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Resident Evil: Of Zombies and Men, Volume 1

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Every passionate gamer knows about the Resident Evil saga. Born in 1996, the series count at least 10 major episodes mainly inspired by the work of George A. Romero. The games take place in the United States infested with zombies. The first episode was so terrifying that it inspired the birth of a new genre: the survival-horror games.
As in every Third Editions' book, a video game saga is analyzed and decrypted. More than 200 pages to know everything about Resident Evil: the behind-the-scenes development, the gameplay, the story, the universe. Go back to the heart of this great saga, dive into the mysteries of Raccoon City to meet the heroes who fought the evil corporation Umbrella. The figure of the undead never ceases to fascinate.

224 pages, Hardcover

Published November 1, 2021

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About the author

Nicolas Courcier

23 books6 followers
Passionné depuis l’enfance par la presse papier, Nicolas Courcier n’a pas tardé à lancer avec Mehdi El Kanafi son premier magazine, Console Syndrome, au cours de l’année 2004. Après cinq numéros à la distribution limitée à la région toulousaine, il décide de créer avec Mehdi une maison d’édition du même nom. Un an plus tard, la petite entreprise sera rachetée par Pix’n Love, éditeur leader sur le marché des ouvrages consacrés au médium du jeu vidéo. Au cours de ces quatre années dans le monde de l’édition, Nicolas aura édité plus de vingt ouvrages consacrés à des séries phares, dont il aura lui-même corédigé un grand nombre : Zelda. Chroniques d’une saga légendaire, Metal Gear Solid. Une œuvre culte de Hideo Kojima et La Légende Final Fantasy VII et IX. Depuis 2015, il poursuit sa démarche éditoriale articulée autour de l’analyse des grandes sagas du jeu vidéo au sein de la nouvelle maison d’édition cofondée avec Mehdi : Third.

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Community Reviews

5 stars
13 (28%)
4 stars
17 (37%)
3 stars
9 (20%)
2 stars
6 (13%)
1 star
0 (0%)
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
Profile Image for Joel B.
227 reviews6 followers
December 18, 2021
I enjoyed this as a massive fan of the games, the parts dedicated to the original games was brilliant and very detailed.

I though there would be more information on the games characters and creatures more but was satisfied with the great history and detailed analysis for the games.

I was very disappointed that this book was released in 2021 but doesn’t include the two newest entries of the series which have rejuvenated the series greatly and would add more depth to the this book.

The failure to include the newest games is preventing me making this four stars.

A great read for fans of the game though, and in 2022 I will be re-playing the games in order after this book has awakened my nostalgia for the best game series ever made!!!!
Profile Image for Rob  Robinson.
10 reviews
March 30, 2022
I don’t usually write reviews; however, I am a pretty big fan of the first 4 Resident Evil games (1-CV) so I feel like I should justify my scoring.

For a fan of the series this book starts out quite strong and comes across as a decent read and I probably would have given it a 3 star rating. What really got to me were the inaccuracies which are described around key events of the game - I.e. the book states there is a STARS Delta team in the RE0 synopsis and then (probably my biggest peeve) states that Chief Irons meets his demise by getting eaten by zombies - whereas his character and death are probably the most memorable in both the original and the remake.

The book starts to drag at the half way point and really just starts talking about the genre in general, then tipping away from RE further and it comes across as if they’re trying to fill page space - that’s what ultimately let it down for me; it just starts talking about other games that are the same genre and off cuff relating them to Resident Evil, as well as nebulous discussion points and in the end just comes across as a really drawn out essay. It also fails to mention RE2 remake and the newer VII and VIII games, despite this being the 3rd edition; revised around November 2021.

If you’re a fan of the series it’s probably going to be more of an item you have in your collection as opposed to a book you’ll revisit. Although there were some cool facts that I learned about my fav series, I really had to push through to finish it.
54 reviews
October 27, 2022
I'd expected a better and more thorough study of the first 7-9 RESIDENT EVIL games but sadly the authors didn't pull through.

There's no proper analysis or interpretation of the games or franchise as a whole - on the other hand, the book is extremely superficial and repetitive. Some chapters revert to name dropping of other games and films in rather than examining the RE story thoroughly and explaining its popularity.

The authors only explain the games in term of their immediate function (they are scary!) - they never bring them into a wider social context. Actually, the authors claim that the games don't have any social significance and there's no message buried in them, ready to be dug out.

Quite disappointed!
Profile Image for Persy.
1,085 reviews26 followers
June 30, 2023
The most interesting thing about this book was the history leading up to the game franchise’s development in various stages.

It kind of felt like I was reading the jumbled notes of a Resident Evil super fan (in particular during the section that gave a rundown of the RE universe) and less like a cohesive book.

Overall, I think this book had a lot of great pieces but was lacking in cohesion and was just a bit of a struggle to get through.
Profile Image for Myles.
236 reviews3 followers
May 20, 2022
Ive read a few books on the development behind the RE series and survival horror as a genre and this ranks among some of the best. Enjoyed learning about different inspirations for the games and the authors thoughts on the survival horror genre as a whole. A must for horror fans.
Profile Image for Aerith.
257 reviews4 followers
April 3, 2023
I‘m a resident evil girl and after playing the re4remake I was desperate
1 review
October 12, 2023
For all fans of the saga, this book is essential. It gives a detailed account of Shinji Mikami's life and career in video games, the evolution of the Resident Evil games (difficulties, successes, gameplay...), the saga's storyline, derivative products... In short, a real treat that can even encourage and advise those who want to get into the video game business.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews