I have to admit that I'm not a big fan of the Resident Evil series. I've played all the games of the series and I have enjoyed them, especially the first one, but in my heart they don't even come close to Silent Hill. The truth is that these two titles represent two completely different ways to think a genre. Resident Evil is what can be called an “action Survival Horror”, with the great importance given to battles against monstrous creatures, Silent Hill is a sort of intimist Survival Horror that is able to touch the emotions of the player.

Resident Evil Code: Veronica X is the PS2 version of one of the best titles available on that unfortunate console that is the Dreamcast. Together with titles like Soul Calibur and Shenmue, this game was one of the reasons to buy the great Sega beast. But you know, not everyone is rich enough to buy more than a console. For this reason, Resident Evil: Code Veronica X is a good occasion for all the owners of a PS2 to play one of the most celebrated next-generation titles.

Let's start from the X. You know, it's not there by chance. The X/Ps2 version of Code Veronica is an enhanced version of the Dreamcast's game. It features 10 minutes of never previously seen footage and theoretically better graphics (we'll speak about this later). Adding to that, the game actually reveals many points that were obscure in the series. And no, I'll not reveal anything about the secrets of Resident Evil in my review. What I can say is that someone is back from the past of the Resident Evil series. And he is stronger and cooler than ever.

Code: Veronica takes place after the events of Resident Evil 2. Claire Redfield heads to Europe in search for her brother Chris, but she is caught by the Umbrella Inc, the evil company behind the genetic mutations of Resident Evil. She is brought to a corporation's prison on a mysterious island in the Antarctica continent. But Claire is not alone. During the adventure she will find the help of Steve Burnside, a young man imprisoned by the Umbrella, and of her beloved brother, Chris. The story of Code: Veronica is probably the most intriguing of the whole series. The game is connected to all the other episodes and the characters are all developed in a masterly manner.

Speaking of controls, Code: Veronica plays exactly like all the other Resident Evil titles. And that's bad and good at the same time. It's good, because all the fans of the series will find themselves immediately comfortable; it's bad, because after the nice ideas behind a game like Extermination, this gives the game an outdated feel. Anyhow, it's impossible to deny the fact that every single Resident Evil chapter was absolutely fun to play. Even the famous RE's issue of the blind corner is for me a non-issue. This “problem” occurs often when playing a Resident Evil game. You find yourself in the situation of being not able to see what's in front of your character because of the fixed camera angles. And this happens in Code Veronica too. But you know, Resident evil is a game. And every game has its own precise rules, or it would no longer be a game. So I see the “blind corners” thing simply as a rule you have to consider when playing Resident Evil.

As usual, if you press the circle button during the game you have access to the character menu, where you can combine and modify the objects in your inventory and take a look at the map of the zones you've already visited. The X button is the classic multi purpose button, while the square is used to make your character run; pressing the R1 button you draw the weapon you've equipped. The left stick is used to move your character. The Dual Shock 2 is nicely supported and it is used to raise the great emphasis given to action in this instalment of the series.

In fact, thanks to the use of 3d environments rendered in real time instead of the usual pre-rendered backgrounds, the action is more fast paced respect to the previous Resident Evil episodes. The camera moves to frame the character, sometimes with a particular unusual angle, like in the first Dino Crisis or in Konami's Silent Hill, and this really spice up the battles against zombies and other monsters. Speaking of A.I., the zombies are the usual stupid slow guys that become a problem only when they attack in groups of three-four elements; other enemies like the giant bats and the fast zombie-dogs are annoying because of the difficulty to aim at them; finally, a bunch of monsters are extremely dangerous and can kill you with just two or three hits. Among them, the Sweepers are probably the most vicious, also thanks to their poisonous claws.

The boss monsters are probably the most difficult you have ever met in a Resident Evil game. But with a few practice, and if you are able in handling your ammunitions, you should have no problems to find a good strategy to defeat them.

The puzzles included in the game are all very simple, and the system of the key cards to open locked doors is back. There are a few variants on this theme but it's all the usual stuff. If you are used to adventure games like Escape From Monkey Island or Shadow Of Destiny, you'll not even notice the puzzles in the game. Overall, the gameplay of Code Veronica is not different from what we've found in the previous instalment of the series. That's to say – good classic experience, but a bit outdated.