Resident Evil Survivor 2: Code: Veronica

"Far better than the original Survivor, but there's still much room for improvement. An entertaining rent."

After the fairly dire Resident Evil: Survivor on PSX, I found out a 2nd one was on its way. I was amazed. The original Survivor was a rather unpopular game. To be frank, Capcom didn't get letters asking for more Survivor games flooding into their office. Everyone liked the good old 3rd person formula with more challenge, logical puzzle-solving and a better plot. So why did I even touch Survivor 2? Because it was based on Resident Evil Code: Veronica X (I loved that game)!

STORY (4/10)

This game follows the same basic idea as CVX, but the detailed story-line is nowhere to be seen. You play as Claire Redfield or Steve Burnside, trying to escape from Rockfort Island. Starting off in a prison, the game climaxes in a monster-ridden airport, so in a nutshell, Survivor 2 is the first half of CVX.

GAMEPLAY (6/10)

The game starts out fun, but gets repetitive. Like Survivor 1, most of it is action, guns and killing, rather than a large amount of puzzles and strategy, a la CVX. All the killing would be even more boring if it wasn't for the weapons, which are a cool selection and add versatility to how you kill monsters, and how easily you kill them.

The game is fairly simple, although a challenge present is the timer which counts down at the top; it increases as you kill monsters. If, and when, it reaches zero, RE3's Nemesis makes an appearance and is invincible. He chases you for a while and goes away, or he will kill Claire or Steve and go away. There is a boss at the end of every level, which will range from an oversized garden spider to the old RE classic, the Tyrant. Basically CVX and Survivor 1 put together, made for the arcades.

GRAPHICS (7/10)

The visuals (especially the backgrounds) in CVX were better, but overall a good attempt for the PS2 and some lovely character models. There is the standard RE gore fest as well (obviously, because you'll be doing loads of killing), though a lot less than previous installments.

SOUND (6/10)

The same tunes as CVX, which were great, but the groans and screams are more grainy and quiet. Also, the subtitles for the PAL version are badly translated and, with no voice-acting...it...er...heh, well, doesn't feel the same, eh?

REPLAY VALUE (6/10)

Decent amount of game modes. You can unlock new modes, such as VS. Roach, and Dungeon mode, which consists of lots of different missions to do. You can also unlock infinite ammo weapons, and a hidden character, whose identity will be left for you to discover. However, it all gets tedious eventually, because of the pretty shallow gameplay.

BUY OR RENT?

Survivor 2 never got an NA release, and to be honest, if you live on that Continent, don't bother spending money to import because it really isn't worth that time. If you live in an area where it is released, don't buy it anyway.

However, if you have a little cash to spare, and like mindless shooters or are a RE fan, this is well worth a rental ONLY (in spite of the replay value, which is expanded, gameplay gets repetitive).

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 04/21/02, Updated 04/14/03