Astonishingly, the Resident Evil franchise is now twenty-five years old. Ah, it seems like only yesterday we were soiling ourselves in the basement! Seem to remember playing some Resident Evil, too...
Ahem. With the original Biohazard now old enough to rent a car, we thought it was the perfect time to revisit this reader-ranked list of every Resident Evil game (to date) to come to a Nintendo console. Enjoy!
The Resident Evil series has evolved so much over the years that even hardened fans find it hard to pin down a favourite. Which brand of Biohazard are we talking? Do you prefer old-school tank controls and fixed camera angles, or are your tastes more action-oriented? Regardless of the individual flavours, the addictive mixture of cinematic terror and B-movie shlock and gore runs through them all. But which Resident Evil is the best?
The original game hit the PlayStation back in 1996 and birthed the entire survival horror genre as we know it. While the RE series has had its share of ups and downs over the last couple of decades, we're living in a golden age of Resident Evil, and Switch has been lucky enough to receive a flurry of ports of Capcom's blood-curdling series.
Nearly all of the 'significant' entries have made it to a Nintendo platform at one time or another. In fact, the only mainline games Nintendo fans are still missing are the recent remakes of Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, and the latest totally new mainline game Resident Evil 7 (although a cloud-only streaming version of the latter is available on Switch in Japan — you'll find it in the list below).
We asked you which Resident Evil games were the best and you delivered the following verdict. Below you'll find the very best Resident Evil games (and, by extension, the worst) on Nintendo platforms, according to Nintendo Life readers.
So, turn the lights off, turn the sound up and, perhaps, grab a sandwich as we uncover the best Resident Evil game ever. Read on, if you dare...
15. Resident Evil Gaiden (GBC)
Resident Evil Gaiden was an attempt to scale down the survival horror to Nintendo's diminutive handheld and took the franchise on an ocean voyage well before Resident Evil Revelations. Obviously, preserving the gameplay of the original on such modest hardware would have been a huge challenge, although that didn't stop Capcom announcing a port of it for the Game Boy Color (check out The Cutting Room Floor for a look at that prototype). A straight port eventually got cancelled and replaced with this, a top-down game which abstracts the zombie combat with first-person elements involving a sliding bar half-inched from any number of Golf games.
Featuring returning characters Leon S. Kennedy and Barry Burton, the amusingly-acronymed REG is a decent stab at bringing the series' trademark tension to a portable, but after the pre-rendered beauty of the main games, its low-fi take diminishes the effect somewhat. Instead of remaking the mainline games, we'd like to see Capcom take another swing at this in a modern context. Everyone loves a bit of Barry.
14. Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D (3DS)
A portable spin-off of the surprisingly fun separate Mercenaries Mode which debuted in Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D expanded the roster of playable characters and bulked out the score-chasing shooter into a full-priced standalone game. Whether there was truly enough content to warrant the asking price was another question, and Capcom - arguably no stranger to pushing its luck when pricing certain software - might have done better by making this a cheaper, download-only title (or even a DLC tie-in with Revelations). However, the game was surprisingly addictive, and having something this good looking on 3DS was a novelty at the time.
13. Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles (Wii)
A pleasant serving of light-gun shooting action with a big old side dish of reheated stories and narrative gap-fill, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles mixes retelling various events from Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil Code: Veronica with new scenarios set several years after. For a Wii title it's got some fine visuals and there's plenty of meat for fans to chew on with series favourites Leon S. Kennedy (the 'S' stands for 'Sensational hair') and Claire Redfield.
12. Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles (Wii)
As with all the very best Hollywood franchises, the makers of the Resident Evil series won't be satisfied until they've filled in every conceivable gap in between the mainline games with a prequel, sequel or - forgive us - 'interquel'. No, Chris, Jill, Leon and the gang can't pause to pee without finding themselves in a spin-off. Perhaps the biggest surprise, though, is that some of them have been quite good. There are plenty that haven't made it to Nintendo consoles, but the Wii did receive arguably two of the best spin-offs in the form of Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles and its sequel sitting below it on this list.
This is an on-rails shooter with plenty of interstitial fan service that references the mainline entries and a focus on the quite literally shady exploits of Albert Wesker. It's a fun, arcade-y experience that arguably acts as a fine 'Previously on Resident Evil' refresher for anyone who wants to jump in at a later point in the series.
11. Resident Evil 6 (Switch eShop)
Considered by many to be the point where the mainline series stepped too far away from its survival horror origins, Resident Evil 6's four campaign threads weave together the stories of Leon S. Kennedy, Ada Wong, Chris Redfield and Jake Muller. Variable quality between the four player characters' scenarios didn't help, and the game arguably suffered from stretching the RE4 template to breaking point after every other third-person shooter had already picked its corpse clean. RE6 has its defenders, and there's certainly plenty of it, but this is generally considered to be the mainline series' weakest point and it seems you lot agree.
Comments (93)
The starrs from the lickers, brilliant
"Where'd everybody go, bingo?"
I'd mostly agree with that list to be honest. Other than poor Resi 0, that deserves a wee bit more love than 5, at the very least.
Resi Rev. 2 is better than Rev. 1 imo.
RE4 is a great game but not the best RE. Resident Evil 2 is the best game in the series; by far.
@betterbygames Eh. The lack of zapping system features made it inferior, in some respects, to the original RE2. Also, the lack of replayability compared to the original.
Don't get me wrong: I adore RE2make. But it's not a perfect jewel of a game like REmake was.
I want a physical release of RE-games not, downloadable versions.
Resident evil 2 1. Resident evil 1 2. Resident evil 4 3 and resident evil revelations 2 4. That’s for starters
I still prefer Code Veronica on Dreamcast... the intro was all gone in X version. I remembered the game "i'm alexia ashford". it wasn't the same in X. And Resident Evil 2.. should've been on gamecube the Dreamcast version. Why? Because the cutscenes are all fullscreen. Yes people.. fullscreen. No black bars or whatever and higher quality FMV. Gamecube version only ported the psx the basic version. Such a pitty that they dismissed Dreamcast port so quick. That was the master version IMO. Played/owned Gamecube version, but it didn't feel the same to me. It was a step back since I knew that Gamecube hardware was stronger than Dreamcast. It was weird to me that they went with the basic version. Well it's what it is. But besides that still a great game. Love RE2 and Code Veronica and then RE3, RE4/RE5... Remake and REzero. All others I haven't played ever
RE0 deserves more love and RE4 does NOT deserve first place.
The only games in the series I really liked were the original, 2, and 4. Everything else is forgettable for me.
Resident Evil 4 is my number one for sure.
I agree with the list though I would swap Resident Evil 4 with Resident Evil 2. I want some hardcore horror and animated zombies with my Resident Evil.
RE4 is a good game, just not a Resident Evil game in my opinion, stranger. RE7 is a great horror game, but again not really a Resident Evil game in my opinion. I’ll always class REmake on the GC as the best Resident Evil game, they just nailed that original blueprint they started with the PS1 original. Not played the RE2 remake yet, I do wonder if it will be too action orientated and won’t feel like a Resi game, but I’ll still definitely play it at some point in the near future.
Ahhhh, finally a #1 that is correct
I think they mean Resident Evil 4 on Wii and Revelations on 3DS since that was impressive for that console
@nessisonett I was sad to see that too. I voted RE0 to try keep it high. It has issues but it's a much better entry than REV1 and RE5. I am glad to see REmake placed so high, however, and to see RE6 placed so low.
Does re4 have ink ribbons for saves? Or auto save?
Maybe first time round, but if 4 has the number one spot it can't be anything to do with its recent outing on the Switch. Most reviews I read weren't to kind to it, suggesting the developers were capitalising on the Switch to make a quick buck, and I guessed it worked.
You know the best thing? These are all good games that I’d play in a heartbeat.
Also you forgot Resident Evil Outbreak which was a top online co-op game.
Resident Evil 2 will always be my favourite whether it be the original or the excellent remake
RE0 is way better than 5.
In my opinion, from 1 to 6, 5 is the second worst.
@Ralizah RE2 had a 'zapping' system? Only Zero had that I think (where you can swap characters during the game)? I found REmake on Gamecube a bit boring, lost the B-movie charm of the original. Revelations 2 almost brought the cheese back, especially with Barry!
I like RE2 remake and 7, probably most out of the post RE4 games. RE4 lost its way once you reached the Island stage to me, became a full on shooter. 5 was not great for me, 6 very patchy.
@NoLife Me too. All of these digital libraries aren't guaranteed by anything and if something ever happens to our beloved Nintendo in the future, our games will be inaccessible. Not to mention the fact that I travel a lot (my primary reason for purchasing a Switch) and I'd like to easily swap game carts rather than connect to the internet to re-download a game.
Glad to see my babe RER ranking so high . Over a thousand hours speedrunning the ghost ship, Wii U and Switch combined. No regrets.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ci5O4TiBSLE
@Logan-Japan if Nintendo suddenly went under I'm sure Sony or Microsoft would snap up their assets and make sure the eshop is down for less than a day. The games will be there until support for the Switch is dropped in 2020.
I’ve never played a RE game...
Resident Evil 4 on Wii is still the definitive version, glad to see it top the list despite Resi 2 and 3 both being absolutely brilliant.
@Ristar24 The "zapping system" in RE2 refers to the way situations change in B scenarios based on actions taken by the player in A scenarios. This helps to drive the illusion that the two playthroughs are two perspectives on one complete story, whereas the two scenarios in RE2make are treated like alternative reality takes on the same story, which undermines the point of having both of them running around, interacting at key points, etc
@NintendoByNature You save the game through typewriters but no ink ribbons needed. Just save as many times as you want as long as you find a typewriter.
There's no auto save but there are certain parts of the game where if you die you can continue from the beginning of that section even if you didn't save
resident evil 4 on wii was the bomb, you could spend hours using the motion controls and the knife was great.
And off course that piece of garbage 4, is on first place.
Huge surprise there.
As far as I am concerned 4 did irreparable damage to Resident Evil.
@John_Deacon Sweet that's good to know. Never liked the ink ribbon aspect.
Good list! The first Resident Evil game is just great!
RE4 best played on Wii / Wii U as the Switch version lacks in motion controls. Holding my breath for RE2make for Switch.
Exactly what I had in mind.
"Best RE games" according to who? You Gavin?
Have you actually played Nemesis and Code Veronica? If so, they should be swapped around at best. The latter is great and the former is ass.
@KitsuneNight
Couldn't agree more. The series died with that one.
Maaaan... after playing the original on my Saturn, I bought (and still have!) every single RE game released for the Gamecube, and I still don't get why people like RE2 so much. I thought that game was awful.
@GravyThief There's some action to it but I remember getting so frustrated at the lack of bullets and more strategic approach to the game. I eventually got gud and took the game at a much slower pace if that makes it seem more appealing.
@Ralizah I see, apologies I misunderstood you there as didnt realise that was a specific term for the RE2 system. I actually cant remember what changed that much in the original, so far back, though I liked that the new game retained the subsequent play throughs.
@Ristar24 Yeah. RE2make was -almost- the ideal remake for me. As it stands, though, I feel like they managed to create a modern action game that still maintains the majority of what I love about classic survival horror games. It's very much what I wish RE4 had opted for, as it's contemporary without sacrificing a huge aspect of the series' identity in the process.
The changes made do mess with the replayability a bit(to see the changes made between each characters' A and B campaigns), the interconnectedness of the two campaigns, the lore, the enemy variety (they cut out a lot of enemies in the remake), etc. though.
Still, it's probably my favorite RE game since REmake (although I still haven't touched RE7). And Mr. X definitely leveled up in terms of scariness, considering he stalks you throughout the game now instead of just showing up a few times and being easily ignorable in the B campaigns.
@Ralizah Yeah, as I say 4 lost me as the game went on (had this at launch on Gamecube), and the action went sky high. I would recomend 7, it suprised me how the tone still felt very 'Resident Evil' despite the shift in perspective and style. I do think they have moved in the right direction with the last two games.
EPIC FAIL. #1 should be Resident Evil: Deadly Silence which combines Resident Evil for Saturn with the Japanese Edition of Resident Evil: Director's Cut.
@Onkel_Laser
Agreed. Though Resident Evil Revelations was great, 2 was better.
@Turbo857 Revelations 2 is like the 3rd best game in the series and my personal favorite.
The first Resident Evil is still the best!
Resident Evil Revelaitons on the 3DS is my favorite, it looked awesome in 3D. After that I'd say RE1 on the PS1, then RE2 Remake.
Resi Evil 4 Wii Edition hands down is the best IMO.
Then Resi Evil 2. So the list isn't that inaccurate to how I feel at the beginning of the rankings here.
Also, having Resi Evil Rev getting some recognition high up the rankings is good. I think Zero ought to be higher though.
And sorry, but I frankly really enjoyed the on-rails Wii Resi games more than 5 and 6.
1. Resi Evil 4 (Wii Ed.)
2. Resi Evil 2
3. Resi Evil
4. Resi Evil 3
5. Resi Evil Rev
6. Resi Evil CVX
7. Resi Evil Zero
8. Resi Evil Rev 2
9. Resi Evil UC
10. Resi Evil DC
(Not much between no.3 and no.7 on the list for me. Then not much between no.8 and 10). I haven't played Resi 7 yet
Interesting article
It's nice to see Revelations so high up the list. And 1, 2 and 4 are of course true classics.
Great list yep 4 at number 1 is correct. I wish remake didn’t have those door animations and also a couple of extra inventory slots. I played 6 again back in January on PS4 and it is so average and boxy and gamey that is so dull. Roll on 8! Xxxx
Strange to read all the comments and the 1st place is RE4 hahahahahahaaaaa and if i can i would say hahahahahahaha.
Just to edit 1 2 3 code veronica much better games now go ahead and bash me as you want it is as it is.
That's a great top five. The rest of the list is really unimportant, and there are only five must-have games in the series.
My personal list:
1: 7 - XB1
2: 4 - Wii
3: 2 - PS1
4: R1 - 3DS
5: 3N - PS1
6: CVX - PS2
7: 1 - PS4
8: 0 - PS4
9: R2 - PS4
10: 5 - PS3
Haven't played the rest yet
4 is my favorite and is among my favorite action games of all time, but I do also have a strong affinity to 1 (original) as well.
2 (original) and Code Veronica I also like, rest doesn't really do it for me that much.
Resident evil classic 1 2 3 and outbreak 1 & 2 really captures the feeling of survival horror in a zombie apocalypse.
Resident Evil 4 is clearly No.1. But 7 is way better than 3. 7 is almost up there with 4, 2 and 1.
Code Veronica is also a belter, but it had aged by the time it came out
@Onkel_Laser Yup
Why do you all keep that RE4 in 1st ? Isn't there any RE fans i mean reall gamers it sure was a game that innovate but that's all. Still staying with RE4 it;s poor.... oh well.
Said like it is. It is like it is. Simple as that.
@Darlinfan To be fair Raid mode is the meat of the Revelations games. R2's campaign is a bit weak IMO, but you have to consider that it was a budget game (it only cost around $25 digitally at release).
R1's campaign has its weak spots as well, but also has some truly great sections as well when you learn to play them well (mainly the ones taking part on the ship). But as I said, the Raid modes are really the meat of those 2 games (especially in R1 where it has truly great action).
RE6 is a game that takes time to learn to play, but when you do it at least succeeds as a great action game (ok, Leon and Chris' campaigns at least - could be without the driving section I must admit). As a horror game not so much.
Just remember set to QTEs to auto execution (only in the remasters - PS4/Xbox One/Switch) and it plays A LOT better IMO.
@Darlinfan Yeah, I know, the Raid modes are mainly for action fans. They can be a bit tiresome if you play them for too long.
As horror games 5, 6 and R1 and R1 are not the best I admit (even 4 is not that great a horror game IMO).
Res 2, 0 and 4 where the best ever.
@Darlinfan
Lol yeah and those games scared the Shhhhizle out of me 🤣
@Darlinfan
Hahahah
I even had times where i just turned of the console, because it was dark everywhere. I even noticed the moon outside, the wind hitting my window, and i was like nahh hell no, im playing at daylight again 🤣🤣 beautiful times.
This list is a bad joke
Fudge RE 6. Leon part was cool. Except for the part where the rejected by his crush Evil man turned into a bioweapon T-Rex. Yes this actually happened.
REmake, 4, original 2 and REmake 2, 7 and Nemesis are my favourites.
RE4 is the pinnacle of video games
I have played all the Resident Evil games, im a fan of the Resident Evil franchises. Resident Evil 6 is the worst game in the whole franchise, pure garbage, i couldnt continue playing after 20 minutes trying, i gave up and never played it again and im not planning to continue playing it either. Resident Evil 1 remake, 0, Code Veronica and 4 is for me the best ones that i have played. Resident Evil 7 is not for me, it doesnt feel like Resident Evil. Im gonna try 8 and see if its good.
How many of these "best of..." lists have a #1 description that starts with something along the lines of "Was there ever any doubt?" It's like a guaranteed formula.
@nessisonett I wholeheartedly agree with this.
RE6 is the only RE game I truly hate. RE5 may be a poor RE and survival horror game, but it at least has an RE-esque, and fun, combat and weapon upgrade system, and is a fun co-op experience. RE6 removes everything RE5 did right, while keeping everything it did wrong.
RE0 has issues too, but still feels like an RE game from start to finish.
Wow, this list is pretty far from how my own list would look like. Revelations 1 in fourth place? That game stinks.
If you're gonna include Gaiden, you might as well include Survivor, Dead Aim, the Outbreak games, and Operation Raccoon City. I understand this is a Nintendo website, but you've included games that didn't make it to Nintendo in other lists.
Ah, hell, include Gun Survivor 2, Umbrella Corps, and mobile Resi 4, and Degeneration, too!
@Wavey84 To each their own, but I quite liked the Revelations games. They're far from the best in the series, but I liked the return to exploring a single location (for the most part) in Revelations 1 and I thought the puzzle design in Revelations 2 was clever for the most part. And Rev 2 was clearly made on a tighter budget, so it gets a more of a pass to me.
Also, at the expense of my credibility, RE6 is great. It leans into the stupid B-movie drama that I love about RE and the Pulp Fiction-style narrative had me hooked. My wife and I still joke about shipping Chris and Piers. RE6 Mercenaries is a lot of fun, too.
Am happy Resident Evil Revelations is so high. That game is a gem, so well paced. Ala Resident Evil 4 in a few ways. Although I have to say that after playing it on other consoles (including Switch) I cant go back to playing it on 3ds. Those controls....
To me it's re2, re1, and re3 in that order. I guess re0 gets an honorable mention for at least being in the tradition of resident evil. 4, 5, and 6 weren't scary and played more like straight action games for me. There was very little resource management in the later games. I have not played 7 but have heard it was something of a return to form for the series so look forward to playing it down the road when it's inevitably ported to Switch 2 or whatever comes next.
@Thaliard
Gaiden was included it was on a Nintendo platform. The games you listed were not which unfortunately excludes RE2make as well.
I liked the remakes on GCN, and RE4 was great, but RE2 n64 and RE1 on psx will always have a special place in my heart.
@Alucard83 FULLLLLLY AGREE... I don't really feel that RE:CV needed that "X' treatment... I really wasn't a fan of Wesker's character interactions in X. For example, the scene Claire 1st meets him, she gets her ass kicked and then Wesker leaves for reasons I forget, and then she just carries out the rest of her journey like nothing happened... and then part wit Alexia was so much better in the DC original because it showed just how powerful Alexia is... if Wesker could stand up to her like he did in X, then it'd diminish the need to obtain her power... stuff like that
Nope. List is all wrong. 4 isn’t the best. Rev 2 is better than 1. 6 shouldn’t get the hate it does. 4 would be way lower for me. Don’t understand how it gets the love it does
the best for me were Resident Evil 6,5,Revelations 1,2,The Mercenaries 3D
I hope they make a remake of Code Veronica. That one deserves it more than any.
As a super fan, I don't agree with the ranking at all but Gavin's writing is wonderful. VII is somewhat disappointing because of the camera and it is more gore than horror but I hope that VIII is better. Code Veronica needs a remake, its story is brilliant. Resident Evil (Xbox One/PS4/Switch remaster of the remake) is the best this far.
I'm surprised to see Revelations 1 so high on the list, especially for Switch. I really enjoyed it on 3DS, but didn't think it held up well on more powerful systems with bigger screens. On 3DS it was a bit of a miracle, and the level design worked for the controls. better controls and more horsepower made the game seem kind of simple and empty. Its good, but far from great. .
Revelations 2 is way better and one of the very best RE games.
I would definitely have put them in another order, and specify that RE4 Wii Edition is the number 1, not just RE4. Sure, the original GC release was a masterpiece already, but the Wii edition is the best out of every version of the game. And as for Revelations, I'd argue that the 3DS version is still the best. The 3D added a lot, it already had gyro aiming but with a laser sight, and the online Raid Mode was better balanced in my opinion, even though the HD ports added a lot to it. I played over 150 hours on RE:R 3DS, and about as much on RE: Mercenaries 3D.
My ranking of RE games on Nintendo platforms.
1. RE4 Wii
2. RE: Revelations 3DS
3. Although I know it's definitely not the third best, I'd put RE0 here. With a used Gamecube, this was one of my first own games on anything other than Game Boys. I was blown away by it.
4. maybe RE:R2... Maybe REmake.
5. the other one of those two.
6. Had it been released, probably RE for GBC or RE2 on GBA. Just because of how insane that would have been. But since they weren't, RE2 64. That's insane as well. Make that the GC version if you want the better version, not just the most incredible one.
7. Had they released RE7 as a full release on Switch everywhere, it'd be WAY higher on the list (probably). LOVED it on PS4.
... Next is 3. Then the rail shooters, which were nice, each with their own pro's and cons compared to the other, Umbrella being the most enjoyable, Darkside the most impressive. Then Gaiden, 6, and I couldn't say where CVX fits, I never got into it (still have it though)... And finally 5. It had some great things, but overall it was a mess to play, a mess overall, and even harder to enjoy because of it. Even with Gyro aim I was fighting the menu systems, controls, boredom, bad gameplay decisions,.. More than any of the enemies, of which the bosses were just bad.
@MortalKombat2007 Yes, I realize that. I am ten feet away from my copy of Gaiden right now. If I remember correctly, NL's "Best Monster Hunter Games" feature has the whole list of MH games, including ones not featured on Nintendo platforms. I would've liked to see RE get the same treatment.
My top 5,
1. RE 1 (remake)
2. RE 4
3. RE 2 (original and its remake are tied for the 3rd spot)
4. RE 3 (original, did not care for the remake)
5. RE 7
honourable mention: Revelations 2 (having Barry as a main character was awesome.)
I agree with number 15 but number 14 should have been RE6, to say that the mercenaries is 3D is worse than RE6 is an insult lol
RE4 is the best game in the list, absolutely agree with that... but as a Resident Evil experience, it goes so far outside the box I wouldn't necessarily put it at #1. Resident Evil 2 & 3 are the pinnacle of the old style for sure, though... which one I'd put at #1 is tough. But RE0 being so far down the list is a shame, it's a fantastic game dripping with atmosphere!
@Johnvlachos yes. RE 4 should be second place.
Best RE on a Nintendo console is.... RE 1 REmake HD
@nintendolife another RE showcase next week but don’t expect anything new
It surprises me to see RE6 in #11 ... I thought it would be much lower
I personally don´t think it is a bad game at all ... it´s just not a regular, traditional RE game. It´s a good and entertaining action game, not an horror game. Looking at this point, it is not really so bad as people say.
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