The concept of a safe room isn’t just limited to wealthy folks and fans of the 2002 thriller film Panic Room by David Fincher. Gamers who enjoy the survival horror genre will be well-acquainted with the concept. And while not every scary game has them, when they are available, they offer much-needed escapes from the horrors trying to kill you.
That’s why it was alarming when, in a preview of the game, Official Xbox Magazine mistakenly led people to believe that safe rooms wouldn’t be able to protect you in the upcoming Resident Evil 3 remake.
The misunderstanding was completely understandable. In Resident Evil 3, Nemesis, the large, terrifying, and originally titular villain, will smash through doors in his endless pursuit of the player. In OXM’s preview, the editor described evading Nemesis while in a room with a typewriter. In the Resident Evil series, typewriters are used to save your progress and they’re typically found in safe rooms. Typically being the keyword here.
I think you can see where the misunderstanding stemmed from. The presence of the typewriter led to a knee-jerk assumption that the player was in a safe room when Nemesis attacked and gamers the world over were suddenly hoping that was shepherd’s pie in their knickers. The truth, however, is that typewriters can also be located in places other than safe rooms, which is what’s going on here.
So no, in OXM’s preview, they were not in a safe room when Nemesis attacked. And yes, according to clarification on the part of Official Xbox Magazine and GamesRadar+, safe rooms are indeed safe. Nemesis will not be able to enter them, much less smash through the door, so everyone can sleep easy in their beds knowing that there will be some form of reprieve from the flamethrower-wielding bioweapon.
Fans of the Resident Evil franchise will know that music plays a large role in determining whether or not the player is safe. Music always plays a big part in horror, be it video games or film, and in Resident Evil different music cues can indicate whether or not a player is currently in danger.
The fact that such a seemingly minor (supposed) tweak to a video game caused such a frenzy is a testament to just how popular this franchise is and how excited gamers are for the upcoming remake. Or is it REmake? Or – and just hear me out on this – does it even matter in the slightest?
I’ll be right there, screaming along with you all, when Resident Evil 3 hits PC, Playstation 4, and Xbox One on April 3.
