That is so interesting in regards to Lisa Trevor in '96. What do you mean by they "didn't have the space for it"? Was it because it was a 32-bit and could not process it?
The most disturbing character in the RE universe would have to be either a tie between Plant 42 or the Yawn. I am referring to the Playstation one version. The creepiness of the mansion and how the Guardhouse was so unsettling. You never what was around the corner whether it be the bees at the end of one of the corridors or the spiders when you enter the pool table room.
Resident Evil 3 is far from flawless. It featured Jill Valentine in a skimpy tube-top and the supporting characters sucked. The only good that came out of was the weapons Nemesis dropped after being killed each time. Another element that I found bad was that aside from the zombies, hunters and the Cerberus dogs that were no enemies to be seen of again.
They never featured the Brain suckers or the Drain Deimos in other ones. Capcom, realized this and thus they stopped adding them.
Resident Evil 2 was by far the best one of the series. The action was pleasantly paced and Hunk and Tofu were introduced. They were bad-ass. I also loved the fact that they introduced the lickers which were by far the best monsters in the series (not including bosses). Bosses, overall (and in general) it would have to be the Yawn.
If we're talking stories, than yes the mansion was by far the best, simply because it introduced everyone to such an amazing story and Capcom is still pushing units; even after 18+ years.
What I mean by "tedious" in regards to Lisa Trevor was the area in the catacombs. The part where Chris had to get the flamethrower from one side of the caves to the other-side and she kept trying to hit him and after 3 hits your dead.
just to clarify going forward; imho = in my humble opinion.
if my memory serves me, mikami is on record saying that even with the 2 discs, there still was not enough memory (or something like that; i'm
really not an expert on this kinda stuff) to include lisa's arc as he saw fit; something they were obviously able to achieve with REmake.
personally, i was never really afraid of P42, possibly because i never actually fought it; i've always prepared the V-JOLT when i've played through the game so i never actually had to engage with P42. i also find it difficult to be afraid of something that cannot pursue me.
as far as yawn, yeah she's kinda scary, but too easy to kill for me to ever really be afraid of; just wait for her to get wrapped around something and unload. but personally, there are two sure ways to scare me into submission in a survival horror game; enemies that occupy the uncanny valley, and enemies that are essentially immortal and ever pursuant. yawn and P42 are neither. lisa trevor is both.
as for RE3..maybe you should write shinji mikami a letter on dress code ethics if you're going to let your view of the game be swayed by something so superfluous.
however, i
can agree with you on one point..carlos and the boys were pretty meh, but it serves its purpose; the game is very good at evoking despair and hopelessness, since more often than not, jill is either alone, questioning the motives of the NPC's, or in the presence of nemesis. speaking of nemesis, not only does he occupy the uncanny valley, and is ever pursuant, he takes it one step further; he outruns jill in every encounter. i have
never been more scared by
any video game than 6 year old me realizing for the first time that nemesis, unlike every other RE antagonist up to this point, cannot be outrun.
as far as RE2..i mean yeah it introduced hunk and tofu, but they weren't even in the main game. i feel like mini game characters is not something i'd personally take into account when considering what makes a game as a whole the best in a series. and yes, the lickers were cool as fck, and don't even get me started on T-00..
and coming back to lisa trevor..resident evil has always been a "tedious" game in that sense, full of backtracking to the first floor west wing to solve a puzzle that opens a door on the second floor east wing, etc. remember getting the serum for richard? it seems that again, we'll have to agree to disagree; the thing you claim to not like about the catacombs is my favorite part of them. being pursued by an immortal lisa trevor, trying to solve a puzzle as you hear her limp toward you as quickly as she can dragging her shackles, knowing that being cornered means certain death..not only does it make the situation scary as ****, it also introduces a level of difficulty i think has been lost in the more recent non-mikami RE titles. a couple pro tips for you though in that particular instance; when you first enter the catacomb lisa is in, you approach a fork. whichever way you go first, lisa will head that way from the opposite end. the best way to avoid her is to abuse this mechanic; head a couple steps up the fork one way, then sprint back around the other way to keep her at bay. also, if you don't like dying in three touches from a boss character, i don't recommend you play the game on hard difficulty; iirc, crimson heads, hunters, and lisa all kill in two swipes.