A great survival horror game.
Graphics 9/10
At the time of its release I was impressed with the graphical design. Looking back it might not seem much, but at that time it was a true adventure, a action-packed one, that is. The most positive thing to comment are definitely the movie sequences which give you the feeling of creepiness and horror, usualy before an action sequence or ending boss.
Sound 8/10
Sounds are pretty ok, the monsters make a variety of sounds you wish you rather not be hearing, not because they sound bad, but because they mean your doom. The music is not that memorable.
Story 10/10
The story of Resident evil 3 is the story of the Resident evil franchise, or, at least, its first chapter, Raccoon city. An infestion that mutated the entire city into zombies and other vile creatures and you as the only (or one of the few) survivors must try to make your way out. In Resident evil 3, unlike in RE2, you have only have one campain, for Jill Valentive (although for a short time you will play as Carlos, an umbrella mercenary, while trying to rescue Jill). The subtitle Nemesis stands for the mutated experimental creature you will have to face several times thoughout the game. The point is, either you like the setting, or you don't, if you do you will consider the story great, although it could have been put in a less linear way, like in RE2, though different campaigns.
Gameplay 8/10
The gameplay was solid for its time. The main negative was the fact you did not aim you gun directly, but rather the character aimed it for you at the nearest enemy or object, which in combination with the, sometimes horrible, camera angles led to ineffectivness of gun use in a game which depends upon guns and ammo for survival. Still eventhough many might frown because of the bad camera angles and the fact that a lot of times you could not see what was before you until it was too late, nobody can disrupt the fact that it made the game more fearful and full of horror, and that's what survival horror is about. Unlike the RE4 and 5 games, which are very good in fact - very good action shooters, but not survival horror games.
Replayability 9/10
The game itself is definitely replay able. It features a different ending upon some of the choices you make and headshooting zombies with a magnum is as fun the first time around as it is the second time around. A special time challenge mode as well as other modes keep the fun going even after finishing the main quest.
All in all, eventhough RE4 and 5 are great new action (not survival horror) games and RE2 and 1 are definitely classics, still I consider RE3 to be the best in the series. That, and Jill looks very nice (although highly unpractical for a zombie ridden city) in a blue tube top and short skirt :).