Resident Evil 2: Dual Shock Ver.

After its initial release for the PlayStation in January 1998, Resident Evil 2 was reissued and ported to other systems, often gaining new features in the process. The first re-release was the Dual Shock Ver., which incorporated support for the vibration and analog control functions of the PlayStation’s DualShock controller. Other additions include a new unlockable minigame called “Extreme Battle”, and a “Rookie” mode that enables the player to start the main story with a powerful weapon that features infinite ammunition. The Japanese release of the Dual Shock Ver. contained a “U.S.A. Version” mode based on the difficulty level of Resident Evil 2’s Western versions.

The Dual Shock Ver. served as the basis for the majority of ports, such as the Windows 9x-based PC-CD version Resident Evil 2 Platinum. Aside from retaining all previously added features, the PC version can be run in higher resolutions. A “Data Gallery” was added to the main menu, allowing the player to view movies, rough sketches, illustrations and 3D models. In February 2006, a Japan-exclusive, Windows XP-compatible PC-DVD re-release was published. Developed by Sourcenext, it included high-quality FMVs encoded at a resolution of 640×480 pixels. The Dreamcast version keeps the additions from the original PC release, and incorporates real-time display of the character’s condition on the Visual Memory Unit peripheral. The Japanese edition of the Dreamcast port was given the subtitle Value Plus and came with a playable demo of Resident Evil – Code: Veronica. An unmodified port of the Dual Shock Ver. was released for the GameCube. The initial PlayStation version was re-released on the Japanese PlayStation Network in 2007, while the service’s North American counterpart received the Dual Shock Ver. two years later.