Resident Evil: Revelations 2

Finally, we put it to the test

The sequel to the smash hit Revelations pushing forward Claire Redfield and Barry Burton on a Russian mining island to fight of the B.O.W:s that taken it over. Back in the day it was an episodic adventure I gather, but thankfully they released it as a whole package (waiting for a Lords of Shadow-collection Konami so I can play that game as well). It work pretty much like the first game, but they enhanced a co-op play-style since you always have a second companion with you. Problem is that they play rather differently. Both Barry and Claire are the damage dealers so the secondary characters Moira Burton and Natalia are used for more puzzle solving. Or as much puzzle solving there is with opening chests. 

Story is that Claire and Moira is working for Terra Save, a clean-up/civilian organisation compared to the BSAA:s military function (in political science we would talk about something like soft and hard power in relations with nation and it's pretty much the same here). At a work party the whole office gets kidnapped and Claire and Moira tries to escape their prison. They find out they are on an island and sends out a distress message. The perspective switch to Barry who arrives on the island and find Natalia, a girl that lost her parents in the Terragrigia attack as he search for his daughter and Claire. At the end of the first chapter we find out that the distress message was sent 6 months ago so basically we play through each area twice, once with each group. Claire finds other survivors from Terra Save and we learn that this virus is T-Phobos, a virus activating by the hormone that produces as we experience fear so they are put in constant stress to force the virus to activate. They all have bracelets that works as communicators (and I assume GPS trackers) for the Overseer that watches all this an with a colour indicator representing in what stage their fear is. Green good, yellow anxiety and red you transform. Now obviously everyones is yellow except the boss of Terra Save... he's a bad guy. And Natalia's is red which would mean she should transform. You get this by reading a note so it's a pretty easy guess. Apparently the boss of TerraSave was a believer in Morgan Lansdale in that the world need to saved by a military force that gets free reign as long as the threats of Bioterrorism exist. 

Now, who is the Overseer? She is Albert Weskers sister that for some reason is gonna use the virus to find an individual with such a strong psyche she transfer her own mind to the vessel and therefore ascend to godhood. Of course it's Natalia, that is what the red indicates and that she doesn't transform.  In the final chapter it's revealed that Claire escaped the island, but Moira was left behind so that is the reason Barry found out. Nice twist. Of course she survives and you can play that part in a separate chapter where one of the few living characters take care of her and teach her to use weapons and survive in the wilderness (you know he dies since you find his dead body as Barry). She apparently once fired one of Barry's guns on her other sister (the sister survived, but in what state I can't tell since she's never on screen) and vowed to never pick up a gun. Until she has to. That also seems to push her colour into red without her turning, accepting her fear of guns I think. The end boss is Alex Wesker, but it's weird since she is a monster and she committed suicide when she believed the transfer of mind to be complete and awaits the awakening. So like in Tad Williams Otherland-series she needs to get rid of the old body, but it apparently failed and that is the reason she hunts Natalia, but the ending is a bit ambiguous over if Natalia is herself or a reborn Alex Wesker.

Overall a good game, but it feels like the maps and chapters are to long compared to the first game. I like Claire and Barry and there is nothing wrong with the others, but I don't like all the points of no returns when I might remember a thing to check, but can't get back or I wandered in the wrong way cutting of my way back. And damn invisible enemies and just weird collectibles they don't explain how to get. And as always want more inventory space and ammunition. But it was fun.