It can be difficult sometimes to choose which of the first three Resident Evil entries is the best. Since their original releases over twenty years ago, each title has received either HD remasters or full-blown remakes. Coming off the heels of the excellent Resident Evil 2 remake, Resident Evil 3 (2020) had a lot of anticipation riding on it.
However, many fans of the original were justifiably disappointed by the sheer volume of cut content. Suffering from a rushed development cycle, the remake of Resident Evil 3 is missing a sizeable amount of material, such as the Clocktower exploration and the Grave Digger enemy, to name only a small few. Omissions of that nature are already well known. What follows are some of the less obvious pieces of cut material that failed to make it into the final game. In addition, check out this great YouTube video breaking down all of the remake's cut content.
6 The S.T.A.R.S. Note
Not every conceivable note or item makes the cut whenever a Resident Evil game is concerned. Notes that players may stumble across generally tend to fall within one of two categories: lore and puzzles. The former serves as world-building devices, while the latter tend to provide clues to a nearby puzzle. It's also common for notes to contain easter eggs or references to events that occur in other titles.
One such piece of reading material that was cut from the finished product is the "Current Status of S.T.A.R.S." note. It references how the surviving members of S.T.A.R.S. elected to investigate the nefarious plans of the Umbrella Corporation after the events of the first game. One group is designated as the "Europe Infiltration Team," a veiled allusion to Resident Evil: Code Veronica, part of which takes place in Europe. The other members are designated the "Raccoon City Reserve Team," and are told to be wary of local authorities. Considering the actions of police chief Brian Irons, the warning proves to be well-founded.
5 More Open Areas
Much of Resident Evil 3's setting takes place within the burning wreckage of Raccoon City. At a glance, it appears as if the entire metropolis is open to exploration. It's very ironic considering that Resident Evil 3 (2020) is perhaps one of the most linear experiences in the franchise. The vast majority of Raccoon City isn't available to explore, which makes the game feel strangely claustrophobic. The battles with Nemesis are relegated to set-piece affairs as opposed to surprise encounters like they were in the original.
However, there is some evidence to suggest that more areas of the game were meant to be traversable. Mods that remove the many barriers Jill comes across imply that more exploration could have been possible. It would have also given Nemesis more room to track and stalk the player, leading to more dynamic and fluid encounters.
4 Controlling Jill At The Police Station
A good deal of Resident Evil 3's narrative is shuffled around or changed completely compared to the original release. In the remake, Carlos and Tyrell investigate the police station, where a zombified Brad Vickers is found attacking Marvin Branagh.
Nevertheless, the developers initially intended the police station sequence to more closely follow the 1999 version. The player was supposed to control Jill, where she would witness Brad's final death at the hands of Nemesis. This was cut due to the developers' desire to give the player more time with Carlos and Tyrell.
3 Giving Jill Decisions To Make
One of the most popular features that fans tend to remember about Resident Evil: Nemesis is the quick-time decisions that Jill must often make at a moment's notice. These encounters invariably involve Nemesis, typically giving Jill the option to either flee or confront the hulking monstrosity. Although these choices don't alter the plot in any significant way, they serve to dramatically heighten the already palpable tension.
This memorable feature was omitted entirely in the remake. Like other aspects of the gameplay, the developers opted for a more linear approach. More attention was given to characterization instead, which proved to be a mixed bag with fans. One such encounter that was cut supposedly was to take place outside the police station. Jill could either flee from or fight Nemesis after Brad Vickers is killed, mirroring a very similar scene from the original.
2 Other Assorted Notes
It's been stated previously that not all items make the final cut in a game. Besides the S.T.A.R.S. note, there are a handful of others that exist in the game files. Most of them are simply lore pieces. Some may have been intended to provide clues for puzzles that were ultimately never implemented.
These deleted notes included notices for the donut shop and a pharmacy. One is actually a journal entry that references the Charlie Dolls Jill might chance upon throughout the game. Another details the construction of Raccoon Tower by the Umbrella Corporation.
1 A Day/Night Cycle
Like most horror games, the majority of Resident Evil 3 is experienced during the night. However, a lot of action takes place throughout the events of Resident Evil 3's plot. It appears that, at one point, the developers had tried to make the effort to illustrate the passage of time.
Later sections of the game would have included the gradual presence of the dawn breaking. It's a rather curious deletion, considering it would have made logical sense for the player to witness the slow transition from the night to the day.