Survival horror fans may soon be in for a treat — evidence continues to mount that Capcom may be giving Resident Evil 2 the HD remaster treatment.
The first sign was a few days ago, when Capcom took to Facebook to ask fans how they felt about the idea of a Resident Evil 2 remake and what the Resident Evil brand means to them. Fan responses were enthusiastic, hilarious and all in agreement: a Resident Evil 2 remake needs to happen.
Now comes word that the producer behind Resident Evil HD Remaster, Yoshiaki Hirabayashi, has already delivered a pitch for the project to the higher-ups at Capcom. In fact, Hirabayashi began putting the pitch together shortly after Resident Evil HD Remaster was finished. Gematsu reports that Hirabayashi posted an image of the pitch on Facebook, with the producer saying he cleaned it up before presenting it to his bosses. He didn't, however, say how it went.
An HD remake of Resident Evil 2 seems like a no-brainer. Fans have long been yearning for a return to the more survival-focused roots of the Resident Evil franchise — and as a result, the response to the remake of the original game was massive. By April, the game had sold more than a million copies since its release this January.
Hirabayashi even went so far as to make a special video thanking fans for their huge outpouring of support, saying the game's success exceeded expectations. The game is Capcom's fastest selling digital title in history, across North America and Europe.
Resident Evil 2 is also the first appearance of fan-favorite character Leon S. Kennedy, who would go on to star in Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil 6. Many fans jumped into the series with the release of the action-oriented Resident Evil 4 and may have never played through Leon's first adventure. It seems natural that a Resident Evil 2 remake would therefore be just as popular – if not more so – than the HD remaster of the original.
Helping matters further is the enthusiasm around a fan-produced remake of Resident Evil 2 called Resident Evil 2: Reborn. Invader Games rebuilt it from ground up in the Unreal Engine 4, adding new aiming mechanics, a new health system and, of course, a large dose of graphical improvements.
No doubt Capcom is paying close attention. If a Resident Evil 2 HD Remaster is on the way, expect it to be similar to the remake of the original with its improved graphics and controls — keeping the majority of the game as true as possible to the original. Expect to hear news about an official remake of the game sooner rather than later.
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