One of Capcom’s most beloved video game franchises, Resident Evil, has finally received its next installment in the form of the fantastic Resident Evil 4 Remake. However, fans of the series couldn’t help but notice that this same courtesy was sadly not extended to Code: Veronica, the next entry after Resident Evil 3 and a crucial addition to the overall franchise. So, let’s take a look at why this great game deserves to get the same amazing treatment that Resident Evil 2, 3, and 4 got.
Please note that there will be spoilers, but I will let you know when they begin, so if you haven’t played Code: Veronica yet, don’t worry; there will be a warning when the spoilers start. Also, for those who don’t know, because I will mention it a couple of times, the mainline games in the series are viewed as being the numbered entries, the two Revelations games, and Code: Veronica. It’s not a huge deal, but it is worth knowing before diving in.
The main story of Resident Evil Code: Veronica takes place several months after the events of Resident Evil 2 and 3 and sees Claire Redfield continue on her quest to find her brother Chris. In the process, she gets entangled with the Ashford family, one of the three founding members of the evil Umbrella Corporation.
A big reason why Resident Evil Code: Veronica deserves to be remade is this very story, as it continues Claire’s mission to find Chris, which was one of the major plotlines of Resident Evil 2. It would be incredibly fitting to have the next few remakes be focused on the protagonists of the successful Resident Evil 2 Remake, where RE 4 is focused on Leon’s next journey, while Code: Veronica is focused on Claire’s. Also interesting to note is that, like Leon in the fourth main installment, Claire is now a much more capable fighter, so the trend of having the game’s protagonists be more and more competent would continue.
It is shameful that Code: Veronica has yet to be remade because the game was initially shaping up to be Resident Evil 3. Sadly, due to its development taking too long, Capcom decided to have their spinoff starring Jill Valentine, Resident Evil: Nemesis, be classified as the third main installment. Nevertheless, this hasn’t stopped fans from viewing Code: Veronica as the proper third main entry and not the spinoff the lack of numbering would have casual fans believe.
The fact that Code: Veronica was skipped over in favor of adapting RE 4 is unfortunate, yet it doesn’t mean that Capcom can’t go back to remake the game. Resident Evil 4 Remake may spoil a few of the reveals that happen in Code: Veronica, but there is plenty of room for the game to move around this and even use it to improve the story here.
For example, Resident Evil 4 mentions the downfall of the Umbrella Corporation, which alas is something that mostly happens off-screen, a mistake that a remake of Code: Veronica could fix. There is plenty of room to include the fall of Umbrella at some point in this game, though, and it’s a big story point overall, so the fact that it didn’t happen in a mainline game is weird and disappointing. Here’s hoping that this event will be retconned to occur during a new version of this game, as there is plenty of opportunity to do so with how this game deals with another Umbrella conspiracy.
Something else that a Code: Veronica remake could provide players is a decently long game, full of various enemies and locations that would be amazing to see come to life on the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. The game may have two playable protagonists, but unlike Resident Evil 2, this is told in only one story, more akin to the third installment. Thankfully, unlike Resident Evil 3, Code: Veronica is much longer and larger in scale, which would likely be represented in a remake as well.
One area where Code: Veronica also stands out when compared to the entries that came before it is the variety of content that the game has, as there are a plethora of locations and enemies that the Redfields face in their journey. It would be amazing to see updated versions of places like the prison and military base, along with reworked versions of the various enemies, especially ones like the dreadful Bandersnatch.
So with all that being said, let’s get into the more detailed story elements, meaning yes, this is the spoiler warning I mentioned earlier. Everything from here on out includes massive details about the plot, so please proceed with that in mind.
The major development that Resident Evil 4 spoils, which was initially revealed in Code: Veronica, is that Albert Wesker, the undercover Umbrella agent and betrayer of S.T.A.R.S., is indeed alive. Unlike the fourth numbered installment, though, where Wesker is a character working out of the shadows, he is a pivotal character in the Code: Veronica’s overall narrative. The story that is presented here with Wesker becomes an even bigger plot point with Resident Evil 5, so to have Capcom seemingly say that it is okay to skip this game as they have with their remakes feels like a major injustice.
Not to mention that many of the action scenes included in Code: Veronica are excellent, especially for a game released in 2000. There are some incredibly epic scenes where Claire and Chris each individually confront Wesker, which would be amazing to see remade for modern consoles and audiences.
Speaking of the Redfields, it’s a shame that Code: Veronica is the only significant entry in which fans get to see the two siblings interact. So, while it would be nice to see a new story give us more of the brother and sister together, getting a modern retelling of the only major story where they are working together would be great as well. Also, since we don’t currently have a modern design for the younger Chris Redfield, only the older ones, this version of him getting one would be the cherry on top.
As for the characters who are exclusive to this entry, Capcom has the chance with a remake to have these characters come across better than they did in the original. A critique that is often leveled at Code: Veronica has to do with Claire’s friend and love interest, Steve Burnside. For starters, Claire and Steve do not need to be romantically interested in each other; it adds nothing to the story, so the remake could eliminate that. However, more importantly, Steve is frankly an overall annoying and whiny character, something that could hopefully be changed so that his scenes come across better.
A character that I often think of when it comes to Steve is RE 3’s Carlos, as the two have some similarities with their roles in their respective games and how they are just one-off characters. Both characters have some really grating traits about them, which thankfully, Resident Evil 3 Remake did fix by making Carlos much more likable and endearing, something that Capcom could totally do with Steve as well. Simply put, there are certain scenes, like Steve’s transformation and death, that would come across much better if Capcom were able to give Steve the same treatment they did to Carlos.
Remaking Code: Veronica would also give Capcom a chance to redeem themselves when it comes to the interesting villains that are Alfred and Alexia Ashford. In particular, Alfred’s mental state and LGBTQ+ status are not necessarily handled the best, which given the time period the game came out, is not shocking. Hopefully, this is something that could be explored with more care in the remake. Furthermore, Alexia is arguably one of the more intriguing villains that the series has seen, so it’s a shame that Capcom has skipped over the twins’ story in favor of a game that came out later.
On the bright side, there are rumors that Capcom has plans for a Code: Veronica remake due to some of their actions online. This mostly comes down to the fact that they were trying to shut down a fanmade remake of the game, leading numerous people to believe that Capcom was doing this because they didn’t want a competing remake out there.
At the end of the day, the importance of Code: Veronica to both the overall narrative and the individual Resident Evil characters’ storylines cannot be understated, so it’s a shame that Capcom is seemingly signaling that it is unimportant by them not remaking the game. Hopefully, they are just releasing these games out of order, and fans will get to play a fantastic remake of Resident Evil Code: Veronica in no time.
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