Given the recent leaks of the Resident Evil 3 Remake's cover art, fans can rejoice in the confirmation of its development, as this classic survival-horror will finally obtain a contemporary face-lift. By looking at the ways in which Capcom remade Resident Evil 2 by drawing out the traits that made its original formula a frightening classic, it's possible to envision what may also be in store for a contemporary remake of Resident Evil 3.
First, it is important to define what made Resident Evil 3 unique and different from the rest, in order to try and imagine what a contemporary remake might behold. It goes without saying that the Nemesis is still considered by many fans to be one of the most iconic villains in the Resident Evil series. After all, its name is included in the original title: Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. While the Nemesis is constantly on the hunt for S.T.A.R.S. member Jill Valentine, it is hard to forget the Nemesis' blood curdling raspy voice as it shouts, "Stars!"
Even though the appearances of the Nemesis often seemed random in the original game, they were still scripted events triggered by particular actions and progress by the player. The developers did a superb job of creating the impression that the Nemesis had an AI system of its own, by which it could appear anywhere and at any random occasion. It created a constant sense of dread and suspense which was a very unique application the villain in its time.
Jump ahead, and perhaps one of the most dreadful aspects of Resident Evil 2 Remake was avoiding the Tyrant known as Mr. X. As he traversed Resident Evil 2Remake's settings, he seemingly demonstrated a sense of intelligence to operate on his own. It made the player feel dread and anxiety whenever they revisited an area. While Mr. X was only one component of Resident Evil 2Remake, the Nemesis completely defined Resident Evil 3's level design and core gameplay. The Resident Evil 3 maps felt completely embroiled as they essentially became the Nemesis' hunting grounds.
To say the least, it is very much expected that the remake of the Nemesis will have to rival Resident Evil 2 Remake's Mr. X, or the game would fall short of recreating the key ingredient that defined Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. As Resident Evil 3 completely revolves around the Nemesis, it is the ingredient which most strongly distinguishes it from Resident Evil 2 and its successors.
If there is one game that may allow someone to vividly imagine how Capcom may design a brand-new living and breathing Nemesis, it may be Creative Assembly's Alien: Isolation. Similarly to Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, Alien: Isolation was designed around the concept of exploring a large sized map that was essentially one large hunting ground for the alien creature. The player had to sneak around the map solving puzzles and completing tasks, knowing that crossing paths with the alien at any random moment was a possibility and potentially an instant death.
The developers designed Alien: Isolation's creature with a deep AI system, by which it would crawl the entirety of the map and explore its various shafts, corridors and rooms using its sense of surroundings and distinguished rule-sets. Though there were particular parts of the game where its appearances were scripted for special events, most of it was not programmed in this manner. The developers let loose this morbid creature to naturally explore the game's maps unhinged, with or without the player's presence.
Alien: Isolation's enemy dynamics are essentially similar in the objective that Capcom was likely setting out to create in the best way possible when they created the original Resident Evil 3. Due to the technological limitations of that era, they had to make due with a Nemesis whose appearances were orchestrated and triggered. However, it seemingly felt random to the player's senses at times.
Seeing what Capcom gave us with Mr. X in the Resident Evil 2Remake, it can be strongly deduced that the Nemesis will comprise an even greater depth of artificial intelligence in comparison to any of Resident Evil's enemies to date. It would be necessary in order for Resident Evil 3Remake's Nemesis to distinguish itself from Resident Evil 2Remake's Mr. X, and uniquely distinguish itself based on the very formula that strongly defined the game originally.
The design of the Nemesis also brings into focus the overall differences in the maps and level design of the second and third Resident Evil games. Clearly, Resident Evil 3's maps were designed to be the Nemesis' hunting grounds. Though both games take place in Raccoon City, Resident Evil 2's maps were much more segregated between the different locations.
In Resident Evil 3, the outdoor areas - Uptown and Downtown - were more expansive in size and felt more like a central hub between the areas. It gave players a more complete picture of Raccoon City's dilapidated streets as they explored its outdoors, while trying to stay clear of the Nemesis. Clearly, Capcom designed the maps around the concept of the Nemesis, in order to exemplify the feeling of being lost in a big city with an overly powerful monstrosity hunting the player.
Considering that Resident Evil 2 Remake offered new locations, rooms and increased the overall map size in comparison to the original, it would come as a surprise if Resident Evil 3Remake did not also offer a far more vast version of Raccoon City's outdoors to navigate. While it is unlikely to be turned into an open world, there is certainly more room for interconnected locations and a hub map, with the Nemesis traversing the settings on a constant hunt.
Given that Resident Evil 2 added more depth in the way the players manipulated the environment, it would make sense that Resident Evil 3 expands upon this in order to strengthen the player's survival against the Nemesis. For example, in Resident Evil 2 Remake, players were introduced with new environmental innovations, such as nailing wooden boards to windows in order to keep zombies from infiltrating particular areas.
In a title such as Resident Evil 3, where the gameplay revolves around survival against the Nemesis in a hostile environment, it would make perfect sense to offer various ways to manipulate or interact with the surroundings in order to increase the chances of survival. This could possibly include more hiding spots within the environments, the ability to setup traps or various types of barricades, and more paths for exploration to avoid encounters with the Nemesis. That may include sneaking through ventilation ducts or taking other types of alternative routes. Alien: Isolation and other exploration horror games such as the Outlast and Amnesia series capitalized upon these stealth-based dynamics and stipulations which were a focal point of the gameplay.
Resident Evil 3Remake could certainly include stealth aspects too, such as avoiding certain terrain that causes noise. For example, one may need to avoid stepping on broken glass or anything that could make noise and draw the Nemesis' attention. Drawing inspiration from Alien: Isolation, there is potential for sound to play a larger role in the player's self-awareness of their footprint on the game environment.
The original Resident Evil 3 differentiated itself from the original second game by its usage of mixing ammo types. However, Resident Evil 2 Remake also added mixing ammo and the utilization of sub-weapons into the gameplay. It would make sense to take this a step further than the Resident Evil 2Remake, and offer deeper customization for weapons and sub-weapon types in order to keep the Nemesis in check. This makes even more sense when considering how the Nemesis constantly evolves and becomes stronger. As the Nemesis increases its strength, it would be a natural fit if Jill could strengthen her abilities and arsenal as well.
The original Resident Evil 3 also allowed Jill Valentine to dodge attacks, suggesting that agility was one of her strengths in comparison to Resident Evil 2's playable characters. Capcom could take this concept a step further, offering more ways to outsmart and outmaneuver the Nemesis using agility within the environmental surroundings.
Additionally, one of the most talked about features missing in Resident Evil 3 was the lack of a second campaign in which the player can take control of another character. Though Resident Evil 3 was unique in its own right, there are still a number of players who felt the game came up slightly short in comparison to Resident Evil 2's dual campaigns. This made Resident Evil 3 seem smaller in size to some fans.
While it is impossible to predict Capcom's position on this particular issue, Resident Evil 2 Remake did offer some noticeable additions to playable characters in comparison to the original. Within the main campaign, there were entire level segments allowing players to temporarily take control of characters such as Ada and Sherry. It would not be surprising if similar additions were made in Resident Evil 3 Remake. Furthermore, now that Carlos appears to be a main character on the leaked cover art, there is always the  possibility that he will have his own playable campaign alongside Jill's.
This may be a long shot, but given the evolution of the Resident Evil series since the third game, it cannot be completely ruled out that Nemesis will become playable to a degree. There have been a number of Resident Evil games in recent times which have allowed players to take control of villainous monstrosities.
This included Resident Evil 6's Predator Mode which allowed players to take control of the Ustanak. The Agent Hunt mode allowed players to control various creatures as well. With such an iconic villain as the Nemesis, a game mode allowing players to control it would be a welcome addition. Furthermore, one of the leaked cover-art photographs is labeled "Z Version", and exclusively portrays the Nemesis taking up the entirety of the photo. It is entirely possible that this could signal some sort of game mode starring the Nemesis. Then again, it may not.
Until Capcom makes any further announcements, fans will just need to wait and see how this turns out. Resident Evil 2 Remake was largely developed by drawing upon the original game's most inspiring aspects. If Capcom develops the Resident Evil 3 Remake in similar fashion, it is probably safe to assume that some of the above speculations will likely come into fruition in some form. Until then, there is plenty of room to rejoice over the confirmed development of the Resident Evil 3 Remake and all the possibilities it may entail.
The Resident Evil 3 Remake is rumored to be in development.