Resident Evil is one of the most popular video game series of all time for a number of reasons, not least among which is the somewhat non-linear structure of play. Although certain items have to be found before other areas can be explored, that's literally the extent of linearity in this game. As a result, the replay value, while not as great as some other games, is incredible. Another contributing factor to the replay value is that Capcom, in their infinite wisdom, decided that between a shorter game and one that makes the player feel as if there is no way to win, the shorter game is preferable. Not that this is much of a factor where Code Veronica is concerned. This game is long. Longer than Titanic, longer than The Godfather Part II, this is one piece of televisual entertainment that you cannot easily get tired of. It is also of substantially better quality than just about anything that the rest of the video game industry has cranked out lately. That, in and of itself, does not make it a perfect game, but it is oh so very close.
Unlike previous entries in the series, the game only offers one path through the myriad of mazes. This limits the replay factor somewhat compared to Resident Evil 1 and 2, but this is an aside. Compared to some other video games that lose all their thrill as soon as one completes them, Code Veronica is like the classics of old, such as Jumpman or Impossible Mission. Flawed in their own ways, but still the preferred choice. Unlike Jumpman or Impossible Mission, however, Code Veronica grips the player in this almost unshakable manner because of its storyline. Indeed, once one has grown tired of fighting the nth zombie or Hunter, the thing that keeps the player going is anticipation of the next cutscene. Indeed, it is this anticipation that keeps the player playing in spite of some flawed moments such as a trap that can instantly kill your character and send you right back to the start, or programmers getting a little too enthusiastic with the mutant spawn.
The voice acting is, as you might expect, terrible. Half the lines sound as if they were recorded through a public address system. I don't know who delivered Steve Burnside's dialogue, but he alternates between sounding seventeen and seven years old, often within the same line. Richard Waugh, on the other hand, absolutely shines as the voice of Albert Wesker. Bringing to mind images of a not-so-friendly David Bowie, the voice-over is totally consistent with the character - smooth, calm, totally in control. It's just a shame that the character models in the game do not even come close to being in sync with their voiceovers. Not that this is terribly important in a video game, but it does distract at times. Nonetheless, a quick listen to all the cutscenes will leave one in little doubt as to why Waugh is one of the few alumni of the Resident Evil series to have attained any work outside of video games.
The gameplay, aside from the aforementioned moments when the programmers got carried away with traps or icky blob monsters, is fairly smooth. Getting used to the way characters in the Resident Evil games move is a little time-consuming, but the investment of time is well worth it. The real meat of a Resident Evil game, as any player will tell you, is inventory management. Throughout the game, one only has a small number of spaces to put items in, and one must constantly balance between two elements. These being pieces of the puzzle and weapons. Yes, the monsters encountered often resemble a cavalcade of B-movie escapees, but often the fun comes from discovering their origins. I don't think it is really revealing anything to say that the games wear their Night Of The Living Dead influence on their sleeve, anyway. Counting all the B-movie influences to be found in this Resident Evil is almost as much fun as playing the game.
If I were giving Resident Evil: Code Veronica X a score out of ten, it would be nine. Some of it is less fun than the player has a right to expect, while most of it is so much more than the competition has delivered in the past ten years. Those new to the series might be better off getting an old copy of the PlayStation or PC versions of the original, but for those who are somewhat familiar with the Resident Evil universe, this is pure gold.
