One step forward while leaving one foot firmly where it was.
The events of Code Veronica X takes place three months after the conclusion of RE3 and picks up with Claire Redfield. Claire, who first appeared in RE2, was still looking for her brother Chris (RE1), breaks into an Umbrella installation somewhere in Paris where she is captured and brought to Rockfort Island. Shortly after her arrival the island is attacked and once again an outbreak of the now famous T-Virus occurs leaving the island home to the walking dead. Once again Claire has to navigate this new nightmare with survival and escape being her main goals. About two thirds of the story are played through the eyes of Claire before switching to her brother Chris as he arrives on the same island to save her. While not necessarily advancing the Resident Evil storyline Code Veronica fills in a lot of back story and history regarding the Umbrella Corporation and the T-Virus. As before much of the back story is conveyed through files that Claire and Chris come across as they work towards survival. The main story is mostly delivered through scenes using the game engine. Clocking in at around ten hours on the first play through it's of a standard length for the series.
Gameplay wise Code Veronica is a bit of a puzzle (joke unintended). Just like all the previous RE games Code Veronica brought the same brand of survival horror to the PS2 with it's blend of combat and puzzle solving. While being released after Nemesis it is obvious it started its development cycle before. Some gameplay features found in Nemesis are present, like quick 180 turns, while others like the ability to quickly dodge incoming attacks are absent. Despite the visuals for the series making huge jumps the controls were strictly the same as previous titles. For those that are used to the previous RE titles this isn't a big deal but to newcomers or those hoping for something different the same clunky RE control scheme was back in every way. This meant that alongside the awkward movement players also got the classic six slot inventory system as well as the magic box storage bins seen in all three previous titles. Thankfully Code Veronica made some improvements to the gameplay with minor (but significant at the same time) improvements like the ability to use healing items found immediately when you were suffering from a full inventory. Weapon upgrades returned as well as side packs that increased your inventory from six slots to eight. Perhaps the most significant unique enhancement to the games combat were new dual wielded weapons which could target two foes at the same time. Once you beat the game you unlock a new battle mode in which you take control of one of the games characters as they navigate a certain set of rooms from the main games environments while they try to do so in as short a time as possible. This kind of mini game has cropped up in previous titles but the twist this time around being that you have to kill all the enemies found before you can continue to the next room.
Visually Code Veronica was a huge step forward from previous installments in the RE series. For the first time the environments were all rendered in 3d rather then using pre-rendered backgrounds. Alongside this improvement Code Veronica moved from the classic fixed camera angles to ones that actually panned around the environments as you moved through them. This preserved the artistic style of the series while making the game much nicer to look at with less changes in camera angle. As before the game took place at night but new lighting effects showed in the darkness and brought the series to a new level of visual immersion.
Sound wise there is little to say. The score isn't anything that will stick with you after playing the game but it is subdued enough to preserve the atmosphere the series was already famous for. The sounds of your footsteps echoing off concrete floors, the groans of the dead, and the blast from your firearms all sound just as great as they always have. The voice acting isn't the greatest but it's still vastly superior to the laughable dialog found in the original Resident Evil and even Claire's first appearance in RE2.
Resident Evil: Code Veronica X is an essential play for fans of the series, especially those wanting to better understand the history of the T-Virus and the people that originally discovered it. Those unfamiliar with the conventions of the series prior to RE4 might find it's gameplay awkward but that can be and is worth overcoming for the sake of another great Resident Evil experience.