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Resident Evil: Code Veronica Turns 20 – What Now?

If you’re experiencing a mild dose of déjà vu from this headline it’s because we used a similar one for Resident Evil 3 last year when that turned 20.

Here we are again. Last time though we were reflecting on the success of the Resident Evil 2 remake and wondering if (but more like when) Capcom would commit to a remake of Resident Evil 3. It made sense. Oh what a difference a few months make!

Long time Resi fans will remember that Resident Evil: Code Veronica, originally released on the Dreamcast, before being ported to the PS2 soon after, actually started out life as Resident Evil 3. But to capitalise on the success of RE2 they repositioned CV as a cannon spin-off and created another PS1 game out of the RE2 assets instead. This would go on to become the RE3: Nemesis we remember today. And the game getting remade and released in two months time.

A Resident Evil game turning 20, in recent memory has heralded a remake on the horizon. It did for RE2 and it did for RE3. RE:CV seems to be the final piece to click into place. After this, all the main line RE games from that particular era of the series will have been updated and modernised. Able to stand alongside the more recent style of games that started appearing following RE4.

So What Next?

The Resident Evil 3 remake will be upon us on the 3rd April this year. Unlike the RE2 remake that languished in development for several years, Capcom have expedited RE3 and developed it in an impressively small window. Although this is mainly because the game has the luxury of reusing the RE2 remake’s assets. Just like the original RE3 was able to piggyback on the original RE2’s assets for a quick turnaround twenty years ago.

Capcom clearly have some big plans in the pipeline for Resident Evil 8 and we’re looking forward to seeing what they come up with for the follow up to the well-received RE7. But with Capcom now committing to more remakes of older games it seems unlikely that they are going to stop after RE3. After all, they can reuse the assets from RE2 (2019) each time and we imagine they have grown rather accustomed to the tidy payday remaking older Resident Evil games has yielded.

Why Code Veronica?

RE:CV is a little different to RE1,2 and 3. As we said it was a Dreamcast and PS2 game so was more technically advanced than what had come before. Fixed camera angles were still used but pre-rendered backgrounds were dropped in favour of a more dynamic approach to environments. The camera in some instances moved to follow the player, which was a real departure from what had come before. This would be expanded upon greatly in RE4.

But despite its changes, CV was still very much an old school Resi title. The release of RE4 made this even more apparent once players went back to it. Once the RE3 remake comes out, CV will be the only early RE title in the mainline series to not be either remade, or given a modern overhaul like the RE1 remake and RE0 was given. Capcom could polish CV like they did the RE1 remake and RE0. The game came out before them, but not that long before them. It’s still very much a part of that era of game and still stands up in HD. But as Capcom are remaking old games from the ground up using the assets from the RE2 remake, we imagine CV is the next game they’re eyeing.

What About Dino Crisis?

Dino Crisis is obviously another Resident Evil-esque game developed by Capcom which is rumoured to be being remade at some point. Capcom could skip RE:CV and jump straight into this. There are multiple games in the Dino Crisis series and remaking it could allow them to then remake the sequels too, earning them more of that sweet remake cheddar. After all Capcom have recently filed trademarks in relation to this franchise.

If Capcom really wanted, they could remake the Dino Crisis games, RE:CV and even RE1 again then RE0. But we think the bubble will burst before this happens. They will need to be selective; players will get bored and developers will want to work on newer projects.

Then What Is Realistic?

Like Dino Crisis, there is now a fan made remake of Coder Veronica being made. It was this kind of project that originally inspired Capcom to remake Resident Evil 2 after all, eventually letting that team help in the development of the official remake. But what do we think is likely to happen? Well, we think a remake of Code Veronica is likely. It would allow Capcom to remake the last RE game of that early era, completing the set, modernising that entire generation of games and bringing them back into the public consciousness. For the record we also believe a Dino Crisis remake is also a dead cert, but after that who knows? By then we may be well into next gen.

We’ve said before we don’t think Capcom will commit to remaking anything like RE4. The game just doesn’t need it and is so engrained into the minds of modern gamers that it would pointless and confusing.  We’ve also got to consider that while Capcom are enjoying the sweet remake cheddar. The main prize is ultimately the future of the series, i.e. RE8 and beyond. This sudden surge of remakes is likely to be temporary, but we can sure enjoy it while it lasts.

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