The Resident Evil 2 remake is finally out, and there are lots of tips, tricks, and hints that franchise newcomers should learn before diving into the new release. Even though it's a remake of the 1998 classic, the gameplay is brand new, so even Resident Evil 2 veterans will find a whole new layer of challenge in this new take on the Raccoon City outbreak.
Even on standard difficulty, Resident Evil 2 can be a difficult game. Without fixed cameras and a presentation which may bear a superficial resemblance to Resident Evil 4, this is not an action game; Leon and Claire are not hardened killing machines, and every enemy takes a substantial effort to take down. This is a pure survival horror experience, which Capcom knows quite well.
Related: Resident Evil 2 Remake Length: How Long Does It Take To Beat?
With that in mind, we've put together a brief guide with general tips, clever tricks, and specific hints to help players stay alive during their playthrough of Capcom's long-awaited Resident Evil 2 remake.
- This Page: Resident Evil 2 Remake Tips, Tricks, & Hints
- Next Page: How To Fight Lickers & The Tyrant In Resident Evil 2
Resident Evil 2 Remake Gameplay Tips
- Don't rush: Resident Evil 2 is dimly lit for a reason. Many zombies stand fairly still until they're provoked, so running around as if the game is a first-person shooter is often a one-way ticket into the arms of an undead shambler, leading to unnecessary health loss or having to sacrifice a precious item.
- Save your ammo: There are a lot of enemies in Resident Evil 2, and not a lot of ammo can be found. Especially in the early game, it's easy to waste a whole bunch of shotgun shells trying to take down a particularly pesky enemy. If possible, particularly in wider rooms, try to avoid zombies. You're better off saving your ammo for zombies in denser corridors and other rooms you know you'll be visiting multiple times.
- Make your map blue: When a room is red on the map, that means there's still more to do. Sometimes it's a story-relevant puzzle, a locked safe, or just a loose item tucked away in a corner. When you've completed a room, it turns blue on the map. That means you've solved all the puzzles and found all the items in that room. If you're lost in Resident Evil 2, go back to all the red rooms, and see what you missed!
- Mix gunpowder strategically: Aside from pickups, the only way to acquire more bullets is to mix gunpowder. Mixing regular gunpowder makes handgun bullets, and mixing special gunpowder can produce ammo for Leon and Claire's special weapons. If you're careful, frugal, and efficient, you can enter the sewers with a ton of shotgun ammo for Leon or acid grenades for Claire, which makes this challenging section of the game a bit less taxing on the nerves.
- Know when to ditch your key items: It can be hard to see on a small television, but key items, when they've exhausted their use, are marked with a red check mark. At this point, they're useless and are taking up space in your inventory which could be used by healing items or a handful of magnum bullets. After you use the S.T.A.R.S. Badge in the computer, notice that it doesn't have the red check mark.
Related: Resident Evil 2's Special Weapons Case: How To Open It & What's Inside
Resident Evil 2 Remake Tips & Tricks
- Using the Spark Shot weapon: The game's tutorial can be a bit confusing with how to use the Spark Shot weapon. Exclusive to Claire, this weapon is like a super-powered taser. After firing a shot into an enemy, holding the R2 button (on PS4) charges the target with electrical energy. Continue holding the button down until it overloads, dealing massive damage to the enemy. Whenever possible, always try to overload the charge, as it's a very efficient way to take down a zombie with only one (supercharged) shot.
- Upgrading weapons: Weapons can be upgraded with spare parts, but some of these cause them to take up a second inventory slot. For Leon's shotgun, it's well worth it for the reduced shot spread leading to more damage on targets, but for Claire's grenade launcher, the extra range and accuracy isn't worth it. Most of the combat in the game is done at fairly close quarters, so the advantages aren't as noticeable. As for Leon's Matilda handgun, we also skipped the stock which upgrades his firing rate, as it causes the gun to chew through more ammunition than the average Resident Evil 2 player would likely want to spend.
- Use the flamthrower: This late-game weapon wasn't terribly useful in the original game due to its poor range and ungodly ammo consumption rate, but it's much improved in the Resident Evil 2 remake. It's an efficient way to take down the zombies (both ivy and regular) in the laboratory area, and even does heavy damage on the late-game bosses; thanks to its decent range, it's a viable weapon for any late-game encounter.
- Don't lose track of your chess pieces: Returning from the original Resident Evil 2 are the key items based on chess pieces. In the sewers, players will be tased with finding all six pieces and bringing them to one part of the map. The king and queen pieces are trapped behind a gauntlet of G-type monsters and one of the game's more taxing puzzles, but one of the pieces is already plugged into a socket which controls a bridge. It's easy to forget about that one, so make sure that you don't have to retrace your steps because you made a silly mistake and forgot to bring that last plug with you.
Page 2 of 2: How To Fight Lickers & The Tyrant In Resident Evil 2 Remake
How to Fight Lickers in Resident Evil 2 Remake
One of the most iconic enemies in the entire Resident Evil saga is the Licker - first introduced in Resident Evil 2 - so it's no surprise to see them return in this remake, scarier than ever. Just like in the original, these skinless horrors are blind, and they rely on their hearing to track and hunt enemies. Therefore, it's possible to evade them by walking slowly, because avoiding Lickers in Resident Evil 2 is of utmost importance.
One new tool in the remake that wasn't present in the original Resident Evil 2, though, is the flash grenade. This weapon is strong enough to temporarily handicap any Licker, thus giving Leon or Claire time to escape. As Claire, a single fire grenade is enough to take down most Lickers, though some of them require a second shot to put down for good. As Leon, a couple of point-blank shotgun blasts should be sufficient. It's best to use these high-powered weapons against Lickers, since they can take an impressive amount of pistol ammo before going down, which you'll need for regular zombie encounters. It's absolutely worth burning through grenades, shotgun ammo, and even magnum shots to knock a Licker off the board permanently.
Related: Resident Evil 2 Remake's Brad Vickers Easter Egg Is Awesome
How to Fight The Tyrant in Resident Evil 2 Remake
Unfortunately, there's no stopping the Tyrant in Resident Evil 2. Once he enters the game, he will pursue the player relentlessly until they progress to a certain point in the story. The player only has three options when faced with this invincible beast: fight, flight, and hiding.
Fighting the Tyrant in Resident Evil 2 is the most direct way to deal with him. Pump enough ammo into the beast, and he'll momentarily yield. Unfortunately for Leon and Claire, he'll always get back up to resume the chase, so that ammunition is essentially wasted. If it's the only way to survive, then so be it, but if there's another way, always try to avoid direct combat with the Tyrant. For the record, it takes about three headshots from the magnum to knock down the Tyrant, ammo which should be used for Resident Evil 2's proper boss battles; battles which can actually be won.
Most of the time, Leon and Claire should just run away from Tyrant in Resident Evil 2. Whether you're searching for items, solving a puzzle, or slowly eliminating a pack of zombies, if Tyrant shows up, that's an instant cue to forget all that and run for the nearest safe room. Generally speaking, no matter how fast you run, Tyrant will always follow. Sometimes, he can lose track of Leon and Claire, but he usually is dogged and ruthless in his pursuit. Rooms with both a typewriter and an item box are usually safe havens; Tyrant will never enter the dark room and will quickly become bored and wander away, giving the player a momentary respite before he inevitably returns to stalk the player again.
Finally, the hardest – but most rewarding – way to deal with the Tyrant is to successfully hide from him. It can only be done in a few rooms, such as the Library, and it requires patience, silence, and nerves of steel. If you break line of sight and lose him among the bookshelves, he'll eventually lose interest and wander away. It's difficult, but it can be done! This also seems to be the method which gives players the most downtime before the next inevitable encounter with Resident Evil 2's seemingly-invincible monster.
