Question to you Resident Evil players out there

Reserved.

It's not really a horror series per se, the genre is survival horror, which relies more on tension and a lack of supplies and the atmosphere that brings on, I think

My favorites is RE2 and Code Veronica X.

4 was my favorite, and probably the best to play. And, no it's not really horror in the sense of you should actually get scared.

Beat the psx ones first, Dreamcast's Code Veronica was a great step at the time keeping the mechanics up to date (to that date), and RE4 was the first hybrid transition to a more action oriented thing (not taking account of the proto experiments of first person/action style of the two FPS games that were released for psx, don't remember the name of the two titles)

I have only played RE5 and it was quite boring. I like the girl in it but the inventory system is crap.

Good god, I didn't realise there were so many Resident Evil games!

You always hear that RE is one of the greatest horror games ever, and no discussion, it is great. But somehow it was not nearly as creepy as I expected. Am I the only one that is a bit disappointed from the horror elements?

I think something got lost in translation there.
The original (that is, games before Re4) games were praised for their puzzle and survival mechanics. Their horror was generic and mundane and predictable [to fans of the genre].
so, solid horror games, lousy horror. :P

Re4+ turned the series into action shooters with even less involved horror elements.

I certainly wouldn't praise the series for its horror, though I do quite enjoy it otherwise (with basically the sole exception of Re4- I couldn't stand that game. :X).
If you go in for the puzzle-survival / action-shooter elements, you won't be disappointed. If you're looking for a tense horror experience, you'd be best waiting for Re7, which is looking to be the first game in the series to have a vibe of that sort.

As a basic guideline: games past Re4 are similar-feeling action-shooters (that play best in co-op), games before Re3 are all similar-feeling puzzle-survival. Re4 is a very awkward bridge between the styles. If you like one game of (pre or post 4) you'll probably like the rest of that set.
It has been a very long time, but I recall Resident evil zero and Veronica being the best iterations. It's pretty foggy, though, so get second opinions on that :P

Don't skip CV, actually that's the "real" RE3.
My favorite is 4, followed by 2.

Just play the main ones (numbered and CV), and Revelations 1 & 2, the rest are lame.

The games feel less creepy now cause they are old and, probably, you've played more creepy games now (even then I think Silent Hill was way creepier, though I don't like that franchise). The atmosphere and music are still great in the RE games.

My personal (unpopular) opinion is that everything before RE4 is good. RE4 significantly changed up the RE format, and I personally didn't like the change. It changed the game from a survival horror game with great, enjoyable puzzles into a 3rd person zombie shooter. It was just never the same for me after that.

I've only played 4, and the sad thing is that it's apparently where the franchise hit its peak. Meaning any other RE games I play won't be as good.

Though i might try the remaster of the first game.

I assume RE4 will win the poll. It was the first action game, but the one that had the last shredsof horror elements and the ability to actually die because of level design, not because of getting overrun by a zillion generic zombies during a brief millisecond when you reload your infinite-ammo rifle. Also, it was the most farming type game, requiring a few play throughs to unlock everything. If it is easier, think of it as the "Borderlands" of the franchise.

As someone who met this series at the start, I will say RE2. But since it is an ancient game and the remake is still a little away, then go with the Remake of the first game. It laid down the foundations, and the remake also got a proper voice-over (the original's dub was one of the most infamous botch jobs in video gaming), plus some new interesting mechanics (plus, well, the game area was expanded with new places to visit… and there are a lot of them).

RE5 and up are simple action shooters. I like to tell this anecdote of when a guy on Twitch, who never played the older games, tried RE4 once, he was flabbergasted that the ammo is actually limited. Or that the levels are non-linear and need thinking on how to progress.
And the funny part: RE4 is still a full combat game with really hand-holding mechanics compared to the core series before it. (Not all games though, as the series had rail shooters before RE4 came along.)

And for the topic of why are they horror games: they are survival horror. The importance is not on the chilly atmosphere or the dread, it is not Silent Hill. It is scary because you need to survive against the monsters, and you have limited supplies to do that. In the first four main games (RE1-3 + Code: Veronica), you had to make a decision on which enemy to kill, which to run past, and how to manage your inventory to keep the next key item in there, and this sense of that your character could die any minute was why it is regarded as a great horror franchise.

are you playing this on a console or pc?

Surprised to see RE4 the most recommended, to me that's where the downfall of the franchise began.

Code Veronica, by far. Then again, my favourite character is Wesker.

As an added bonus, find some clips of the old Resident Evil Director's Cut. The voice acting was atrociously bad, but it makes the whole game incredibly funny. To the point where my brother and I, diehard RE fans that we are, quote it often because it was just that silly.

Stop! Don't OPEN that DOOR!

I definitely vote for 4. It was my first RE game and still the best imo

first one but now it's pretty dated

I 0layer then as the came out. As has been stated, there's before 4 (survival) after 4 (action), and 4 itself (hybrid)
1 is really dated, even the remake feels off. It was groundbreaking, and deserves its spot in the history of gaming, but it hasn't held up. Veronuca was the best of the old games, followed by #2.
Personally I think 4 is the best, but I also played its best incarnation, the Wii version. It's much more of a shooter than the early games, but it's not a shooter, in the way that later games are. And, the sound of a chainsaw will never be the same again
(someone else can discuss the best shooter REs, they didn't do it for me.

if i don't remember bad code veronica it's the last of resident evil that don't have the action like resident evil 4 or 6 for example. so don't skip it. noooooooo never!!!!!

The original Resident Evil no doubt. cant belive Resi4 is voted top. I hated it

I'm looking forward to playing the remastered versions of RE 1 and RE 2 (I have only ever played the original PS1 RE1 out of the survival horror trilogy). I have played, and loved RE 5 (one of the first games that wowed me in 3D) and will await the HD fan remaster of RE 4 to complete before beginning on it. I will be getting RE 6 (i have RE Revelations 1&2 Part 1 but may not play them). I will be playing RE 0 right after RE 1 (whilst waiting on RE 2 to be made) Everything else I doubt I will ever play, although I did play Code Veronica on the Dreamcast (which was OK at the time)

http://www.re4hd.com/

I'm not a big fan but lots of people will say 2. If they don't say 2 probably are too young. Playing the old ones nowadays its a pain because those controls always were a mess.

About the new ones, more action shooters with robotic movements, 4 is the best because it has some scary shit*. 5 is basically action.

*but i scare easily

RE2 is my fav. I need a remastered version of it!NOW! the others are good games, and a bit different so i think they are all worth to be played. Personally I didnt like much RE 4 and dead aim...also outbreak were kinda weird.. still good games , Im a fan of RE even if they feel different in the years, play them all :D

The original is still my favorite.

But I found the -->recent<-- PC version of RE4 to be phenomenal.

I took a break from doing exactly what you are. The order I went through was RE 0-3, Code Veronica, 4, Revelations, 5. Revelations 2, 6. There are also sections from Umbrella and Darkside Chronicles games but if you don't wish to play them you can watch playthroughs on youtube. These slot in all over the place.
The games aren't really scary anymore (although the spider's still creep me out even RE2 ones) but they are great fun.