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I finally played Code Veronica X... and I wish I understood what other people see in it - [Open Spoilers]
- Thread starter SanTheSly
- Start date
Big reason why so many of us LOVED Code Veronica because it was a revelatory RE game when it came out.
We went from THIS:
To THIS:
And from 5 - 6 hours campaign to 11 - 12 hours.
And from fixed angel cut scenes to fully 3D directed ones with bigger story than ever, also the music was really really good and there was so much going on in the game.
BUT NOW,
It's maybe the only classic RE game that I can't never ever go back and replay again. why? one reason only: The levels design is DULL AND BORING.
RE1 had the unique Mansion, RE2 the RPD Station, RE3 Raccoon City with many well done places like the clock tower ( ouch RE3R ).
So yeah it's kind of a game you gotta be there when it was released to get all the love and praise at the time, but sadly the levels designs lacked that special ingredients that made other RE Classic games much better atmosphere wise which is something critical for a survival horror game.
We went from THIS:
To THIS:
And from 5 - 6 hours campaign to 11 - 12 hours.
And from fixed angel cut scenes to fully 3D directed ones with bigger story than ever, also the music was really really good and there was so much going on in the game.
BUT NOW,
It's maybe the only classic RE game that I can't never ever go back and replay again. why? one reason only: The levels design is DULL AND BORING.
RE1 had the unique Mansion, RE2 the RPD Station, RE3 Raccoon City with many well done places like the clock tower ( ouch RE3R ).
So yeah it's kind of a game you gotta be there when it was released to get all the love and praise at the time, but sadly the levels designs lacked that special ingredients that made other RE Classic games much better atmosphere wise which is something critical for a survival horror game.
CV was amazing when it came out. I remember being so impressed with the ripples in the pool, the lighting, camera movements and dual weapons. And the opening CG was beyond anything in the series.
I haven't played it recently, it probably doesn't hold up, but it reviewed well and was essential in the DC library.
I haven't played it recently, it probably doesn't hold up, but it reviewed well and was essential in the DC library.
I'm pretty mixed on it because while there are so many frustratingly designed elements to the game, it is clear it's a very ambitious game and sort of the zenith of the sprawling puzzle world that classic RE set out to do taken to its absolute extreme (for better or worse). Lots of great moments in there (like the gothic atmosphere of the Ashford's residence) diluted by the annoying moments and poor pacing. I think the first half is mostly pretty strong overall, but the false climax and then all the annoying character switching end up hogging the game down. I'd say it's sort of middle of the pack, slightly on the lower side, for the series. I much prefer it to Zero though as far as black sheep games go, as none of its annoyances are systemic like the item dropping and the game as a whole feels a lot more fresh.
I bought CV for Dreamcast around its release as a kid, having only briefly played the RE1 and 2 at friends' houses. It was tough as balls and I ran out of ammo on the plane tyrant boss but I loved the atmosphere.
Replayed it around 2013, got to the first Alexa boss fight, still need to finish this game. Will probably start fresh with the fan-translated Dreamcast version of CVX via Redream.
Replayed it around 2013, got to the first Alexa boss fight, still need to finish this game. Will probably start fresh with the fan-translated Dreamcast version of CVX via Redream.
CVX is a weak game when compared to the classic 3. In terms of gameplay, it doesn't do anything particularly bad, but it also doesn't do anything particularly good. I agree with most of your points OP, particularly in terms of the campaign structure, the level design and character swapping. The game just felt it stretched the RE formula too much and ended up suffering for it. Also, it probably has the worst bosses in the series, although I do like the first fight with Alexia, so I don't agree with you there. In fact it was the only good fight in that game... and the final one against her is terrible.
I did like the Bandersnatches actually. At least the idea of them... they are probably the only enemies that try to fully take advantage of the 3d environment and makes you feel like you can't ignore them simply because you dodged them once. It can get really annoying though.
In terms of story and characters, I don't have much to add. Simply terrible. But one of the things I dislike the most is how much Claire goes from badass to damsel in distress after Chris shows up.
In many ways CV feels a step back when compared to RE3 or even RE2 and RE1. Sure it had full 3d environments, but it also didn't know how to really use it to goes beyond the constraints of the previous games. How many moments you can go "woah this would be imposible in the preivous games"? Maybe one camera angle here and there, but in terms of gameplay mechanics? We had the first person aiming (that didn't work very well) in a couple of scenes here and there and that was about it. Not to mention the game feels worse to play, the weapons less satisfying, the movement more clunky...
I did like the Bandersnatches actually. At least the idea of them... they are probably the only enemies that try to fully take advantage of the 3d environment and makes you feel like you can't ignore them simply because you dodged them once. It can get really annoying though.
In terms of story and characters, I don't have much to add. Simply terrible. But one of the things I dislike the most is how much Claire goes from badass to damsel in distress after Chris shows up.
In many ways CV feels a step back when compared to RE3 or even RE2 and RE1. Sure it had full 3d environments, but it also didn't know how to really use it to goes beyond the constraints of the previous games. How many moments you can go "woah this would be imposible in the preivous games"? Maybe one camera angle here and there, but in terms of gameplay mechanics? We had the first person aiming (that didn't work very well) in a couple of scenes here and there and that was about it. Not to mention the game feels worse to play, the weapons less satisfying, the movement more clunky...
0 is hot garbage.
Code Veronica was great at time of release...havent ventured back.
It is funny looking at those screenshots. Lile CV is obviously more advanced graphically but these days RE3 looks way better due to how detailed it looks.Big reason why so many of us LOVED Code Veronica because it was a revelatory RE game when it came out.
We went from THIS:
To THIS:
And from 5 - 6 hours campaign to 11 - 12 hours.
And from fixed angel cut scenes to fully 3D directed ones with bigger story than ever, also the music was really really good and there was so much going on in the game.
BUT NOW,
It's maybe the only classic RE game that I can't never ever go back and replay again. why? one reason only: The levels design is DULL AND BORING.
RE1 had the unique Mansion, RE2 the RPD Station, RE3 Raccoon City with many well done places like the clock tower ( ouch RE3R ).
So yeah it's kind of a game you gotta be there when it was released to get all the love and praise at the time, but sadly the levels designs lacked that special ingredients that made other RE Classic games much better atmosphere wise which is something critical for a survival horror game.
Years ago if you asked me I would obviously pick CV as the better looking game.
Got trapped about 80% of the way into this game with no healing items and Hunters everywhere. Still pissed about it.
I fucking hate this and zero. I agree with everything stated, but I could not finish this one. If any RE needed a remake... It would be CVX. Do zero after that
Its the definition of a game that hasn't aged well. I was absolutely floored the first time I saw it running. I remember being at a friend's house the day I bought it, he had recently gotten a DC so we tried the game there first. We watched the cutscene with the first zombie crawling out of the burning truck and I remember my friend looking at me and saying "I think I'm gonna have to buy this game". We had never seen something so impressive. It looked good even by Dreamcast standards.
Weirdly enough, I never experienced the item issues or got bothered by the backtracking or high difficulty all the times I played it (and I must've played at least 5 or 6 times). I was just so impressed by the graphics, the sound and the brutal difficulty (RE3 zombies weren't as scary given how powerful you were). It was only years later I found out about the horrible balancing and all the ways you could screw yourself from finishing the game.
Still, I have such good memories of the game that it's always going to be one of my favorites.
That CG intro is still one of the best in the entire series too!
Weirdly enough, I never experienced the item issues or got bothered by the backtracking or high difficulty all the times I played it (and I must've played at least 5 or 6 times). I was just so impressed by the graphics, the sound and the brutal difficulty (RE3 zombies weren't as scary given how powerful you were). It was only years later I found out about the horrible balancing and all the ways you could screw yourself from finishing the game.
Still, I have such good memories of the game that it's always going to be one of my favorites.
That CG intro is still one of the best in the entire series too!
Game was awful even back then. It was really about being a Dreamcast game and something many people didn't have access to. When it finally came to other consoles, reception was underwhelming.
Game was awful then. But at least it has Claire, and it's prime for the REmake treatment. So far, they've remade already great games. I'd love to see what they could do with a game that's bad. I bet it could be great as well in the REmake style.
Game was awful then. But at least it has Claire, and it's prime for the REmake treatment. So far, they've remade already great games. I'd love to see what they could do with a game that's bad. I bet it could be great as well in the REmake style.
Code Veronica is definitely one of the creepier REs, the whole hidden mansion behind the mansion thing really shook me when I was a kid. The twins were also pretty gross and the idea of being a prisoner on that island was unnerving. I also played this on the Dreamcast and having my health on the memory card screen was an interesting touch that made the game feel that much more immersive.
But as others have said it's a product of it's time. The puzzles, backtracking, and the other really weird game design decisions were just trying to be different in a world of grounded survival horror. It wasn't new anymore by the 4th entry, so let's put your weapons in a box before going through a metal detector just for the element of surprise... The whole game is like that. It's not my favorite, but it's better than 5,6, and 0 imo.
But as others have said it's a product of it's time. The puzzles, backtracking, and the other really weird game design decisions were just trying to be different in a world of grounded survival horror. It wasn't new anymore by the 4th entry, so let's put your weapons in a box before going through a metal detector just for the element of surprise... The whole game is like that. It's not my favorite, but it's better than 5,6, and 0 imo.
I have a lot of fond memories playing it as a kid, but after a replay a couple of years ago, it's easily among the bottom-tier RE games. It has its bright spots, but on the whole, it's marred by a number of baffling game design decision that make it an utter drag to get through.
Yep. When CVX came out, it was in the context of RE3 being the last game and the standard RE formula getting slightly tired and familiar. Nobody wanted RE3.5 because RE3 already felt like RE2.5.
I personally enjoyed CVX more than RE3 simply because it actually experimented more with the core Classic RE formula and narrative/atmosphere than that game did in a lot of ways.
I remember a lot of CVX. I barely remember most of RE3, other than feeling like I was going through very familiar motions to finish it just so I could get it out of my backlog.
That might mean my brain is broken, but I'll take "weird, slightly broken, and ambitious" over "safe and familiar and lightly tweaked" most days.
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Feedback!
OP
OP
Okay, wanna say thank you to everyone for the feedback. It's definitely helped contextualise the game a little more and given me more of a window into what people like or liked about it. I think despite seeing the pockets of love for it both on Era and elsewhere I'd maybe overestimated how beloved it was.
The contextual review scores for it were off the charts, and Jawmuncher's thread from yesterday indicated it's sold pretty well for a game originally locked to a doomed console. It's got higher sales that Rev 1 and isn't really that far behind Rev2 either.
These numbers are pretty nuts. Even contextually.
Also who uses an out of 400 scoring scale? Honestly.
It seems like the main take-away from people is it was a "you had to be there" game, and based on what people are describing about it, I can totally understand where they're coming from. But I'll get to that in a bit. I'm gonna pull in some quotes from the last few pages of quotes I wanted to respond more directly to.
So yeah, I think for all my moaning I have neglected to mention some things I DO like about CVX. I can respect the ambition of the title, the mood of Rockfort island, the music, the atmospheric lighting... hell, the fidelity of the in-engine cutscene models was VERY good for a console game that launched before some of the final major releases on competing machines - This is a game that released months before Majora's Mask and Final Fantasy 9, a year before Conker's Bad Fur Day and mere months after RE3 Nemesis. It's technical leagues ahead of any of those in terms of fidelity.
I also had no idea about the no easy mode thing for international releases. Was this a "Western Gamer attitude" choice or a "stopping weekend rentals choice"? Or even a bit of both?
Yeah, similarly to above I can see how people would've been wowed at the time, but I also agree it's not anything that would age immediately well, let alone 21 years later. I'll get to the bolded part in a bit.
Yeah, I'm... not too sure what was up with this. I kinda figured there was no point even attempting to fight it and I quickly learned it would never damage me on the ledges of the pool. Eventually I just decided to tank the damage and run in there for the item before running out and not engaging. I also equally just ran past the Gulp Worm (is that really what they went with?) and the Giant Black Widow. There's just no point to fighting any of them. I wish I could've run past the first Tyrant encounter BEFORE the plane honestly. That was another annoying re-load because I wasn't fully equipped for it.
I also think it was a missed trick to have the Eagle Plate here and not have Chris take it from the door that led to the Piano Scroll.
Would've made more sense and was fresher in my memory.
So, firstly, I apologise for butchering and truncating this post in an attempt to keep my own post short. I really appreciated the detail of this reply and I've tried my best to keep the original language for the points I want to talk more about.
Yeah, I think on the map-size and backtracking, I can maybe be too forgiving of RE3: Nemesis due to my familiarity with that game having played it to death. It can be equally as punishing to a newcomer as I found CVX to be. I actually recently watched a friend stream through Nemesis for the first time and they definitely struggled at various points in terms of where to go and what to do through no fault of their own whatsoever.
And yeah, I hadn't considered the possibility that this might have been designed as a "Resi fan's resi" for the difficulty aspect. Though, even as a huge fan myself I found it more annoying and tedious than hard, and similarly was swimming in ammo by the end. Though I did basically burn through all my remaining heals on the final fight.
I think I know the trick you're talking about. It involved running forward and juking Steve first and THEN sprinting for the door, right? I actually did attempt this on the first try... it didn't go well. I had to reload, do all of my item management again, get back there, skip the cutscenes and this time I just used 3 full heals to tank through it because I REALLY didn't want to have to reload all over again.
But yeah, thank you for the depth of this response, it was great!
I think this is where I sit on CVX and 0 too. The campiness of the original three games feels in earnest. 4 KNOWS it's being cheesy and ridiculous and how to play it off, with a wink to the camera and a pose on a throne. There's SOMETHING about RE0 and CVX that just sits badly with me.
The way I've always described how I feel about 0 is kinda like this: People love The Room. It's a terrible, disaster of a film, but it was made earnestly, with some kind of creative vision even if the technical ability wasn't there to make it good. It's a product of love. Asylum films like Sharknado 4 are terrible by design. They lean into campiness in an inauthentic way that never sits right with me. If the films were actually GOOD and campy, I'd be 100% fine with it probably. But the fact they're trying to capture that earnest cheesiness whilst also not being great experiences on their own merits just throw me off.
It truly ain't easy bein' cheesy.
I was actually unaware of what the CVX differences even were until reading some of these responses. It seems like CVX contextualises Wesker a bit better or gives him more focus but at the cost of more of the stuff I just mentioned I don't really enjoy?
Also, I mean, flex away, but there's no way in hell anyone could be expected to just know to save 30 explosive arrows for that part without explicit direction to do so. I had 16 saved which seems like it was just under what I needed to quickly blast the Tyrant away, and that was even going in with the knowledge that I should save ammo for that fight.
Yeah, I would also like to rectify and say whilst this is my least liked Resi by some margin I at least got SEVERAL great laughs out of it. I'd be lying if I said the terrible voice acting wasn't also hilarious as shit, and some of the cuts between in game cinematics and Claire's dopey ass model standing dead still with her arms down by her side never failed to kill me.
Yeah, as above this shit is golden. It's the closest the game comes to that authentic, earnest campiness for me. I left it out of the OP to try and save on space but it has a place in my heart.
I thankfully did bring it with me, and I know now it's only to get the Magnum which thankfully made the second phase of the final fight so much easier... but yeah this could EASILY trip up other people and not having it could really, really suck.
So, this is the last point I also wanted to bring up, going WAY back to the part of snausages' post that I bolded. I actually don't know how I feel on this front. I think CVX would benefit the MOST from a radical overhaul, and I also believe that rougher, less polished titles should be getting remakes instead of all-time greats. But in this instance I really don't know.
It feels like nothing would be lost if CVX's contributions to the overall story were simply rolled more elegantly into RE4 - neither of which really do a great job of explaining Wesker's return or even his motivations. In fact, a lot of that simply gets stapled on to Resi 5 and it seems to just about work fine. From a gameplay perspective, absolutely. I'd love to see a complete tear-down and rebuild of CVX, but I'm torn on the narrative necessity of it.
also hi Nate I really like your and MVG's podcast, keep up the great work!
Anyway, that's another ramble over. Thanks again to everyone that's posted so far, it's been great to read through!
The contextual review scores for it were off the charts, and Jawmuncher's thread from yesterday indicated it's sold pretty well for a game originally locked to a doomed console. It's got higher sales that Rev 1 and isn't really that far behind Rev2 either.
These numbers are pretty nuts. Even contextually.
Also who uses an out of 400 scoring scale? Honestly.
So yeah, I think for all my moaning I have neglected to mention some things I DO like about CVX. I can respect the ambition of the title, the mood of Rockfort island, the music, the atmospheric lighting... hell, the fidelity of the in-engine cutscene models was VERY good for a console game that launched before some of the final major releases on competing machines - This is a game that released months before Majora's Mask and Final Fantasy 9, a year before Conker's Bad Fur Day and mere months after RE3 Nemesis. It's technical leagues ahead of any of those in terms of fidelity.
I also had no idea about the no easy mode thing for international releases. Was this a "Western Gamer attitude" choice or a "stopping weekend rentals choice"? Or even a bit of both?
Yeah, similarly to above I can see how people would've been wowed at the time, but I also agree it's not anything that would age immediately well, let alone 21 years later. I'll get to the bolded part in a bit.
Yeah, I'm... not too sure what was up with this. I kinda figured there was no point even attempting to fight it and I quickly learned it would never damage me on the ledges of the pool. Eventually I just decided to tank the damage and run in there for the item before running out and not engaging. I also equally just ran past the Gulp Worm (is that really what they went with?) and the Giant Black Widow. There's just no point to fighting any of them. I wish I could've run past the first Tyrant encounter BEFORE the plane honestly. That was another annoying re-load because I wasn't fully equipped for it.
I also think it was a missed trick to have the Eagle Plate here and not have Chris take it from the door that led to the Piano Scroll.
Would've made more sense and was fresher in my memory.
So, firstly, I apologise for butchering and truncating this post in an attempt to keep my own post short. I really appreciated the detail of this reply and I've tried my best to keep the original language for the points I want to talk more about.
Yeah, I think on the map-size and backtracking, I can maybe be too forgiving of RE3: Nemesis due to my familiarity with that game having played it to death. It can be equally as punishing to a newcomer as I found CVX to be. I actually recently watched a friend stream through Nemesis for the first time and they definitely struggled at various points in terms of where to go and what to do through no fault of their own whatsoever.
And yeah, I hadn't considered the possibility that this might have been designed as a "Resi fan's resi" for the difficulty aspect. Though, even as a huge fan myself I found it more annoying and tedious than hard, and similarly was swimming in ammo by the end. Though I did basically burn through all my remaining heals on the final fight.
I think I know the trick you're talking about. It involved running forward and juking Steve first and THEN sprinting for the door, right? I actually did attempt this on the first try... it didn't go well. I had to reload, do all of my item management again, get back there, skip the cutscenes and this time I just used 3 full heals to tank through it because I REALLY didn't want to have to reload all over again.
But yeah, thank you for the depth of this response, it was great!
I think this is where I sit on CVX and 0 too. The campiness of the original three games feels in earnest. 4 KNOWS it's being cheesy and ridiculous and how to play it off, with a wink to the camera and a pose on a throne. There's SOMETHING about RE0 and CVX that just sits badly with me.
The way I've always described how I feel about 0 is kinda like this: People love The Room. It's a terrible, disaster of a film, but it was made earnestly, with some kind of creative vision even if the technical ability wasn't there to make it good. It's a product of love. Asylum films like Sharknado 4 are terrible by design. They lean into campiness in an inauthentic way that never sits right with me. If the films were actually GOOD and campy, I'd be 100% fine with it probably. But the fact they're trying to capture that earnest cheesiness whilst also not being great experiences on their own merits just throw me off.
It truly ain't easy bein' cheesy.
I was actually unaware of what the CVX differences even were until reading some of these responses. It seems like CVX contextualises Wesker a bit better or gives him more focus but at the cost of more of the stuff I just mentioned I don't really enjoy?
Also, I mean, flex away, but there's no way in hell anyone could be expected to just know to save 30 explosive arrows for that part without explicit direction to do so. I had 16 saved which seems like it was just under what I needed to quickly blast the Tyrant away, and that was even going in with the knowledge that I should save ammo for that fight.
Yeah, I would also like to rectify and say whilst this is my least liked Resi by some margin I at least got SEVERAL great laughs out of it. I'd be lying if I said the terrible voice acting wasn't also hilarious as shit, and some of the cuts between in game cinematics and Claire's dopey ass model standing dead still with her arms down by her side never failed to kill me.
Yeah, as above this shit is golden. It's the closest the game comes to that authentic, earnest campiness for me. I left it out of the OP to try and save on space but it has a place in my heart.
I thankfully did bring it with me, and I know now it's only to get the Magnum which thankfully made the second phase of the final fight so much easier... but yeah this could EASILY trip up other people and not having it could really, really suck.
So, this is the last point I also wanted to bring up, going WAY back to the part of snausages' post that I bolded. I actually don't know how I feel on this front. I think CVX would benefit the MOST from a radical overhaul, and I also believe that rougher, less polished titles should be getting remakes instead of all-time greats. But in this instance I really don't know.
It feels like nothing would be lost if CVX's contributions to the overall story were simply rolled more elegantly into RE4 - neither of which really do a great job of explaining Wesker's return or even his motivations. In fact, a lot of that simply gets stapled on to Resi 5 and it seems to just about work fine. From a gameplay perspective, absolutely. I'd love to see a complete tear-down and rebuild of CVX, but I'm torn on the narrative necessity of it.
also hi Nate I really like your and MVG's podcast, keep up the great work!
Anyway, that's another ramble over. Thanks again to everyone that's posted so far, it's been great to read through!
I don't like it. Never have. I remember being super hyped about it on Dreamcast and then being beyond disapointed in it once I played it. I didn't even like the visuals. It was in that awkward time where it was still pretty much using fixed camera angles...but the backgrounds now had to be rendered real time and as a result looked super basic compared to the pre-endered shots of even the PSone games. The characters were awful, stylistically and personality wise (people rag on RE7 chris but I honestly think he's much worse in code veronica) they all just looked like soft cartoony/anime version of real people.
Bandersnatchers annoyed me. And the story is SO bad. It's basically the ugly step child of the resident evil series for me...I barely even recognise it as part of the series anymore.
Bandersnatchers annoyed me. And the story is SO bad. It's basically the ugly step child of the resident evil series for me...I barely even recognise it as part of the series anymore.
A friend got my hyped on CV, and even though I had never played an RE game before, I purchase CV day one on Dreamcast. For that reason it holds a special place in my mind when thinking about RE games.
I tried to replay it last year (CVX 360 version on Xbox One X) and couldn't get over the archaic controls.
This game could be brilliant with a proper remake, and I hope it's something Capcom looks into in the future.
I tried to replay it last year (CVX 360 version on Xbox One X) and couldn't get over the archaic controls.
This game could be brilliant with a proper remake, and I hope it's something Capcom looks into in the future.
My first time playing it definitely didn't live up to the insane hype the game was getting from Dreamcast-centric media, that's for sure. (ODCMUK: "This is going to be a huge, huge title, and is certainly one of the most important games for Dreamcast. Keep an eye out for Resident Evil: Code Veronica, it's going to be the biggest of the big.")
I "was there" when it launched. My roommate imported it. I was incredibly disappointed, and my opinion only worsened the further we played. Everything about the game is wrong. The move to more action focused gameplay, poor level design, awful awful Steve, and the over the top anime cutscenes. I wasn't exactly in love with RE3 or anything, but it was a far better game.
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Totally. It was the last og RE game to play with those mechanics. Everything after felt completely different, even REmake. RE3 is my favorite game in the franchise because of the dread nemesis brings, the chase, or thought if it, makes my heart race. I also like RE3's setting more. Seeing Racoon City being lost is really cool. I missed that in the other games. I'm sure a lot of it is for ppl today is going back. Playing these games at launch were pretty impressive and really felt terrifying.
There was only one kid with the Dreamcast at the neighborhood I used to live and I'll tell you that after seeing CV at his house all the kids that had the ps1 and RE 3 were salty as fuck, it totally killed RE 3 for us. The game was gorgeous, it was hard from the beginning, just going out from the cell was tricky. Also It wasn't RE in a city like we were used at that time, you'd go in different scenarios and it had a larger scale. It wasn't umbrella anymore and the story was kinda good. Also you have to realize that good voice acting wasn't a thing back than, even Shenmue which I'd say was that top feels outdated and cheesy nowdays. I like it even better than 7 for a lot of reasons but If I had to choose a RE game that needs a remake I'd be CV followed by 0, while I can see why they'd do 4 that game doesn't need a remake at all, it still plays extremely well while CV and 0 have some good canonic elements but play badly in 2021
It was a technical marvel at the time, with the environment being all rendered with polygons which was really neat (no more pre-rendered "still" backdrops) and we still more or less accepted tank controls. Fast forward to today, and the early 3d graphics didn't age well, and lack the sort of timelessness the pre-rendered backdrops of the PS1 currently enjoy.
The story is dumb schlock, but really that WAS the series at this point in time. The tone of the games has changed over the years. This was the biggest single game of the "old school" structured Resident Evils, so yes, it had the biggest world, which meant the most backtracking, and time just wondering around back and trying to figure out the puzzles, or the next place to go, or item you needed to find, as these games were mostly about solving puzzles back then, and less about action.
I still find the game to be a fun moment in time. Definitely prefer pretty much every mainline game that followed it, but I can't hate CV- it was killer in its time.
The story is dumb schlock, but really that WAS the series at this point in time. The tone of the games has changed over the years. This was the biggest single game of the "old school" structured Resident Evils, so yes, it had the biggest world, which meant the most backtracking, and time just wondering around back and trying to figure out the puzzles, or the next place to go, or item you needed to find, as these games were mostly about solving puzzles back then, and less about action.
I still find the game to be a fun moment in time. Definitely prefer pretty much every mainline game that followed it, but I can't hate CV- it was killer in its time.
Actually I discovered that by accident on my first try I was so conservative with ammo 😅
The game literally tells you what to do to get out of the cell, and it's still Umbrella. Think maybe your memory is rusty there lol
I really appreciate OP long explanation.
That said, Code Veronica in Dreamcast was the last time I sincerely got the nextgen jump feeling for a classic Resident evil game
It was also a refreshing meaningful step forward in terms of general narration and contents for the RE universe, coming from the veeeery disappointing RE3 experience (being 3 in the same place and time than 2)
Wesker appearances was his best, way better than his part in 4 or 5
Bu I also think that RE0 was great too, for the same reasons, so..
That said, Code Veronica in Dreamcast was the last time I sincerely got the nextgen jump feeling for a classic Resident evil game
It was also a refreshing meaningful step forward in terms of general narration and contents for the RE universe, coming from the veeeery disappointing RE3 experience (being 3 in the same place and time than 2)
Wesker appearances was his best, way better than his part in 4 or 5
Bu I also think that RE0 was great too, for the same reasons, so..
Not a bad game, just the worst of the classic line: badly balanced, terrible back-tracking, bad pacing, embarrassing sequences, incoherent character development, situations already seen and the beginning of few diseases in the saga -> the return of dead characters, super powers and the inability to create new interesting main characters.
Too late!
For real though, I can never really disentangle my feelings about CV from the feel of playing a AAA exclusive - and what really was essentially the true RE3 - on the DC, a system that was otherwise pretty disregarded by major publishers. I can still very much play and enjoy it today though, so it holds up for me (worth noting I can play and enjoy almost all old generations back to NES).
But I guess for me, I still really enjoy the atmosphere, the character models and faces still really hold up, DAT INTRO, and... honestly the characters lol. I thoroughly ironically enjoy Steve, and still marvel to this day that he was greenlit. To be clear to anyone who wasn't up on this in 2000, he was just as terrible then as he is now, even if the clothing and hair cut made a bit more sense.
And totally agreed that the transphobia embodied by the main villain is a tough pill to swallow today, even by proxy as a cis man. It's reassuring in some sense given it shows we've come a long way, as there was a lot of other contemporary media associating gender non-conformity with the villain roles.
I like dropping stuff, kinda reminds me of the mode where the boxes aren't linked in various games.
Naaaah. RE3 added dodging, item crafting, a branching story with two endings, optional boss fights, introduced mercenaries mode and made some much needed quality of life improvements like stair walking and quick turn. It made the game more action orientated but mixed up the formula in an interesting way. In comparison, CV did nothing to move the formula forward. Hell, it was actually a few steps backwards, the only thing they adopted from RE3 was quick turn.
I've tried to start CVX so many times and bounced off it each time. Reading this thread kind of confirms to me that it's not worth trying again, which gives a good sense of closure. Even to hear vets and people who like it say "yeahhhh, you just had to be there at the time" adds fuel to the fire.
OP
OP
Oh lol, that was just a random screenshot I found online.
My actual time was more like 16 hours.
Dang. I would say 8 hours for a first playthrough could already be considered a little long in the tooth, but then again, if you felt the game did not show you the goals correctly, then it'd be hard not to spend a few hours.
I genuinely enjoy the gameplay and setting of this game, more so than RE0, but the decision by Capcom to continue recycling protagonists, along with the Saturday morning cartoon stupidity kills it for me.
I really wish the series had kept using average people in various cities and locales who end up in apocalyptic situations as the virus spreads, each with their own motivations to do something besides just running away. A single sequel of a previous protagonist here and there would be fine, especially when it involves the theme of escaping a city, which RE3 did fantastically. But when the series turned to the characters themselves to push forward the series' narrative from game-to-game instead of using them as vessels or avatars of the players to discover the truths behind the predicaments, everything fell apart.
The series was filled with fantastic world building that never necessitated main characters stick around from entry to entry. Umbrella, the old-money shadowy figures that worked with them, the surrounding municipalities where the disasters occur - those were the meat of the game, even in RE3 with Jill's return.
I really wish the series had kept using average people in various cities and locales who end up in apocalyptic situations as the virus spreads, each with their own motivations to do something besides just running away. A single sequel of a previous protagonist here and there would be fine, especially when it involves the theme of escaping a city, which RE3 did fantastically. But when the series turned to the characters themselves to push forward the series' narrative from game-to-game instead of using them as vessels or avatars of the players to discover the truths behind the predicaments, everything fell apart.
The series was filled with fantastic world building that never necessitated main characters stick around from entry to entry. Umbrella, the old-money shadowy figures that worked with them, the surrounding municipalities where the disasters occur - those were the meat of the game, even in RE3 with Jill's return.