‘Resident Evil 2’: Should You Play As Leon or Claire First?

True to Resident Evil form, the recently released Resident Evil 2 remake offers two major paths to chose from: Claire or Leon. Both offer phenomenal stories that intertwine with one another, but which one is worth tackling first? After all, you can’t unlock Hunk or Tofu until both are completed!

But what’s the difference and how do you decide which one should be first? Here’s a small breakdown before you get started!

Story

Both routes are different from one another. Though overall the picture is still a zombie-ridden narrative, Leon and Claire’s adventure is very different. Since Leon is a cop rookie, his narrative is more in-line with investigating what went wrong on his way to the precinct. Claire, on the other hand, is about her family — her brother in particular — and her need to protect. Both start at the same place and end in the same place, but the creamy filling in the middle? Totally different.

Different Paths

The areas are the same — same city, buildings, etc — but each character has their own individual objective. Leon’s main objective isn’t Claire’s, so a few of the areas won’t be pertinent to her involvement.

Characters

No spoilers, promise, even though there’s one scene I desperately want to talk about: Because Claire and Leon have two different storylines, both will come across different characters along the way. Or, when they do meet the same people, the interactions will be totally different. This also adds to the incentive of playing both storylines, because you’re only getting half of the juicy details.

Combat

Leon is a cop, so he’s going to have more weapons at his disposal, though Claire isn’t without her fair share of fire arms. She also gets a sick grenade launcher, which Hell yeah!

Overall Differences

If you want the full story, you really should play both. For fans of the classic experience, I’d recommend going the Leon route first but if you want a more gutteral, relatable experience – Claire is the way to go. Her drive to find her family is admirable and to me, adds a whole new layer of terror to this horror game.

Resident Evil 2 is now available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. You can also check out our full review right here!