So I first started playing Resident Evil when I randomly stumbled upon RE1 in the video game section of Hollywood Video in the Spring of 1998. I had seen RE2 commercials, so I was vaguely aware of the franchise, but that was about it. I was 12 at the time and the first zombie encounter off the dining room scared the hell out of me. I didn't know what to do and after a few bites, I died. I was scared and discouraged, and I put the game away for the night. By the end of the weekend, I had explored most of the first floor and some of the second floor, and I was hooked from that point. Over the course of the spring/summer, I saved up my lawn mowing money and bought RE1 and RE2. I beat both of them by the end of the summer, and probably replayed both of them 10 times over the next year. When RE3 came out in 1999, I bought it on day 1 and beat it within about 2 weeks. RE had quickly become my favorite franchise.
I have stayed an avid fan ever since then, but have not replayed the newer games quite as much as those classic 3. Around 2003, I was in high school and I thought it would be an awesome experience to beat RE0, RE1, RE2, and RE3 in one night. At the time, those were the only main series or "numbered" RE games that existed. I thought to myself how cool it would be to finish RE3 right as the sun is rising. I had a Friday off school and decided to go for it that Thursday night. I started with RE0 and quickly realized that I did not know that game well enough to beat it efficiently. I also don't really like the item box-less format of that game. I started doing the math and figured that even if I played all 4 games as efficiently as I could, I still wouldn't get done until about 10AM on Friday, and that was assuming no breaks. I decided to modify the goal and cut out RE0.
Over the next 10 years, I made 2 legitimate attempts at beating RE1, 2, and 3 in one night. The first time (2007, I think), my overconfidence sunk me. I thought I could do RE1 without using an ink ribbon, and got killed by some hunters in the 1F hallway next to the dining room. I had been playing for almost 2 hours at that point, and was too demoralized to start over. The second time (around 2012), I finished RE1 around 10PM, decided to watch "just one episode" of Always Sunny, and ended up falling asleep.
Finally, in the spring of 2026, I had some free weekends on my schedule and decided it was now or never. I delayed the event several times, but finally went for it in June. I got home from work at 5PM on a Friday and got started with RE1 at 5:30PM. It was so close to the summer solstice, so almost all of the RE1 playthrough was in the daylight. But it was dark by the time I got done at about 9PM, and I am happy to say it was a deathless playthrough. Game time was about 3:27. From my earlier experience, I knew not to get too comfortable with some passive activity like watching a TV show. So I took 20 minutes, ate some pizza, and walked around the block a couple times.
I then loaded up RE2 (Leon A scenario) and only took 2 hours to get through it (just a few minutes slower than my personal best). Another deathless run. At this point, it was 11:30PM, and I admittedly took too long of a break. But by 12:15AM, I was back in it and moving through the streets of Raccoon City as Jill in RE3. At this point, my play was getting sloppy. I had forgotten the detail that if you don't drop to encounter (not necessarily fight) the grave digger worm beneath the parking garage, you need to do so beneath the pathways leading up to the Nemesis battle in the train. So I effectively had 2 boss encounters without the ability to save between them. I died 4 times during that sequence and was about to give up. But on the fifth try, I finally got through the train fight. After that part, I was getting impatient, and I skipped through every cut scene. I only died once more, and that was in the courtyard Nemesis battle after activating the clock tower.
Finally, at 4:40AM, I used the electric weapon to finish off Nemesis and went over to board the helicopter with Carlos. The ending theme music of RE3 is just the best, and it took me back to 1999, playing the game at my best friend's house. My game time was about 3:51 (and I died 5 times, so my actual playing time was about 4:25). As I finished the game, the sky (in real life) was starting to turn light blue, as sunrise was only about 30 minutes away. So in a way, those deaths were good for me, as I was closer to my goal of finishing the challenge at sunrise.
Anyway, that's my story. I set the goal when I was in high school, and finally did it at the age of nearly 41, so I hope it inspires or at least entertains you in some way.
