While playing Revelations 2 for the first time, and seeing the familiar intro with Claire waking up in a prison cell, I started getting very strong Code Veronica vibes, even to the extent that I was almost certain at some point that Claire's final boss would be a resurrected, mutated Steve.
Of course there was no Steve in the end; but this didn't make the game less fascinating or enjoyable. In fact, despite its somewhat vague plot, and although the action keeps shifting from Claire to Barry and ends up focused on three characters that were introduced to us for the first time (Natalia, Moira and Alex) instead of our two familiar heroes, its eerily bizarre atmosphere is captivating, and although it looks simple in concept, it's particularly immersive, especially when it comes to depicting the creepy, monster-inhabited countryside and the post-apocalyptic city, deprived of any sane and healthy human being.
Claire wakes up in a prison cell
In both games Claire wakes up in a prison cell, set on an isolated island that she has no idea where it is. This was done on purpose by the creators, as a tribute to Code Veronica which also starred Claire.
In Code Veronica, Claire had been imprisoned after she was caught while attempting to enter an Umbrella Facility in Paris, where she was looking for her brother Chris.
In Revelations 2, she was abducted with other members of the Terra Save organization where she belonged, and found herself captive in a cell.
Soon after she's back to her senses, the gate of her cell opens so that she can get out. In Code Veronica, it's her guard, Rodrigo Raval, who unlocks the cell. Seriously injured, he can't risk leaving Claire locked in while the whole island has been attacked and is slowly being overwhelmed by zombies.
In Revelations 2, Claire wakes up in the cell of a prison that looks almost destroyed and abandoned, and sees she has a bracelet on her wrist, that she cannot remove. Keep your eyes peeled on the left side of the screen during the opening cutscene, and as soon as the beep sounds and the doors are unlocked, you will notice a shadow sliding silently and then disappearing. It is Alex Wesker, who unlocked the cells as part of her plan to lure Claire and the other Terra Save prisoners to the place where she can test who is vulnerable to her virus and who is immune.
A paranoid enemy is haunting her
In Code Veronica, as soon as Claire escapes from the prison area, she gets spotted by Alfred Ashford, the psycho commander of the island. For whatever mysterious reason, Alfred is convinced that Claire is responsible for the attack on his island and sets on a mission to exterminate her.
In Revelations 2, Alex Wesker, aka The Overseer, is constantly monitoring Claire as well as the other prisoners. It was her who trapped them on this island and is seeking among them a host that will be the medium for her future resurrection as an omnipotent god of sorts.
Revelations 2 Claire quotes Code Veronica Steve early in the game
After leaving her cell, Claire finds Moira further down in another cell and they start exploring the mysterious prison where they are. At some point, while searching the body of a dead guard to get the necessary keys, Claire also takes his handgun. When Moira asks her if she is actually going to use the gun, Claire says that a gun is more reliable than any person.
It's actually the line that Steve told her back at the Training Facility of the Ashford Mansion, after getting the dual machine guns in his possession.
Claire is connected to a guy who becomes a monster and wants to kill her
Although in Code Veronica we are not exactly sure that Claire is actually in love with Steve (she has way bigger problems to solve before dealing with her love life), we do know that she likes him a lot and has tender feelings for him. When Steve mutates in the end, he chases her yielding an axe, trying to kill her under the orders of Alexia, but in the end, when he sees that Alexia has trapped her, his love for her prevails and he saves her, sacrificing his own life.
In Revelations 2, it becomes quite clear that Claire has feelings for her boss, Neil Fisher; we also do suspect early on (at least I know I did) that Neil is not very honest and that something bad is going to happen at some point, involving him. To prove us right, he gets mutated to a gross Tyrant version and Claire has to fight him. In the end, Moira kills him, saving Claire's life. Poor girl has never been lucky with men.
The creepy dolls
When Barry arrives at the lair of the Overseer with Natalia, we see it's a creepy place overwhelmed with damaged dolls. There is no clear explanation, plot-wise, as to why Alex has all these dolls hanging from the ceiling and lying about; they are also there in the final chapter, as Barry and Natalia leave the mansion and head towards Alex's final hideout. I guess they are one more sign of her twisted mind and also show her attempt to scare Natalia who, being a little girl, should love dolls.
In Code Veronica there was this terrifying huge doll hanging from the ceiling at the entrance of the Ashfords' secret residence.
Alfred seems to be quite obsessed with dolls too. There are all kinds of dolls in the secret residence, in every nook and corner, in the corridors, the bedrooms and even in a big glass case down in the hall.
Psycho siblings
Alex is chasing Claire in Revelations 2, and she is the sister of Albert Wesker who has been chasing Chris since forever. In Code Veronica, the big boss that Chris has to fight is Alexia, whose brother, Alfred, has been chasing Claire all along.
A family member comes to save the day
At some point in Code Veronica, Claire manages to send a message to Leon Kennedy who, in turn, contacts Chris and informs him on the whereabouts of his sister. After passing through all sorts of obstacles and trials, Chris discovers Claire trapped in a cocoon, in a Spencer Mansion replica in Antarctica. He rescues her and finally brother and sister are reunited.
Whereas in Revelations 2, Barry Burton travels to the Russian island in search for his daughter Moira, who had been left behind after Alex Wesker's Monument (why is it even called like that?) collapsed, with Claire being totally unable to help her. Although Barry was not even sure whether Moira was alive or not, he arrived at the island determined to find her. And so he did, managing also to fix his tumultuous relationship with her to some degree.
There is always a Wesker
In Code Veronica, there was Albert Wesker who had caused all that mess at the Rockfort Island. He returns as a Nemesis, first beating the hell out of Claire, then attempting to do the same with Chris, but their encounter ends abruptly with Chris managing to escape and a scorched Wesker promising that he will be back.
In Revelations 2, Alex Wesker is defeated by Barry, but before that she has already managed to resurrect herself in Natalia, subtly controlling her mind, unbeknownst to the Burton family who adopted her or anyone else for that matter.
Notice the little teddy bear sitting on a chair? I wonder if someone managed to buy a toy identical to Lottie for Natalia, when the nightmare was supposedly over, or whether the evil in her (aka Alex) was actually able to resurrect Natalia's destroyed toy as well during the process of reinventing herself.
Of course there was no Steve in the end; but this didn't make the game less fascinating or enjoyable. In fact, despite its somewhat vague plot, and although the action keeps shifting from Claire to Barry and ends up focused on three characters that were introduced to us for the first time (Natalia, Moira and Alex) instead of our two familiar heroes, its eerily bizarre atmosphere is captivating, and although it looks simple in concept, it's particularly immersive, especially when it comes to depicting the creepy, monster-inhabited countryside and the post-apocalyptic city, deprived of any sane and healthy human being.
Claire wakes up in a prison cell
In both games Claire wakes up in a prison cell, set on an isolated island that she has no idea where it is. This was done on purpose by the creators, as a tribute to Code Veronica which also starred Claire.
In Code Veronica, Claire had been imprisoned after she was caught while attempting to enter an Umbrella Facility in Paris, where she was looking for her brother Chris.
 |
| Where am I? |
 |
| Where the hell am I again? |
Claire finds herself in a prison where the only other human being for now is a fatally wounded guard
In Revelations 2, Claire wakes up in the cell of a prison that looks almost destroyed and abandoned, and sees she has a bracelet on her wrist, that she cannot remove. Keep your eyes peeled on the left side of the screen during the opening cutscene, and as soon as the beep sounds and the doors are unlocked, you will notice a shadow sliding silently and then disappearing. It is Alex Wesker, who unlocked the cells as part of her plan to lure Claire and the other Terra Save prisoners to the place where she can test who is vulnerable to her virus and who is immune.
The Revelations 2 prison seems to be abandoned for quite some time
A paranoid enemy is haunting her
In Code Veronica, as soon as Claire escapes from the prison area, she gets spotted by Alfred Ashford, the psycho commander of the island. For whatever mysterious reason, Alfred is convinced that Claire is responsible for the attack on his island and sets on a mission to exterminate her.
 |
| This guy is obsessed with guns! |
 |
| Alex has the twisted tendency to talk to people via the bracelets she has attached round their wrists |
Revelations 2 Claire quotes Code Veronica Steve early in the game
After leaving her cell, Claire finds Moira further down in another cell and they start exploring the mysterious prison where they are. At some point, while searching the body of a dead guard to get the necessary keys, Claire also takes his handgun. When Moira asks her if she is actually going to use the gun, Claire says that a gun is more reliable than any person.
It's actually the line that Steve told her back at the Training Facility of the Ashford Mansion, after getting the dual machine guns in his possession.
Claire is connected to a guy who becomes a monster and wants to kill her
Although in Code Veronica we are not exactly sure that Claire is actually in love with Steve (she has way bigger problems to solve before dealing with her love life), we do know that she likes him a lot and has tender feelings for him. When Steve mutates in the end, he chases her yielding an axe, trying to kill her under the orders of Alexia, but in the end, when he sees that Alexia has trapped her, his love for her prevails and he saves her, sacrificing his own life.
Steve starts chasing Claire down the corridor, and all she can do is run the hell out of there
One of the few tender moments of the game
In Revelations 2, it becomes quite clear that Claire has feelings for her boss, Neil Fisher; we also do suspect early on (at least I know I did) that Neil is not very honest and that something bad is going to happen at some point, involving him. To prove us right, he gets mutated to a gross Tyrant version and Claire has to fight him. In the end, Moira kills him, saving Claire's life. Poor girl has never been lucky with men.
Neil, where's your pretty face?
While he is still mutating, he tries to show his feelings, but it's too late
The creepy dolls
When Barry arrives at the lair of the Overseer with Natalia, we see it's a creepy place overwhelmed with damaged dolls. There is no clear explanation, plot-wise, as to why Alex has all these dolls hanging from the ceiling and lying about; they are also there in the final chapter, as Barry and Natalia leave the mansion and head towards Alex's final hideout. I guess they are one more sign of her twisted mind and also show her attempt to scare Natalia who, being a little girl, should love dolls.
Not the kind of doll anyone would like to play with
In Code Veronica there was this terrifying huge doll hanging from the ceiling at the entrance of the Ashfords' secret residence.
 |
| Oh my stars! |
Psycho siblings
Alex is chasing Claire in Revelations 2, and she is the sister of Albert Wesker who has been chasing Chris since forever. In Code Veronica, the big boss that Chris has to fight is Alexia, whose brother, Alfred, has been chasing Claire all along.
 |
| The Wesker siblings in harmony of black and white |
 |
| The Ashford twins in the disturbing film that Claire discovers in Alfred's Army Museum |
A family member comes to save the day
At some point in Code Veronica, Claire manages to send a message to Leon Kennedy who, in turn, contacts Chris and informs him on the whereabouts of his sister. After passing through all sorts of obstacles and trials, Chris discovers Claire trapped in a cocoon, in a Spencer Mansion replica in Antarctica. He rescues her and finally brother and sister are reunited.
 |
| Chris and Claire finally reunite in a lovely scene |
Whereas in Revelations 2, Barry Burton travels to the Russian island in search for his daughter Moira, who had been left behind after Alex Wesker's Monument (why is it even called like that?) collapsed, with Claire being totally unable to help her. Although Barry was not even sure whether Moira was alive or not, he arrived at the island determined to find her. And so he did, managing also to fix his tumultuous relationship with her to some degree.
 |
| Reconciled Barry and Moira leave the cursed island with Natalia and a renewed Claire |
There is always a Wesker
In Code Veronica, there was Albert Wesker who had caused all that mess at the Rockfort Island. He returns as a Nemesis, first beating the hell out of Claire, then attempting to do the same with Chris, but their encounter ends abruptly with Chris managing to escape and a scorched Wesker promising that he will be back.
 |
| "See you down the road, Chrissy!" |
In Revelations 2, Alex Wesker is defeated by Barry, but before that she has already managed to resurrect herself in Natalia, subtly controlling her mind, unbeknownst to the Burton family who adopted her or anyone else for that matter.
 |
| "Natalia" is reading a Kafka text with a lot of meaning |
No comments:
Post a Comment