Classic Resident Evil mutates into a comedy fever-dream through the power of BioRand
Resident Evil Requiem claims to take us back to Raccoon City, but how well do you really remember it? Because Capcom would have you believe that Lady Dimitrescu never rode into town on a motorcycle on that fateful day, shotgun in hand. But we know better. Or at least we have BioRand to enhance our nostalgia.
As you might have guessed from the name, BioRand is a randomizer mod for the classic, original Resident Evil trilogy, pre-remakes, and a long-running passion project continually updated by a large team of RE community oddballs. Normally a randomizer just reshuffles where key items and enemies are placed, forcing you to forge a new path through the game. And while you can do that with BioRand, it also lets you do so, so much worse more.
If I want to cross-wire every door in the game to lead somewhere different? Easy. Completely reshuffling the characters and their voice lines to create unhinged adlibbed cutscenes? One click. Fill every single room in the game with enemies, including 'safe' areas? Sure, why not.
And on top of that, it comes with a huge library of alternative characters from across the series, fully voiced. Alternative enemies (I just fought a mutated Steve Burnside as Regina from Dino Crisis), and even randomized soundtracks to really put a fresh spin on these familiar survival horror classics. Does it make sense that Salazar (the tiny evil Napoleon guy from Resident Evil 4) is leading the STARS team? Absolutely not. But playing as him is an absolute blast. Especially when the game starts me off with a magnum revolver and enough ammo to kill god. Guess he's just getting even.
Mixed Herbs
While you could install the latest version of BioRand via ModDB or GitHub (requiring the pre-GOG PC ports of RE 1–3), the much faster option is just to grab one of the pre-assembled packages from the BioRand website. It offers several options, including packages with the unofficial HD remaster mods for all three games built in, as seen in the screenshots here.
Whether you go HD is up to personal preference, and while I'll be the first to admit that the upscaled backdrops look a bit weird and wonky in places, I find that only adds to the fever-dream aesthetic of the BioRand experience. This is Resident Evil gone horribly wrong. Plus, the 3D models don't stand out so badly against higher-resolution environments. Whichever you pick, it's surprisingly easy and intuitive to use.
Once unpacked, run BioRand.exe, go into the options and point it towards your copies of Resident Evil 1, 2, and 3. Now you're free to mess with the configuration panel. Pick which game you want to scrungle and which characters, weapons, enemies, and more you want to throw into the blender. You can enable or disable any features or content you prefer, although I highly recommend ticking the 'Reduce awkward silences' box, which tries to keep dialogue timing close to the original.
Probably the most impactful option you can enable is Randomize Doors, which throws the entire game into the wood-chipper. Step through the front door of RCPD HQ and you'll find yourself in an Umbrella lab. BioRand is smart enough to place the right keys to let you navigate this new liminal nightmare, but it's a dizzying way to experience the games again. Funny, though. And really, BioRand is amazing for goofing around. The weirder the better, and while I can't promise that you'll be able to complete the game if you let it completely loose, you'll probably have a wild time with it.
The final bit of icing on the cake is that BioRand is an ever-evolving (mutating?) project, with a steady drip-feed of new content and features. But perhaps more excitingly is that versions of the randomizer are coming soon for the remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 4, with sign-ups open for early testing now.