After almost 30 years of life, Resident Evil is one of the longest running franchises in video game history. With dozens and dozens of works including games, movies, comics, novels and even plays, among all of these there are some that have become divisive topics of debate. Resident Evil: Code Veronica he is one of them, and now he has the golden opportunity to win everyone’s love.
Depends on who you ask, Code Veronica is either a classic or proof that the classic tanky formula of the series needed a makeover. Earning rave reviews upon its release, the Dreamcast and later PS2 game has cultivated detractors over the years, who brand it as not very innovative, absurd and sometimes even badly designed. If you ask me, I think it’s a bit 50-50.
With all the notoriety that Claire Redfield’s adventure has, I find it a solid game and, also, one step back as for some of the novelties that Nemesis brought with it. when i played it, the graphic leap Compared to the third installment of the franchise, I was blown away, I liked its more cinematic presentation, and, as a pure of the saga, I didn’t mind that it looked more like RE2 than RE3.
Even so, it must be admitted that its story deviates greatly from the essence of the saga, its design can leave you better seller than usual by missing out on very powerful weapons and some gameplay improvements are missing. Now, can (and should) Capcom save this installment in 2023?
In this year, we are already more than accustomed to the madness of the Resident Evil saga. Having seen werewolves, vamps, machines, killer mold and Chris swinging rocks with his fists at the time was a somewhat bizarre plot (with Wesker to the Matrix and everything), now it is a bit of a daily bread with the Capcom franchise. As bizarre as the plot of this video game was, it sows several seeds in the development of the franchise, and it could even be expanded to better connect with the rest of the saga. It’s the perfect opportunity to delve deeper into Umbrella, something I think should be taken advantage of.
However, I believe that the Japanese company has a very big challenge before him, and he’s going to have to face it sooner or later: how can he make this title without it seeming, again, derivative of the Resident Evil 2 and 3 remakes? After all, not only the plot matters here, but the gameplay, and the format that the previous remakes used no longer works. I think that is precisely the reason why he decided to go directly to 4: do not saturate the players with survival horrors in the third person, but I would not rule out that they are already looking for ways to make something as faithful as new for other installments.
Honestly, I’d be shocked if Capcom continued to ignore Code Veronica in their zeal to recreate her story, and I don’t think Resident Evil 5 or any of the spin-offs will be next. This is the brand’s golden opportunity to turn the remakes into a new phase of its history instead of a mere recreation of its legacy. In the future, Resident Evil: Code Veronica, with the proper approach, can be the most ambitious remake of this new era.
