Resident Evil Outbreak brought back online in Japan by fans

A group of Resident Evil fans have managed to pull PlayStation 2 titles Resident Evil Outbreak and Resident Evil Outbreak: File #2 back online in Japan through a private server.

Known as the Outbreak Server, the project is "an effort to create a functional alternate sever" for both games. The server offers online lobbies and games, while support for different game modes in File #2, such as Nightmare or Boys Only, was recently added.

To play, users will need a copy of either title and a PlayStation 2 capable of running Japanese region games. According to the server's Frequently Asked Questions page, servers in other regions aren't completely out of the question, but would be difficult to get running.

"Although we hope that we will be able to create servers that will work with the NTSC/U and PAL versions of the game, we do not have packet captures for those versions," the FAQ reads. "The NTSC/U and PAL versions used the SNAP service, while Japanese versions used KDDI. Reverse engineering a server without packet captures is difficult and time consuming."

The server will work with an emulator, but organizers will not tolerate piracy. For more on the Outbreak Sever, check out the FAQ.