I've enjoyed reading the various RE retrospectives that I've read around the web. I've been a huge fan of RE since day 1, too, so I thought I'd offer mine.
RE1
My first encounter with RE happened on a demo disc that my buddy had for his PS. Looking back, now, that demo disc could easily be ranked the greatest demo disc of all time. It had demos of RE, Twisted Metal, Mortal Kombat and others during a time when 3D graphics were revolutionary and new games and systems were just starting to trickle into the public. I never played a demo as much as that one.
At any rate, I didn't own a PS1 for a few years, but I absolutely had to play this game, so I pecked at it when I could by renting or borrowing it and playing it at my friend's house. It held this mystique over me: so fun to play, so hard to pin down and spend time with. This game eventually led me to cave in and betray my Nintendo fanboyism at the time when I bought my first ever non-Nintendo console just so I could beat it.
And beat it I did, up and down, left and right. I might have even spanked it once or twice. Once I realized that killing most zombies is purely optional I was able to zoom around and eventually achieve the highest ranking.
What I appreciate most from RE1 are its cheesy lines, just slightly ahead of everything else that made it so great for its time. To be honest, I believe RE1 is just as revolutionary as Mario 64 for its time, in spite of its tank controls. It was groundbreaking. It created a genre. You could blow heads off of zombies.
RE2
RE2 is a great game that I played to completion, but never replayed like I did with RE1, and it's a shame. My N64 held more of a grip on me, and I kind of beat RE2 in passing. It is still memorable to me, though, as it advanced the plot and explored Raccon City a little more in depth. I hope RE2 gets a remake some day like RE1. I would play that for sure.
RE3:Nemesis
I have to admit that I never actually beat Nemesis. Nemesis, the creature itself, really turned me off. I just got tired of running into him. I reached the end of the game and gave up. I was out of ammo, and it was all because of Nemesis. I shot it in the head. I shot it in the balls. Nothing stopped it.
I see Nemesis getting some love in the press, but I am one who thought it was tacked on and rushed. It came out less than a year after RE2! I found the experience largely forgetable. To be fair, I should also reiterate that the N64 earned way more attention than my PS ever did, so most games on that system always had an uphill battle trying to keep me entertained. Like RE2, I would revisit it if it got a RE1-esque makeover.
RE:CV
I really liked CV. For me, it justified owning a Dreamcast. It was the beginning of the departure from Raccoon City for the main RE storyline, and also from static rendered backgrounds, but kept a lot of the core control and puzzle mechanics. The Dreamcast's superior specs also allowed Capcom to try and deliver a more respectable cinematic experience with less cheesiness and more passion. I still wonder if RE1's cheesiness was intentional or a result of poor localization.
At any rate, I enjoyed CV, it was my favoite RE since RE1, but it still ranks rather low overall in my personal pantheon of RE storytelling archives.
RE0
RE0 is also a respectable entry into the fold. This was the first taste of how good the soon-after released RE REmake would be. To me it felt like a send off, and thank you from Capcom who delivered an instant classic based on its roots, polished with care that could now be afforded with faster CPUs. It was new, yet old, a departing glimpse into a virtual world portrayed through fixed camera angles that we all knew would be phased out going forward.
RE:4
Need I say more? This is just an amazing game. It's greatness is proven by the fact that I played it multiple times, and I normally don't do that. Everything is so tight about that game.
Umbrella Chronicles
For me, this is the first must-play non-traditional RE game. Despite the fact that it's basically a retelling of parts of previous RE games from an on-rails light-gun perspective, the whole experience is delivered well and a lot of fun. IMO, the graphics are stunning, and very respectful of their original layout. Plus, it was coop, and I love coop! I just had a blast playing this game.
RE:5
I, for one, loved this game. I understand the criticism, but, to me anyway, it's a result of the RE franchise reaching superstar status. RE:4 just absolutely nailed it, forever cementing the franchise's fate as one that will be forever scrutinzed the likes of Mario, Halo, God of War, etc, and rightfully so. The sheer number of critics ensures a relative volume of negative dialogue in return.
Complain as they will, being the first traditional RE relased on online-enabled current-gen consoles, RE5 was expected, nay demanded to include online of some sort, and delivered what I consider a remarkably accessible online coop campaign that was a breath of fresh air from shooter-heavy squad-based Gears of War and Halo. I again played through this numerous times, the ability to carry my progress over to a new game being too tempting to pass up.
RE:Revelations
Revelations has been my favorite 3DS game so far and is worthy of comparison alongside RE4&5. How could it not be? Today's technology allows for such amazing visuals that everything post-N64/PS1/Dreamcast is in a class of it's own, including modern day handhelds. It would take a major failure for a triple A franchise to deliver anything less than high standards.
Everything about RE:R is what one would expect from a major RE release. The campaign felt a bit repetitive, retreading certain locales numerous times, but this aspect gets lost in the mix when one starts to play the minigames that send the player back to these locales again anyway. It wasn't a ground-breaker for me, but it did fine keeping the stride that RE has established for itself the past 10 years.
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I did play through the RE:1 remake and touched a couple other spin-offs over the years, but didn't feel they were noteworthy enough to mention.
I'm now playing RE6 and digging it. I'm sensing a lot of negativity in the press like I mentioned about RE5, and I'm just ignoring it and enjoying the game.
As a bonus, here's how I'd rank the RE games I've played from best to worst. Enjoy!
RE4
RE1/REmake
RE5
RE:Revelations
Umbrella Chronicles
RE0
RE:CV
RE2
RE3:Nemesis
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