Kristoffer Hayward
Staff Writer
Resident evil may be a well-known game that’s spawned a number of movies, but it’s also been adapted into a book series.
From the first years on the Sony PlayStation, Resident Evil was the game that represented the survival horror genre. Though in resent installments, the series has shed the classic portrayal of zombies and chose to go a more action heavy route, the essence of the first game lives on.
There’s a book collection written by S.D. Perry, bringing the video game continuity to the page as well as two completely new stories sprinkled in between. Though the quality of the author is questionable, if anyone liked the first three video games, they’ll likely enjoy the books.
The first book deals with the events of the first game, complete with classic zombies, crazy puzzles, and snippets of the dated dialogue such as ‘jill sandwich’. The second book is unique to the series and lets Perry take narrative control for better or worse, detailing Rebecca Chambers and her ordeal at a place called Caliban Cove.
The series continues much like this, where book three is detailing the events of the second game, book four is another product of Perry, book five represents Resident Evil three, book six is Code Veronica, and a special ‘Episode Zero’ is a retelling of Resident Evil Zero.
The writing style is easy to get into, allowing a reader to knock a chapter or two out when they sit down without having to slog through and recall just what happened last time, the puzzles in the original content fit the Resident Evil universe, and it looks nice when the entire story can be seen tightly weaved together.
Despite all that, Perry’s style may not be for everyone. There are instances of odd writing, terms, or situations that serve only to progress the plot to the end result. Unfortunately that may just be the source material demanding some characters live or die for the sake of the continuity more than for the sake of the story.
Still, the series is worth a look and an easy thing to knock out during the summer.
