The 3DS campaign of Resident Evil Revelations has three difficulty settings: CASUAL, NORMAL and HELL. You can pick Casual or Normal on your first run. Hell stays locked until you finish the story and claim one mission reward. Raid Mode has its own three settings, and they're covered at the end.
Which difficulty to pick first
The difficulty screen describes each setting in one line:
| Difficulty | Description in the game | Available |
|---|---|---|
| CASUAL | Provides a slight challenge. | From the start |
| NORMAL | Provides a hearty challenge. | From the start |
| HELL | Tests the limits of your sanity. | After the Final Chapter mission reward |
Pick Normal if you have played a Resident Evil game before. A Normal clear also completes the Casual mission, so you still get the Casual reward. Pick Casual if you are new to the series, if you play in short sessions on the go, or if you want to go for the Aloof Challenger mission, which asks you to finish without using herbs. Casual is enough for that one, so it is the easiest place to try it.
Either choice gets you to Hell. The Final Chapter mission only asks you to clear Episodes 10 - 12 and does not name a difficulty.
How to unlock Hell
Hell comes from a mission reward. Finishing the story alone won't add it to the difficulty list:
- Play the campaign through Episode 12, The Queen Is Dead.
- Go back to the title menu and open MISSIONS.
- Find the Final Chapter mission, "Clear Episodes 10 - 12," and claim its reward. It unlocks Raid Mode Stages 18 to 20, the Bonus Stage and HELL difficulty.
- Start a campaign again and choose HELL on the DIFFICULTY screen.
If Hell still isn't on the list after the credits, the reward usually hasn't been claimed yet. A finished mission is marked complete, but the unlock only happens when you take the reward. The other campaign and Raid unlocks work the same way, and the full list is on the missions page.
For a Hell run, start it from NEW GAME+. The title menu sums it up as "Start a new game with all your old weapons and equipment," so the guns and custom parts you built up on Casual or Normal come with you.
What changes on Hell
The main changes on Hell:
- Enemies hit harder and take more damage before they go down, so ammo runs out faster.
- The wire puzzle on the electrical panels uses harder layouts.
- Hunters are more likely to use their instant-kill attack.
- Illegal Custom Parts turn up. The game calls them a "Rare case containing strong parts for firearm customization."
- Extra Ammo Cases are placed in the episodes. Normal has Ammo Cases too. Hell just puts out more of them.
The S, A and B clear-time targets are the same on all three settings, so the times on our S-rank times page apply on Hell too.
Rewards for clearing each difficulty
Each setting has its own mission in the Missions menu. "Or higher" means a harder clear also completes the easier missions, so one Hell clear covers Casual, Normal and Hell at once.
| Mission | Requirement in the game | Reward |
|---|---|---|
| CASUAL Cleared | Clear CASUAL difficulty or higher | Custom Parts Charge Shot 3 |
| NORMAL Cleared | Clear NORMAL difficulty or higher | Shotgun Hydra |
| HELL Cleared | Clear HELL difficulty | Infinite Rocket Launcher |
| Aloof Challenger | Clear CASUAL difficulty or higher without using herbs or the Infinite Rocket Launcher | Custom Parts Auto Loader |
All four rewards are for the campaign, not Raid Mode. The Infinite Rocket Launcher is the one that changes later runs the most, but using it rules out Aloof Challenger. If you want the Auto Loader, do the no-herb clear before you earn the launcher, or just leave it in the box. Details of the Hydra and both rocket launchers are on the weapons page.
Raid Mode difficulties: CHASM, TRENCH and ABYSS
Raid Mode doesn't use Casual, Normal or Hell. It has its own three settings, and each one opens from a mission:
| Raid difficulty | How it opens | Clear reward |
|---|---|---|
| CHASM | Available once Stages 1 to 7 open (Chapter 1 mission) | CHASM Cleared: TRENCH difficulty and a new outfit |
| TRENCH | Clear all stages on CHASM, then claim the CHASM Cleared reward | TRENCH Cleared: ABYSS difficulty and a new outfit |
| ABYSS | Clear all stages on TRENCH, then claim the TRENCH Cleared reward | ABYSS Cleared: a new outfit |
Raid stages open from the campaign's chapter missions, so finish the story and claim all four chapter rewards before you work through a full difficulty. Across Stages 1 to 20, enemy levels run from 1 to 19 on CHASM, 17 to 35 on TRENCH and 36 to 50 on ABYSS, where 50 is the player level cap. The Bonus Stage stays at level 1. An S rank on every stage of a difficulty earns an Honor color. Stage names and levels are on the Raid Mode page, and the level gap that makes higher stages hurt is explained on the co-op page.
Hell on 3DS and Infernal in HD
Revelations HD dropped Hell and added Infernal, which moves enemies and items around and hides Legendary Custom Parts. Hell, the Illegal Custom Parts and the HELL Cleared mission are only on 3DS. The full comparison is on our 3DS vs HD page.