have been taught to her by Chris given that it's a similar method as to how he used his.

H&K VP70

Leon's starting handgun, the H&K is a reliable enough pistol, though because of its slow rate of fire and lack of stopping power, it's best restricted for lesser enemies such as zombies and zombie dogs. It may be useful for conserving ammo for better weaponry when there's enough distance, but it's otherwise still not very reliable against the larger enemies of the game.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 18 rounds.
• Standard Ammunition - 9mm bullets.

H&K VP70 Burst

An upgraded version of Leon's handgun that now offers the choice between single shot or a three-shot burst fire. While it has no increase in overall power, the burst fire gives it a boost in stopping power and damage output, however because of its faster rate of fire ammo may begin to dwindle quicker than expected. The items required to upgrade it are located within a locked drawer that requires a generic small key to open.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 18 rounds.
• Standard Ammunition - 9mm bullets.

Browning HP

Claire Redfield's starting handgun that she collects from the glove box of a police cruiser. It is slightly stronger in power to Leon's H&K, though it can only hold 13 bullets at a time. Its stopping power is also still very low so it is again best restricted for the lesser enemies of the game. Unlike Leon's, Claire's cannot be upgraded.

Ada Wong is also shown to be equipped with this pistol, only she has a slightly different firing stance than Claire and is able to fire it more effectively with a faster rate of fire.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 13 rounds.
• Standard Ammunition - 9mm bullets.

Colt Single Action Army

An unlockable weapon exclusive to Claire, the Colt S.A.A. has six shots and is fired from the hip. It has an extremely high rate of fire and more stopping power than any other handgun in the game. Though because of its rate of fire, ammo may begin to dwindle quicker as a result, as will reloads be more necessary -- players can still choose to reload via their inventory menu, however.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 6 rounds.
• Standard Ammunition - 9mm bullets.

S.T.A.R.S. Beretta 92FS Custom

The best pistol in the game, this weapon is exclusive to Chris Redfield in the Extreme Battle minigame (see below to Unlockables). Because of Chris' expertise with handguns, it has a faster rate of fire than other handguns (though it isn't faster than the Colt) and has a high chance to score a critical hit against zombies and pop their head akin to a magnum.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 15 rounds.
• Standard Ammunition - 9mm bullets.

Remington Shotgun

A shotgun exclusive to Leon, and what'll likely be a solid contender for boss battles for most players across the game. As is custom with video game shotguns the remington is very powerful at close-range, but has a slow rate of fire and its damage output decreases the further away an enemy is.

It can be used to completely destroy a zombie's head or legs whence a player aims up or down respectively if one is close enough. There is also the chance that a zombie's torso will fall off after being shot and will then proceed to crawl towards the player. Players will commonly first encounter the shotgun at the very beginning of A Scenario, though there is another one located in the locker of the S.T.A.R.S. office. This is so players can still collect a shotgun whilst also attempting to trigger the Brad Vickers zombie (see below at Unlockables).

• Maximum Ammo Count - 5 rounds.
• Ammunition - 12 gauge shells.

Remington Shotgun (Upgraded)

Later in the game the player will come upon ''shotgun parts'', that when combined with the basic remington will upgrade it with a stock and longer barrel. This will increase the weapon's power significantly and allow it to hold more rounds, however the recoil is also drastically increased.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 7 rounds.
• Ammunition - 12 gauge shells.

Bowgun

A crossbow misnamed due to a localization era as a 'bowgun', this is essentially the shotgun equivalent for Claire Redfield. It functions similarly as it shoots out three bolts at once and does a fair amount of damage. However unlike the shotgun the bowgun is powerful at any range so long as the bolts hit, but the overall damage isn't as high. It has a decent amount of stopping power and can push back certain enemies the amount of force is so high. Some enemies such as crows can even get stuck to a wall by a bolt when shot.

Like Leon's shotgun, the bowgun will often be first encountered during the beginning of A Scenario, though there exists another in the S.T.A.R.S. office locker.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 18 bolts.
• Ammunition - Bolts.

Grenade Launcher

Besides secret weapons, the grenade launcher is Claire's most powerful firearm and is a popular weapon to use against boss monsters. Much like the bazooka from the original, there are multiple grenade types available: grenade, fire, and acid. Grenade is the stock ammunition and deals heavy explosive damage; fire does less damage overall but is especially powerful against certain enemies like plants; and acid also does less base damage but has the benefit of a splash radius and deals continuous damage over time.

One convenient quirk is the weapon's ability to carry as much ammo as possible, so long as it's one grenade type. When changing grenade types the specific grenade type will also stack together and will only take up one space regardless of how much ammo it carries.

• Maximum Ammo Count - N/A
• Ammunition - Grenade, Fire, and Acid rounds.

Desert Eagle Magnum

An incredibly powerful magnum-pistol that is exclusive to Leon. Besides secret weapons, this is undoubtedly Leon's most effective weapon amongst his arsenal. It is suitable for most enemies and bosses across the game, and will notably destroy a zombie's head completely whence shot with it.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 8 rounds.
• Ammunition - 50. caliber rounds.

Desert Eagle Magnum (Upgraded)

Much like the shotgun, the player can find magnum parts that once combined with the magnum will increase the weapon's barrel significantly. It now does even more damage, but it also now suffers from a significant increase in recoil.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 8 rounds.
• Ammunition - 50. caliber rounds.

Submachine Gun

A fully-automatic firearm, the submachine gun is effective at keeping enemies stunlocked, though the actual damage output isn't especially high. There are two submachine guns across the game, though there is no additional ammo to collect for either. The first is encountered in a weapon's locker during Scenario A; the player could take it then and there, or leave it for the alternate character to collect during Scenario B.

The second is located in an Umbrella Lab. To access it, however, requires each character of Scenarios A & B to register their handprint, and then place their hand on the door's scanner. It as such is only accessible for the Scenario B character to collect. This weapon takes up two slots within a character's inventory.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 100%, with roughly 3 bullets counting as 1%.
• Ammunition - N/A.

Spark Shot

A weapon exclusive to Claire, the Spark Shot is an unorthodox weapon that fires electrical charges. Like the submachine gun it requires two free slots to carry and its ammunition is represented with a percentage -- no additional ammo can be found. Its effectiveness isn't especially great, however, though it may prove useful against crowds due to the charge passing through all within close vicinity.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 100%, with each charge representing 2%.
• Ammunition - N/A.

Flamethrower

A weapon of limited use, the flamethrower is exclusive to Leon and takes up two inventory slots. Its ammo is also represented by percentage. Its primary use is against the mutant plants the player will encounter amidst the Umbrella Lab, as they are extremely resistant against most other forms of damage. However beyond that it is weak and deals little damage -- its fuel also rapidly runs out, and like other two slot weapons has no additional ammo to spare.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 100%, with each second of flame output representing 1%.
• Ammunition - N/A.

Gatling Gun

A secret weapon that is only used by unlocking it with infinite ammo. It requires players to complete each set of a Scenario A & B with at least an A rank, and will then reside within the Scenario A's item box as well the Scenario B's whence Scenario A has been completed again. Though while it has a bit of a build up, it can rip through everything with enough time.

• Maximum Ammo Count - Infinite.
• Ammunition - N/A.

Rocket Launcher

Within a narrative-context the rocket launcher is used to destroy the mutated T-103 tyrant during Scenario B, though like the gatling gun can be unlocked with infinite ammo under the same requirements. It can kill nearly every enemy and boss in the game besides William Birkin in his canine form and his shapeless blob form.

• Maximum Ammo Count - 2
• Ammunition - N/A

Enemies

Zombies

Like the original, zombies function as the most common enemy encountered throughout Resident Evil 2. Though they have a more varied set of animations, and there is a greater variety of models now too -- which includes the series' debut of female zombies.

Slow and sluggish in movement, but dangerous up close, zombies are durable enough against gunfire that they can prove to be extremely dangerous even just in small numbers. When encountered on their own, however, zombies can be dispatched relatively easy so long as the player has enough ammunition to spare. As per usual, zombies are best dealt with the pistol or sometimes the shotgun, which can kill a zombie with a single shot if the player aims directly at its head once close enough, or can at least reduce the zombie to a literal crawl by destroying its legs.

Zombies attack by grabbing and biting the player when close, but will also puke out acid instead if they can't quite reach the player. Some zombies will be encountered lying on the ground, seemingly pretending to be dead, and will grab at a character's leg should the player get close enough. However, the leg bite does little damage and will always result in the character killing the zombie with a single stomp or kick. Zombies also have a slight chance of splitting in two after being shot with a shotgun. Their torso will collapse onto the ground and will then proceed to crawl towards the player, though if the player leaves the area the torso will be gone the next time the player returns.

Zombie Dogs

Returning from the original game are zombie hounds, only these are of accidental infection and aren't the specifically designed Cerberus B.O.W.s. Though they otherwise function very much the same, and are likewise always encountered in packs. They contain the same agility and brutality as a standard dog, though are easy to stunlock as any shot from even a pistol will knock them off balance; continued shots will be able to keep them locked to the ground until death.

Crows

Much like most Resident Evil iterations, Crows only act as more of a nuisance than a genuine threat. They are always found to be in a large number, however, and can be very hard to avoid.

They only have one attack by way of pecking at the player, which while does little damage will keep the player stuck in a short animation of trying to wave them off.

Licker

An advanced mutation of zombies, mostly recognizable for their long tongue and claws. Lickers are extremely agile and fast, have an attack that can commit an instant-kill against the player, and can withstand more damage than the typical zombie. Lickers also have the added advantage of being able to climb up and rest upon flat surfaces, including ceilings. However they often tend to make a breathy growl of sorts, that along with the squishy noise of their movements makes them easy to pick up should one be close by.

A licker usually takes between 2-3 shotgun or crossbow attacks to kill one. Though because of their lack of sight, players can potentially avoid encounters with one should they walk past rather than run. However if a player gets close enough, a Licker will always catch on to their presence and give chase regardless of their movement speed. While they can sometimes be encountered alone, they will more often than not be found in groups of at least two.

Their attacks often involve their claws; they will swipe the player's leg when close, and when encountered at a distance will give off a loud shriek and then leap through the air in an attempt to maul the player. They will alternatively strike with their tongue and attempt to strangle the player; if the player's health is in the Caution state, there's a high chance the Licker will rip off the player's head completely.

Evolved Licker

This is a tougher variant of the Licker that'll be encountered later in the game. They are of a noticeably different shade of color from the regular red Lickers, with a more murky green color to them. They utilize the same attacks as a regular Licker, however they will deal--and can withstand--more damage.

Web Spinners

Much like zombie hounds, these are to be found in nearly every Resident Evil game to date. They are primarily just spiders, though they all also have the ability to poison the player with a gush of poison spit.

Ordinarily should a giant spider die with its sack still intact, hundreds of miniature spiders would begin to seep out and attack the player. However for whatever reason this is not the case in Resident