"Be very afraid."

The Resident Evil series began in 1996. The basic idea was to create a game series that was like none other ever created; survival horror. The plan worked as the original sold millions across several game systems, and spurned several follow-ups. In 2000, Resident Evil: Code Veronica was released for the Dreamcast, and later was ported to the Playstation 2 and Gamecube. It's safe to say that Resident Evil: Code Veronica is a perfect port, with no slow down, and a game that makes a truly horrifying experience.

The gameplay is pretty basic. Anyone who has ever played a Resident Evil game knows what to expect. In order to make your character move, you need to push up for forward movement, and down for backward movement. However, in order to move your character's direction, you need to rotate the control stick in that direction. The game developers also added a 180 degree turn by rotating the C-stick, a move that becomes very handy during the game. Still these are your basic Resident Evil controls, so there is no surprise here. The game is also pretty hard. Not that other Resident Evil games are easy, but this game seems to have more enemies, more puzzles, and tougher bosses.

The story in this game is pretty unique. It ties together the entire Chris/Claire Redfield storyline, and also clears up the entire Resident Evil storyline pretty well. Claire is captured while in a secret Umbrella factory in Europe, and your job is to help her escape. Along the way she will meet Steve Burnside, a 17 year old boy who is also a prisoner. Chris later in the game comes to her rescue after receiving a distress signal from Claire. Chris and Claire will also meet a familiar foe who was thought to be dead. You don't know who I'm talking about? Albert Wesker, that's who. Let me say that he is as evil as ever in Code Veronica.

The graphics are quite nice. They are very detailed, and are almost as good as the remake. As for the music, well in a game series like this, music and sound are vital to establish the perfect mood. It's safe to say that the music and sound are haunting, and truly makes your heart beat faster. Speaking of that, when your character enters a door, a faint heartbeat is heard in the background, which only adds to the tension while playing this game. You know that there is something bad behind that door, and that faint heartbeat really helps make this game a complete scarefest.

Replay value is very high. No surprise, as all Resident Evil games are like this. Obviously you need to play the game several times in order to unlock everything. Also there is a fine time attack game included as well. In addition, this Resident Evil game is almost twice as long as any other Resident Evil game ever created.

In conclusion, I advise anyone who liked any other Resident Evil game to pick Code Veronica up. If you don't, well this game is the perfect place to start. It's challenging, scary, and a blast to play. Although it took Capcom forever to finally bring it to the Gamecube (almost two years!), Resident Evil: Code Veronica is a brilliant game that everyone should play. There could be one small problem as this game had a limited print run. I found my new copy at EB games on a cold December morning in 2003, but I have yet to see it anywhere else. If you do want to play this game, buying used might be your only option. Just remember that it is also on the PS2 and Dreamcast. Either way, find some way to play this game.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 11/08/04, Updated 03/20/05