Resident Evil 2 Remake – Do I Need to Play the Other Games First?

Given that Resident Evil 2 remake is a sequel, you may be wondering if you need to play the other games first. If RE2 remake is your first Resident Evil game, you might feel like you’re missing out by not playing the rest of them beforehand. However, since Resident Evil is a 22-year-old franchise spanning 9 main games (two of which have been remade), and 12 spin-offs, it’s an intimidating task to complete them all before you take on Resident Evil 2 remake. Below, we’ll tell you if you need to beat the other Resident Evil games before you take on RE2 remake, and if so, which ones are essential to complete first.

Do I Need to Play the Other Resident Evil Games Before I Play Resident Evil 2 Remake?

Luckily for new fans of the Resident Evil series, Resident Evil 2 remake takes place relatively close to the chronological beginning of the series. While the latest game, Resident Evil 7, takes places in 2017, RE2 takes us all the way back to 1998.

There are only three entries in the franchise that are set before the events of Resident Evil 2:

• Resident Evil 0
• Resident Evil
• Resident Evil 3

The first two games are pretty clear-cut, chronologically speaking. Resident Evil 0 happens the day before Resident Evil on July 23, 1998. Resident Evil picks up where 0 leaves off and occurs on July 24, 1998. Where things get a bit confusing is Resident Evil 3.

Resident Evil 2 takes place on the night of September 29, 1998, and continues through the night until the morning of September 30. The first half of Resident Evil 3 occurs on September 28, with the second half stretching over October 1-2.

It seems a bit convoluted at first glance, but if you’re starting the series with Resident Evil 2 remake, you don’t have to worry about it at all. At most you should play the first game in the series, Resident Evil. Make sure that if you choose to play it, you grab the remake, not the PlayStation original, as it features much-improved graphics, gameplay, and extra bits of storage. REmake will give you a firm foundation in the series lore and helps to set the stage for what happens in Resident Evil 2.

However, if you go into Resident Evil 2 remake without playing any other game in the series, you’ll likely be fine. While there’s a ton of connections between Resident Evil and Resident Evil 2, RE2 does an excellent job of explaining the backstory of the first game, and though you might miss some references, you’re not going to be lost just because you haven’t played the other games.

Also, if you don’t have time to play the other games, or just want to make Resident Evil 2 remake your first, we’ll be posting an explainer of everything you need to know before you start playing!