Best Resident Evil Games for PS5 & PS4

Why it's here: Leon and Claire's night in Raccoon City is the remake that got everything right: the over-the-shoulder camera, the police station as a lock-and-key puzzle box, and Mr. X walking the halls while you decide what to leave behind. Steam reviewers do flag the trimmed story beats and a second scenario that repeats more than it varies. At 4.77 from 114,401 players it is the highest-rated Resident Evil on PlayStation, and the one I would hand someone who wants to know why this series matters.

Why it's here: The 2023 remake keeps the village, the castle and the parasite-riddled crowd of the original, then tightens the knife parry and the merchant economy around them. Player reviews single out the combat and the replay modes; the recurring complaint is the microtransactions bolted onto an otherwise complete game, plus an AI Ashley who still needs minding. With 144,667 ratings at 4.74 it has the largest positive sample here. Take it if you want the series at its most confident.

Why it's here: This is the 2002 remake in high definition, and it remains the purest expression of what the series was before it discovered shoulder aiming. The Spencer Mansion is one interlocking puzzle, and ammunition is a decision rather than a resource. Steam reviewers keep returning to the atmosphere while flagging the dated controls, the inventory limits and the backtracking. At 4.71 from 105,343 players, it is worth the adjustment period if you want survival horror unsoftened.

Why it's here: The original is still on PS4, and playing it explains how much the remake had to live up to. Leon's rescue mission invented the over-the-shoulder template that half of modern action games borrowed, and reviewers still praise the pacing and the attache case inventory. They also note the aged controls and an Ashley who tries the patience. At 4.76 from 48,356 players it holds up, and it plays differently enough from the 2023 version to justify owning both.

Why it's here: Moving to first person and a Louisiana farmhouse was the reset the series needed, and the Baker family is the most genuinely frightening thing Capcom has built. Reviews praise the atmosphere and the return to scarcity; the consistent complaints are the sluggish movement, the underwhelming boss fights and a runtime shorter than the games around it. 4.64 from 64,775 players. Start here if what you want from horror is fear rather than firefights.

Why it's here: Village is the most approachable door into the series: first person like RE7, but built around four distinct set pieces and a cast of memorable antagonists rather than one long farmhouse. Reviews praise the variety and the production; the recurring note is that it trades RE7's dread for action, and that the resource economy can pinch. It is included with PS Plus Extra, which makes it a no-cost way in. 4.64 from 64,902 players.

Why it's here: The 1999 original is on PS Plus Premium as a PlayStation Classic, and it still has everything the 2020 remake cut: the clock tower, the live-selection choices made under pressure, and a Nemesis who turns up where he is not wanted rather than on cue. Fixed cameras and tank controls come with it. At 4.75 from 10,633 ratings it is the highest-rated classic-era entry in our catalogue, and the cheapest way to see what the argument is about.

Why it's here: The 2020 remake is the most divided entry here, and the split is not really about quality. Reviewers consistently praise the dodge mechanic, the visuals and Jill and Carlos themselves, then just as consistently object to how much of the original was cut and how linear what remains feels. 4.41 from 81,225 players is the lowest score among the modern remakes. Take it as a sharp, compact weekend rather than a full survival horror campaign.

Why it's here: Code: Veronica X is the entry most people skip and the one carrying the most plot: it closes the Claire and Chris thread that RE2 opened and sets up nearly everything the series later does with Wesker. It is late-era fixed-camera design, so expect the same inventory arithmetic as the classics without the mansion's tidy structure. 4.53 from 8,600 ratings. Worth it if you care where the story goes, less so as a first stop.

Why it's here: RE0 is the prequel that hands you two characters at once and asks you to manage both inventories, which is either the best puzzle idea of the classic era or the most tedious. Reviews land on both sides: the atmosphere and the dual-character puzzles draw praise, while the removal of item boxes and the backtracking it causes draw the loudest complaints. 4.57 from 23,291 players. Come to it after the 2002 remake, not before.

Why it's here: RE5 is where the series became a shooter, and it is the best two-player campaign Capcom has made in it. The sentiment splits by platform in a way worth knowing: Steam reviewers praise the co-op action, while PlayStation reviews are harder on the glitches, the clunky movement and the near-total absence of horror. 4.56 from 35,228 players. Bring a second person, because the AI partner is the single most criticized thing in the review record.

Why it's here: Revelations began life on a handheld and the structure shows it: short chapters aboard the Queen Zenobia, cut with detours that reviewers say break the pacing. What survives the port is the ship itself, singled out as one of the better settings in the series, plus a weapon upgrade system and a Raid mode with real replay value. 4.53 from 9,800 ratings. Good in short sittings, weaker as one continuous story.

Why it's here: Claire and Barry across four episodes, each pairing a fighter with a support character who cannot shoot straight. That dynamic is what reviewers praise most, alongside a Raid mode carrying light role-playing progression; the complaints are the technical rough edges, the episodic release that irritated people at the time, and level design that repeats. At 4.29 from 163,653 ratings it has the largest sample here and the lowest average. Play it for the pairing.

Why it's here: RE6 is the entry the series spent a decade recovering from, and this list includes it honestly rather than quietly. Four campaigns, heavy on set pieces and quick-time events, with almost none of the scarcity that defines the games above it. Reviewers who enjoy it are consistent about why: it is a chaotic co-op action game to play with a friend. The complaints are the camera, the story and the missing horror. 4.39 from 42,284 players.