I'm playing all the Resident Evils for the first time in release order

Wil Grieve · Apr 9, 2018

I thought Gaiden was a neat little game. I enjoyed the zombie shooting mechanic (kinda reminded me of old-school golf video games, but with zombies and bullets).

Sure, it wasn't amazing, but as a kid I feel like I would've really dug it.

Pixel Grotto · Apr 11, 2018

Played some more last night. Did a lot of backtracking (the city environments in RE3 seem so much bigger than anything I've run through in the series before, which is good but occasionally a little tedious) and met the mercenaries, a group of overly aggressive Eastern European boys (except for Carlos?) with big guns. Got new tactical straps for my tube top x miniskirt combo and increased my firepower so I could blow fools away. Wasted a crapload of bullets on each Nemesis battle though...

Entered the clocktower. The shot below really gave me Castlevania vibes. Jill Belmont!

Inside the clocktower everything suddenly feels a lot more like RE1 - it's probably the cramped interiors and dark rooms with zombies lurking in hidden corners. Bit of a change after the gritty alleyways that RE3 has been dealing with so far, but not a bad shift, especially since it's a compact area (like a mini Spencer Mansion) with no fat whatsoever. The clocktower also feels creepier than any of the other areas I've explored thus far in-game. I think it's that gothic haunted house vibe, which hearkens back to Resident Evil's heritage and inspires more feelings of unknown anxiety than the streets of Racoon City, which remind me more of apocalyptic action flicks. I guess it's an early hint of that "scary survival horror in a haunted house" versus "in yo face action movie" vibe that the series would further separate into as time went on.
Also, I slapped the shit out of Carlos! Yea!

This puzzle temporarily confused me because I thought you had to move the thingies and make it sound like the out of order version in the music box. I actually recorded the music box version on my phone so I could listen to it as I was figuring this out. I was thinking way too much.

Okay, Nemesis is a PAIN IN THE ASS. Not only does he eat up all my ammo but then he wrecks my chopper and infects me with his purple hentai tentacle juice! Seriously, I'm not very good at the fights with him, probably because I can never turn and dodge fast enough. I usually end up stuck in a corner and just blast him away with grenades (and mine shots, in one instance) until he falls, but I end up taking a lot of damage in the process. I miss my boy Tyrant from RE2, who was good and just walked slowly instead of dashing all over the place. I could never be one of those people who plays through these games with just the knife, lol.

Last but not least...SAFSPRIN. It's good for what ails ye! This was a clever way of making me guess a password, btw.

ArmsofSleep · Apr 11, 2018

This is a really awesome idea and I fully support it. I can't wait for RE4 and RE7.

Deleted member 27938 · Apr 12, 2018

For thaf music box puzzle, I accidentally got it on my first shot. I was toggling the notes while figuring out what the puzzle was asking me to do. Once I was content with how to solve the puzzle I just hit enter so that it would reset and I could attempt it for real. It ended up being correct and I still don't know what the real solution is or how you were supposed to figure it out

Pixel Grotto · Apr 14, 2018

Finished RE3 last night! Here we go...

After a brief period playing as Carlos and rushing around to get a vaccine for Jill, I got back control of Ms. Valentine only to face a giant penis monster. Umbrella is outta control and must be stopped!

I got briefly stuck in two unexpected places - at this "match the different waveforms" trial and error puzzle (this is how you know Umbrella's a truly evil company, instead of using regular security they block all their shit behind nutty puzzles) and the last boss room, actually. I didn't figure out that I needed to push all of the batteries into the giant gun and almost ran out of time running around like an idiot. Eventually I figured it out and proceeded to the last boss battle.

Nemesis' final form is such a huge mutated hunk of junk, and it's ironic that after giving me tons of trouble and sucking up all my ammo during most of the game, he's pretty easy in this finale. I liked the twist of having to bait him around the room to get in just the right position for the rail gun to strike, and when I was presented with the final choice to finish him off or run away, OF COURSE I grabbed the random gun that happened to be lying on the floor. Needed to polish off this sunovabitch Dirty Harry (Harriet?) style!

So long Raccoon City! You were a quality backdrop for two very good PS1 games.

Got my final stats and unlocked the epilogue screen where Jill finds Chris' knife and is musing about going after him. I read that you need to play through the game 8 times to unlock all epilogues, and since that's quite a lot of work I cheated and looked them up online. Good, ominous stuff - they keep hinting at the "Umbrella European base," and judging from FAQs that I read from this era, mention of that place really fired up the imagination of fans of the series. The setting for Code Veronica, I imagine?

I messed around with Mercenaries mode for a bit with Mikhail, since I wanted a (relatively) breezy experience with lots of firepower after beating the main game. It's definitely one of the more enjoyable implementations of a Time Attack mode that I've seen in a game from this era, though I doubt I'll play through it extensively. I nearly lost my shit when I was running down an alley and saw TWO versions of Nemesis coming at me, hah.

Here are the notebook scribblings I took as I was playing. If you remember, I had to do a lot of map drawing for RE1 and RE2, since the in-game maps in those entries weren't as good. RE3 had rock solid in-game maps with even the save rooms marked, so most of these notes are just on puzzles and items I needed to pick up. Oh, and ammo mixing!

Overall I found RE3's story to feel somewhat "less important" than RE2, obviously, but gameplay-wise, it really refined the series' mechanics. I'll be writing up my final thoughts shortly, but I will say this - it seems lo me like the series really started to stray into action game territory with this one, especially since you have a mode like Mercenaries which distills RE down to its pure action essentials. Even though Nemesis was stalking me throughout most of the game, I don't think I experienced a single jump scare during my entire playthrough. (This isn't a bad thing though, just different from RE1 and RE2!)

Deleted member 29237 · Apr 14, 2018

Nice writeup as usual! Interesting to see your notes, I don't think I've used a notebook in a game for over 20 years!

I love how the sun always comes up at the end of the classic RE's. Felt like you'd survived an ordeal but gave some real relief that it was all over (for now!)

One reason RE5 never clicked for me is so much of it takes place in broad daylight. Just didn't match the mood at all. I think Max Payne 3 was a similar thing in that regard - the early games felt so defined by being alone in the night.

I need to get around to finishing RE3 someday soon - maybe after I finish my Claire A Leon B run of RE2!

Pixel Grotto · Apr 14, 2018

Wrote up my final thoughts on RE3. All the screenshots I took are here.

Small takeaway:

If Resident Evil 1 was the start of a formula for survival horror and Resident Evil 2 an advanced evolution of that formula, the third and final PS1 game of the franchise marks a refinement of the series' blueprint. It's not the monumental step forward that RE2 was, and in some ways it almost feels like a gaiden, or side story. This is reinforced by the fact that in the beginning of RE2, you can uncover a note about a secret European Umbrella base that Jill was looking into along with Chris Redfield and Barry Burton. Many fans back in 1999, if the various FAQs I've looked at are any indication, were expecting RE3 to take place there, and the Resident Evil comic magazine published by Wildstorm took this plot nugget and ran with it, devoting whole stories to the adventures of the STARs team as they fought zombies in the air and abroad. But instead of expanding upon this piece of information (which wouldn't be investigated until Resident Evil: Code Veronica), the actual Resident Evil 3 tells the tale of what Jill Valentine was up to when Claire and Leon were running around Raccoon City in RE2. And while it might not possess as important of a plot, RE3′s still a fine game, particularly in the mechanics department.

This game was where I started to feel more of an emphasis on big budget action than horror. This feeling was creeping in a little bit during Resident Evil 2, but a lot of that game still took place in the Gothic police station and in creepy underground tunnels, while this one was in wide open Raccoon City. I think there's something about the relative freedom of outdoor environments that makes 'em less eerie than indoor ones, and I actually found Nemesis to be more nerve-wracking than scary, though a look at various threads online tells me that I might be in the minority here. But I quite like how RE3 plays, and it's kind of the speediest, most easily-controllable RE on the original Playstation IMO. I would rank it as my second favorite mainline PS1 Resident Evil, with number 2 on top and number 1 on the bottom (by default, I suppose).

Anyway, I found an old ad showing Nemesis front and center. I seem to recall seeing this in Gamepro and I love it. KNOW FEAR. Plus another one of those funky PSM covers.

I'm looking forward to moving on to Code Veronica but I'm a little wary as well! It's time to move slightly beyond the 32-bit era, and I've heard some good things, I've heard some bad things. What's this about realtime 3D environments...? :o

Jinroh · Apr 14, 2018

Code Veronica has a nice setting but you will be shocked by the gameplay and how the character moves, especially after coming from RE3. It feels so backwards.

NEE HEE HEE · Apr 14, 2018

You're free to do what you want but you should have played REMake without playing the first ps1 game. That's redundant af.

Which version of Code Veronica will you be playing?

Pixel Grotto · Apr 14, 2018

NEE HEE HEE said:
You're free to do what you want but you should have played REMake without playing the first ps1 game. That's redundant af.

Which version of Code Veronica will you be playing?

I disagree - playing something like the Director's Cut of RE1 after the original would be redundant, but the mechanics and general feel of RE1 and REMake seem to be different enough to warrant looking at them separately. Also, the point of this exercise and playing everything in release order is to get a feel for how the series evolved, and I think I'll just be able to appreciate REMake more after having finished the original.

I got the Gamecube version of Code Veronica X so I'll be giving that a try.

Resident Evie · Apr 14, 2018

Loved reading your thoughts on re3! Although I'm a little disappointed you didn't get the

Barry

ending(?)

Pixel Grotto · Apr 15, 2018

Resident Evie said:
Loved reading your thoughts on re3! Although I'm a little disappointed you didn't get the

Barry

ending(?)

Thanks! Are the ending epilogues that you get randomized? I did look up Barry's afterwards and did enjoy seeing him give his daughters the manliest of dad hugs

Resident Evie · Apr 15, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
Thanks! Are the ending epilogues that you get randomized? I did look up Barry's afterwards and did enjoy seeing him give his daughters the manliest of dad hugs

Hmm, as I recall they're not randomised. But I was actually referring to the fact that RE3 has multiple endings depending on whether or not you jumped off the bridge to the dead factory. In one of the endings an old friend shows up :)

Pixel Grotto · Apr 15, 2018

Resident Evie said:
Hmm, as I recall they're not randomised. But I was actually referring to the fact that RE3 has multiple endings depending on whether or not you jumped off the bridge to the dead factory. In one of the endings an old friend shows up :)

What. Now I got to visit YouTube!

If I'd have known about this I would've jumped off the bridge :(

medyej · Apr 15, 2018

Great thread! Classic RE is so good. Wish I could experience them for the first time again.

Dreamboum · Apr 15, 2018

My issues with RE3 are

- that Raccoon City wasn't as tight as any previous game in terms of level design. Restrictions means like Raccoon City has gated districts which furthers makes you alien to its design even if you're a city person.

- Nemesis wasn't scary for a single second. At one point, Nemesis and its music theme appearing every time was like someone coming with clown boots making fart noises at every step. Barely any surprise from him and it felt too "gamey" at the end of the day because he would often respawn. Mr.X was scripted but effective.

- respawning zombies is a big no-no in my book. Randomly having zombies coming out in zones you'be already cleared just dragged down a city that has puzzles making you backtrack all the way.

- the dodge mechanic is clunky and it being the aim button means you'd likely end up dodging your way in the middle of the pack instead of shooting, putting you in further danger

- the story is terribad and there isn't a character worth saving. Not to mention I never liked Jill's outfit. Which is pretty much the only thing that made her relevant in the mind of the audience, this and "I'll give you stars"

- the lab was a disappointment after RE1 and 2. The choices mechanic in cutscenes wasn't worth ditching the zapping system. The plot is at a standstill, nothing advances.

It's not a bad game but it was a huge slog that really hurts after RE2 being so slick. It took Code Veronica to enjoy a RE again...until RE:Zero happened

Deleted member 1726 · Apr 15, 2018

I always get this like amnesia effect with Resident Evil 3, I know I played it but I literally cannot remember anything from that game apart from Nemesis.

Jackpot · Apr 15, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
What. Now I got to visit YouTube!

If I'd have known about this I would've jumped off the bridge :(

That's how you get the Blackhawk helicopter mini-boss.

You might not have made the connection, but the 5 dead T-103s in The Dead Factory where you fight Nemesis are from the 5 canisters from the helicopter that dropped off Mr X in RE2.

Pixel Grotto · Apr 15, 2018

Dreamboum said:
My issues with RE3 are

- that Raccoon City wasn't as tight as any previous game in terms of level design. Restrictions means like Raccoon City has gated districts which furthers makes you alien to its design even if you're a city person.

- Nemesis wasn't scary for a single second. At one point, Nemesis and its music theme appearing every time was like someone coming with clown boots making fart noises at every step. Barely any surprise from him and it felt too "gamey" at the end of the day because he would often respawn. Mr.X was scripted but effective.

- respawning zombies is a big no-no in my book. Randomly having zombies coming out in zones you'be already cleared just dragged down a city that has puzzles making you backtrack all the way.

- the dodge mechanic is clunky and it being the aim button means you'd likely end up dodging your way in the middle of the pack instead of shooting, putting you in further danger

- the story is terribad and there isn't a character worth saving. Not to mention I never liked Jill's outfit. Which is pretty much the only thing that made her relevant in the mind of the audience, this and "I'll give you stars"

- the lab was a disappointment after RE1 and 2. The choices mechanic in cutscenes wasn't worth ditching the zapping system. The plot is at a standstill, nothing advances.

It's not a bad game but it was a huge slog that really hurts after RE2 being so slick. It took Code Veronica to enjoy a RE again...until RE:Zero happened

I agree with pretty much all of this, especially with Nemesis not being that scary and the dodge mechanic kinda screwing with your rhythm. There's a guy on YouTube also doing a Resident Evil Retrospective and he says the same things about part 3, picking a bone with the boss fights especially.

The respawns didn't bother me as much, just reminded me of the last area of Resident Evil 1 (only spot where the zombies start coming back). I think the game kind of respawns enemies in areas that it expects you to revisit, sorta hinting out a path for you to traverse...that helped me a little in the beginning when I was getting lost.

Anyway, I started Code Veronica last night and like it a lot actually. Will post soon.

Dreamboum · Apr 16, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
I agree with pretty much all of this, especially with Nemesis not being that scary and the dodge mechanic kinda screwing with your rhythm. There's a guy on YouTube also doing a Resident Evil Retrospective and he says the same things about part 3, picking a bone with the boss fights especially.

The respawns didn't bother me as much, just reminded me of the last area of Resident Evil 1 (only spot where the zombies start coming back). I think the game kind of respawns enemies in areas that it expects you to revisit, sorta hinting out a path for you to traverse...that helped me a little in the beginning when I was getting lost.

Anyway, I started Code Veronica last night and like it a lot actually. Will post soon.

I just watched it and yeah I agree a lot with it.

The n00b Avenger · Apr 16, 2018

Code Veronica definitely feels like it was developed 'before' 3 because there's just some conveniences in 3 that aren't present in CV. The most obvious of which being stairs still being climbed with the action button instead of 3's just 'walk over' feature. There's probably another thing or 2 I'm forgetting(I won't count the dodge feature because I'm not sure that's something that really counts as an upgrade)

And for what it's worth, while RE3's Mercenary Mode did feel pretty action oriented, its prototype already existed previously in RE1 for the Sega Saturn and RE2 Dual Shock Edition. I think this is just the first time it was implemented in the original release of the game

Hate · Apr 16, 2018

No outbreak playthrough.

You missed out OP.

Pixel Grotto · Apr 16, 2018

Code Veronica time. I was deciding between the Dreamcast original and the Gamecube version and ultimately decided to go with Code Veronica X because of the extra content, and also because I wanted to try playing this on Dolphin.

I spent quite a bit of time at the very start of the game just enamored with the fact that the environments are now actual 3D and not just pre-rendered backdrops. I think playing these games in release order kinda got me into that late 90s mentality, and so when I reached this one it was really like witnessing that jump from the 32-bit consoles to the Dreamcast/PS2/Gamecube all over again. I love pre-rendered backgrounds and somewhat miss their detail, but I also REALLY REALLY like being able to move around an actual scrolling environment.

I also tried using the analog stick to play this instead of the D-pad and couldn't do it at all. Too used to the D-pad after three Resident Evils in a row and tank controls + analog just feel confusing to me. I'm assuming analog is implemented better in REmake and RE0?

Met Steve. He kind of strikes me as a bozo. "You'll just end up disappointed if you rely on others. Believe me, I know!" No wait, he reminds me of SQUALL LEONHART.

These security boxes were annoying! Also I laughed at Umbrella's forward thinking ways regarding the wonderful world of 3D printing. Is there any reason why you need to make a 3D duplicate of the eagle emblem before opening the gate? I didn't try opening the gate with just the regular emblem.

Met Alfred. He also strikes me as a bozo (with a cool model battleship/airplane/weaponry collection) but his over-the-top nature and outfit also remind me of a Devil May Cry bad guy. DMC1 was originally a prototype of Resident Evil 4 and was in production around the same time as Code Veronica, no? I feel like this was the era when Capcom was leaning hard into the cheese when it came to their third person action/adventure games. It's fun stuff.

I got to the area after the submarine and airport before I decided to take a break. So far I really enjoy this game. There seems to be more backtracking than the earlier REs, which I'm meh on, but controlling Claire feels silky smooth (when I'm not using analog controls) and the more explorable environments versus static pre-renders is still a novelty to me.

I admit that I was a little disappointed when Claire's infiltration of Umbrella Paris was only told via the opening cinematic. All this talk of Umbrella in Europe and we only get to see it for a few seconds before being shipped off to a prison island? Guess I got to wait for RE4...

Jackpot · Apr 16, 2018

Something you should know that could lock you out of an item: You must leave the fire extinguisher in a normal item box instead of those 2 security boxes.

Pixel Grotto · Apr 16, 2018

Jackpot said:
Something you should know that could lock you out of an item: You must leave the fire extinguisher in a normal item box instead of those 2 security boxes.

Woah, thanks for that. Any other permanently missable things or potential ways to get stuck in a bad place? I keep hearing how item management is tougher in this one and that it's possible to end up screwed with no ammo.

Deleted member 29237 · Apr 16, 2018

The knife in CVX is amazing and saves you a load of ammo in the early game. Look up a knife strategy video on YouTube, it'll make the game way less hassle.

Jackpot · Apr 16, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
Woah, thanks for that. Any other permanently missable things or potential ways to get stuck in a bad place? I keep hearing how item management is tougher in this one and that it's possible to end up screwed with no ammo.

That's the only permanent thing. People make a big deal about a certain boss fight halfway through if you don't have the requisite ammo but I find the difficultly comes from the cramped quarters and lack of dodging. After that it's fairly smooth sailing.

The best weapon in the game are the BowGun Arrows combined with Gunpowder. I used them to one-shot Bandersnatches but they'll make quick work of any boss.

Deleted member 27938 · Apr 16, 2018

I just beat CVX. My spoiler free impression below, with actual spoiler part hidden at the end:

I didn't like it. I'm happy with a classic RE but "rough around the edges" is too nice... it's rough at more than just the edges but there's fun in there too. The bad voice acting and dialogue is at it's finest in this game. My wife and I were cracking up during every other scene. also "screw you!" to those moths outside that save room

complaints:
- When dual wielding, your character will start aiming at 2 targets and I had to correct it to one every time.
- With auto aim, I'd get in front of my target and line up my shot, then they'd either twist to an unintended target or spin around completely to face no target at all.
- too much ammo and healing items. I finished the game with 16 ink ribbons left! And I save A LOT during these games, 30 for CVX to be exact. Tone down the action, please. I was able to clear every room without needing to run around any enemies.

specific complaints (Pixed Grotto, do not read:)

I should have taken notes to remember them all, but by the end of the game I can only remember 2 and they're from the same spot
- When playing as Claire after Chris saves her, there's a cannon with a card key inside a globe. A trap triggers that drops a weight next to the cannon. I immediately recognize to place the globe in its path but the game kills me 4x in a row while I figure out the exact placement. turns out it's right in the middle, I was trying to stand to the edge to set the globe down in front of me.
- right after that, when fighting mutated Steve, the game highlights that the gate is closing so I immediately understand to run away. when I get control I turn around and he 1 shot kills me! I try again and it happens twice. I look up a guide (cvxfreak) who says that you need to bring enough healing items with you to heal in between every hit until you make it to the gate. I had to heal once before the encounter (I was at half) then twice while running. In a section where they want you to run for your life, they make you interrupt the scene to go into the menu to heal. completely contradictory. I hope this part can be done some other way, using health items as a crutch is fine but requiring the player to cheese it is absurd

Jinroh · Apr 17, 2018

This game is cheesy, too long, and the "complete edition" (later called "X") included all the Matrix bullshit that became part of the series. I can also hardly forgive the heavy censorship (not featured in early versions), and Claire's design with her awful pants combined with her RE2 top. In the early uncensored versions of the game she had her RE2 outfit and it looked much better.

This game also has the lowest replayability in the series.

Miamiwesker · Apr 17, 2018

Awesome thread.

Don't listen to the ones above me, Code Veronica is one of the best in the series.

Valkerion · Apr 17, 2018

CV is definitely the low light in a lot of ways of the classic formula sadly. Weapons felt weak, monsters everywhere, incredibly odd characters and dialogue, and like someone else said the use of matrix like moments that show when this game was made.

Feels like this was made by a b-team who knew the general cliff notes of the formula and ran with it but on an off path. It's also a very long winded RE title. I have a hard time hating it but at the same time, its clearly the black sheep along with 6. Its a game where the flaws are more apparent with each time I play it.

And yeah, low replay value or reasons to chug away at it more than once or twice.

Pixel Grotto · Apr 17, 2018

Jinroh said:
This game is cheesy, too long, and the "complete edition" (later called "X") included all the Matrix bullshit that became part of the series. I can also hardly forgive the heavy censorship (not featured in early versions), and Claire's design with her awful pants combined with her RE2 top. In the early uncensored versions of the game she had her RE2 outfit and it looked much better.

This game also has the lowest replayability in the series.

I would have liked to see this outfit again. Is it unlockable? Something about her default pants in the final game strikes me as very...2000s.

What else was censored prior to the final release?

I look forward to seeing the Matrix bullshit for myself, lol.

Brhoom · Apr 17, 2018

You lucky bastard. I hoenstly can't wait till you get to Remake, 4, and 7 in VR.

MafiaMurderBag · Apr 17, 2018

So is the official Code Veronica the best version? I'm a bit confused, I always knew it as Code Veronica X, didn't realise the "X" refers to a revised version or something .

Dreamboum · Apr 17, 2018

Claire with her jeans is the best she'd ever been. Her biker look was old-fashioned before RE2 was out

Charlouie Jonesman · Apr 17, 2018

I thought CV was tedious and annoying and it's where the story went from really dumb corporate conspiracy/zombie fiction to overdramatic anime shenanigans, which was not a good change imo. All the new characters are annoying, especially Steve. "I need those guns to open a door." "No way, they're just too cool, I'm keeping them, haha!". Get eaten, shithead. By the way, since someone complained about respawning zombies in 3...that's in CV too.

Jinroh · Apr 17, 2018

Pixel Grotto said:
I would have liked to see this outfit again. Is it unlockable? Something about her default pants in the final game strikes me as very...2000s.

No, you can't unlock any costume for the story mode. But it could have been much worse:

Pixel Grotto said:
What else was censored prior to the final release?

All dismemberment, beheading, etc. Everything was cut probably prior to the release of the demo, as these screens seem to come from a near complete version:

Pixel Grotto said:
I look forward to seeing the Matrix bullshit for myself, lol.

It's mostly featured in the complete edition / X. I don't think the added content is worth it, they could have handled it much better.

As a reminder, from what I remember this game wasn't developed internally but outsourced. The idea behind it is good, but the execution is rather poor. And sadly the battle mode is horrible.

edit: Oh, and they changed Steve's hairstyle in the complete / X versions, to avoid him looking like a well known actor:

Deleted member 29237 · Apr 17, 2018

Jinroh said:
No, you can't unlock any costume for the story mode. But it could have been much worse:

All dismemberment, beheading, etc. Everything was cut probably prior to the release of the demo, as these screens seem to come from a near complete version:

It's mostly featured in the complete edition / X. I don't think the added content is worth it, they could have handled it much better.

As a reminder, from what I remember this game wasn't developed internally but outsourced. The idea behind it is good, but the execution is rather poor. And sadly the battle mode is horrible.

edit: Oh, and they changed Steve's hairstyle in the complete / X versions, to avoid him looking like a well known actor:

That's interesting, I didn't realise CVX originally had decapitations. It's one of the more glaring omissions after being such a series staple (although I guess RE3 didn't have it until the GC version?)

A shame there isn't some kind of mod to restore CVX back to the original somewhat.

Jinroh · Apr 17, 2018

If I remember correctly beheadings were removed from the European version of RE3, but not from the US and JP versions. It was a nice surprise to have the gore back in the first trailer of Remake.

Also Resident Evil 3 was "kind of" censored. Zombie's bodies weren't as destructible as RE2, for example you couldn't cut them in half. But it was mostly because of technical limitations, the game could feature way more zombies on the screen than RE2 did. From what I understand it might have been a trade off. Maybe similar to GTAV's car physics.

Pixel Grotto · Apr 17, 2018

MafiaMurderBag said:
So is the official Code Veronica the best version? I'm a bit confused, I always knew it as Code Veronica X, didn't realise the "X" refers to a revised version or something .

From what I understand the Dreamcast original is Code Veronica and was the first release. The game was then released on Playstation 2 and Gamecube in a slightly expanded version with some extra story scenes added - it was called Code Veronica X to signify the change.

I played some more last night but got tired so didn't have time to upload my screenshots. I will say that one thing that's sorta annoying me about the game is the backtracking. I keep having to run between the palace, the prison and the military facility to pick up new stuff or open doors that I forgot to open the first time. I appreciate the bigger environment in this game but I feel like the older Resident Evils generally kept items that you needed to use not too far from each other...whereas in this game they're spread out all over the damn place. The backtracking plus the respawning zombies in each area makes things a little frustrating.

Deleted member 27938 · Apr 17, 2018

Valkerion said:
Feels like this was made by a b-team who knew the general cliff notes of the formula and ran with it but on an off path.

I almost said this myself but didn't want to ramble too much in my post. This game feels like they grabbed and used the Resident Evil cookie cutter, so the shape of it was right but they used some generic ingredients rather than the good stuff.

What is this Matrix bullshit everyone mentioned? Was it the opening cinematic where she drops the gun and catches it, or is it the dual wielding and multiple enemy aiming? I didn't see any bullet time or rotating cameras which is what I think of when someone says "Matrix bullshit"

I'm off to play some non-RE game next, I'm staggering to avoid fatigue and my list jumps around. I have Gaiden, 0, and 7 left. I'm only playing the ones I never did or don't remember. 5 should be on my list too but I have the PS3 version and no PS3.

Jinroh · Apr 18, 2018

UpperCaseN said:
What is this Matrix bullshit everyone mentioned? Was it the opening cinematic where she drops the gun and catches it, or is it the dual wielding and multiple enemy aiming? I didn't see any bullet time or rotating cameras which is what I think of when someone says "Matrix bullshit"

That and all things related to Wesker. He was mostly absent from the original game, and most of the additions of the revised versions are cut scenes featuring him, especially near the end of the game. That's the first time they decided to show his super powers.

Pixel Grotto · Apr 18, 2018

So, I made it to the Antarctic base last night.

My biggest annoyance thus far in Code Veronica is BACKTRACKING. It seems like the vast majority of time spent during my last two sessions was running back and forth between the military training facility, the palace and the prison. I can appreciate that this game has a larger area to explore, and it probably doesn't take that long to traverse areas, but the fact that there are so many items found in one place that need to be used to solve a puzzle in another faraway place is aggravating. The existence of only two major item boxes in the area as well as the respawning enemies (ugh, bandersnatches) added to this. I feel like the earlier Resident Evils got around this by keeping most puzzle items hidden relatively close to the places where they'd need to be used...not so with Code Veronica.
That said, I did find the atmosphere of the private residence to be wonderfully creepy. Very reminiscent of Castlevania or the earlier Devil May Cry games with that dark European flavor.

Steve is such a putz. That scene where he goes nuts with the guns and ends up shooting his zombie dad has to be the funniest scene I've seen yet in a Resident Evil game. I know I wasn't supposed to laugh but I laughed so hard for a full minute. THAT LOOK ON HIS FACE, MAN

I enjoyed this little Pokedex style entry talking about the Albinoids. A Pokemon game set in the Resident Evil universe where you train BOWs and raise them to evolve would be...umm...right up my alley. Especially if you play as Wesker or something, lol. Speaking of Wesker, it was nice to see him again but he's much more of a Nazi-sounding woman beater this time around!

The main baddie Alfred continues to be over the top in that Devil May Cry 3 sort of way. I feel like they definitely couldn't get away with making the only gender fluid/cross dressing person in the game into your typical sociopath nowadays, though. Then again, it's Japan, so who knows.
I very much like the version of Tyrant that Alfred sicced on me. Such a great design and especially imposing. What I didn't like so much was the boss fight. I believe it was previously mentioned in an earlier post here that there was one close quarters boss battle around the game's middle that a lot of people bitched about, and I'm assuming it's this one. I had plenty of grenades and even BOW gas, but Tyrant kept knocking me over in a corner. Eventually I cheesed it by finding a safe rhythm where I could run circles around him until the catapult launcher was ready to go. Not my finest moment.

This game feels very long, though I think that's a side effect of the backtracking. I just got to Antarctica and it seems like this is where Chris' story should start, but no, we got more Claire to play through first. Whew.

Adamska · Apr 18, 2018

Code Veronica is one of the best entries in the series. It's balls to the wall classic RE gameplay with a challenging and sprawling setting. Wesker is so boss in this game, too, a far cry from the maniac featured in RE5.

Gelf · Apr 19, 2018

I like Code Veronica because I actually like these games to have a lot of backtracking and tight ammo management. The main things that let it down for me is are I miss the nicer looking and more detailed pre rendered backgrounds and they should have allowed a way for Claire and Chris to switch inventory items at certain points. Also it has that damn moth corridor.

Dreamboum · Apr 19, 2018

Code Veronica is great and I still like it more than RE3 despite its flaws because I feel like what it nails down, it does so immensely better than any REs. The atmosphere is great, the music is absolutely god tier, and it's just the scariest for me.

Honestly I'd change just a few things about the game and it would become my #1 Resident Evil. I don't pine for remakes but if it had one it'll be a stronger leap than REmake did in terms of quality.

Fancy Clown · Apr 19, 2018

Code Veronica is the zenith of classic RE Byzantine backtracking and puzzle item hauling. On the one hand it's cool how sprawling the game feels, but on the other hand I was ready for it to end like 3 hours before it actually did.

It's got a pretty great baroque atmosphere and really fun cheeseball story, but there are so many straight up broken enemies and bosses that it really saps the fun out of it. It's about 0 tier for me in that it's fun, but too flawed to return to very often (if ever).

Fortunately Mikami comes back and course corrects hard to make the best of the classic RE games.

IsThatHP · Apr 19, 2018

CVs got its issues but I did like how gothic it was, I feel like it was a point where REs art style started to really find its grounding: less weird cop uniforms, more people in gothic monster land, a trend that would continue through REmake and RE4 before the art would get changed up again.

It's certainly not as smooth playing as nemesis where you can learn to dodge and bob and weave nemesis with ease, but something about it is so charming; maybe it was simply the first time I had played an action game of this scale and length (aside from metal gear solid)

Deleted member 2595 · Apr 19, 2018

Great thread, OP!

Claire... knows CQC???

Pixel Grotto · Apr 20, 2018

Finished Claire's main section of the game yesterday. First off, a cool shot of Claire versus a hellhound, one of my favorite screenshots that I've taken thus far...

I was afraid the Antarctica base are was going to have a lot of backtracking in it but thankfully its smaller than the island. Got a bit lost (as usual for this game) and didn't realize I had to use the metal melding tool on the valve to make it octagonal, and also didn't realize that I had to examine the bottom of the pot to find the machine room key, but otherwise things were relatively straightfoward.
Steve is still a massive ding dong. I like how he keeps screwing up. Tries to check out Claire's ass again, fills a room full of poison gas. Tries to be cool and take out Nosferatu, almost falls off a cliff. Good going, brotha. His gun fu routines also kinda make him look like a bozo but at least he shot Alfred? (But didn't kill him at that range? What.)

Nosferatu was a cool boss. His design vaguely reminds me of the different versions of Frankenstein's Monster which show up in Castlevania. (Castlevania is my favorite horror-themed video game franchise so I tend to see everything through a Belmont-inspired lens.) Kinda like a more ghastly version of the Gardner from Castlevania 64 or the Creature from Symphony of the Night, with Thing-esque appendages.

I enjoyed sniping Nosferatu from afar and finished him off with the handgun and bow gun powder. (Was gonna put the bow gun in an item box for Chris but forgot, d'oh.)

Got a cutscene of naked Alexis in a tube (reminds me of Jenova) aaaaand finally it's time to play as ya boy Chris Redfield! Thank god it's him and not Steve.

I'm playing all the Resident Evils for the first time in release order

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