What's in a name? The Biohazard-Resident Evil name change revealed |
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I was still in my pre-teens when I had my first encounter with Biohazard. Loved playing it, even tried finishing it without a memory card! Couldn't understand a darn thing, though. So needless to say, I failed big time on the Japanese version. It was later that I got my first Resident Evil.
I went like, "Biohazard sounds cooler. But oh well, the residents are evil anyway." Then I dismissed asking why and simply thought it was like the Balrog-Vega-M.Bison confusion in Street Fighter II, which was also from Capcom too.
Many, many years later, I work for QJ and only then do I find out why. Capcom Japan had already decided to go with Biohazard in 1994. Unfortunately, registering that name in the US would be "next to impossible," said Kramer. "As an example, I pointed out that a crappy DOS-based game had just come out in the US called ‘Biohazard' (not to mention the New York hardcore band of the same name) and that we'd never be able to secure the mark. As a result, the head of marketing held a company-wide contest to come up with a new name for the game."
It was then that an unnamed designer in Capcom Digital Studios came up with Resident Evil, which the best of the marketing group liked because the game was set in a house. "I voted against the name – I thought it was super-cheesy; can’t remember what I felt was a better alternative, probably something stupid about zombies – but the rest of the marketing crew loved it and were ultimately able to convince Capcom Japan and Mikami-san that the name fit."
And so, after years of playing and watching it evolve, the game still carries its mansion-set ancestor's name. It's not as politically correct anymore as the Japanese name, but I've come to love it anyway.
News on the latest Biohazard / Resident Evil title:
Via Games Radar
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Comments [refresh]
Especially since the 2nd installment where they had to duke it out at the Po Po station.
The general idea was all about experiments gone wrong not about some sort of cult evil in a mansion
I really enjoyed this informative article woo! I like Resident Evil.. And strangely I thought of the name differently, like Resident Evil.. the Evil is a Resident in the host .. or something like that, can't really describe it but you know?
I heard about this when I was a teenager around the time the original game was released. I read it in a magazine. Sad to me seeing that I have some game magazines older than some of you out there.
Prefer Resident Evil myself even when I owned the PS1 version of Biohazard. I don't know why. It just sounds more appealing to me.
What better name for a super-cheesy game. The series never evolves with the times, the story and voice acting is usually horrible, the controls have always been terrible.
Wow, RE4 was a success! Just remake it with boring story, retarded AI partner, "instant death" sequences, last-gen controls, stupid dodge commands, and the worst end battle I've ever seen.
Resident Evil 5 FAILS
--That is one of the dictionary descriptions for the word "Resident". So, like you, I've always considered that the name doesn't refer specifically (or only) to a 'house setting', but that the "Evil" was already inside the people. And that the bio-weapons bring out that evil that was already sitting there, dormant, inside of them. I think it fits even more with the movie depictions of the Umbrella corporation: whatever they do or build, it will be Evil, because the evil is Resident in everything about the company.
wah wah wah wah
It scares you huh?
i would tell them to call it "Life Threat" or "Mad Danger"
hehehe
I loved 1-4, but I'd have to agree with him on the huge failure of RE5.
I guess the rest of the world doesn't agree with u
Huge failure? Nah u are just a Hater of RE lol
I always liked Resident Evil.... Biohazard can go to Japan and stay there
I'm expecting Resident Evil Dark Chronicles for Wii :)
Dude, I'd rather play old Apogee Biohazzard than a lot of these next gen games. Apogee rocks.
What a baby, You would not know a good game if it smacked you on the face
It has a ring to me, Biohazard is Alright but its not for me
Resident Evil 4 was better than RE5.
To clarify, that is a last gen game made 4 years ago.
Yes, RE5 really sucks hard, and it's unfinished and buggy to boot.
Apparently, you have to do more than make good graphics and recycle everything else, then add annoyances that make the game frustrating and stupid.
Example: you're running past a bug with 10 feet of space between you, suddenly, you're trapped in a corner doing nothing with a bug stabbing you to death. This ends the game for both players.
THIS IS STUPID, INFURIATING, AND NOT FUN.
Example 2:
A crawling brain monster approaches. Wow it sticks a tentacle in you, either draining 90% of your health or killing you. It can do this from 30 feet away. Again, INSTANT DEATH through no fault of the player.
Capcom sure knows how to ruin a great game. They are so complete, it took them 4 years to ruin RE4 and re-release it with ripoff add on DLC.
If you like playing a crappy, half-assed game that was in development for 4 years, then play it and STFU.
Capcom should know by now. They ruined Dead Rising in the same dumb ass ways.
one of the main reasons why i liked resident evil is because the cheesy dialogue. it was so awful haha
Jill: Barry, aren't you supposed to be in the other wing?
Barry: I know, but I found this weapon. It's really powerful, especially against living things!
Jill: Thanks Barry!
genius.