Okay so we've seen Operation Raccoon City and at some point I'm sure all our feelings have been mixed. There's things we looked forward to and other stuff we dread to come across. But personally how are you going to play the game?
I ask this because it's clear some are in this for a different reason than others. It's not like Revelations where the general consensus is to go back to playing a survival horror game again. No, ORC has divided a fan base that wants or expects different things from it.
I can tell you that when the early news came out I was pretty excited. Playing as Umbrella baddies. Interfering with the "canon". Killing Leon. Good times right?
But not everybody felt the same way. Especial hardcore fans. The idea of messing with the canon in any way seemed like a bad idea. So we then learn that the game can be canon and you don't have to do all these terrible things to f*ck around with it. But now the shit really did hit the fan. Resident Evil gamers were picking apart the little details and separating it as non-canon.
The stuff written off and excused in previous RE games but with this one we're now dealing with serious business here. Because a new developer is working on the game and we can point the finger away from Capcom for the time being.
Pictured above: Pointing fingers at each other while using others as a flame shield.
You got confusion on dates, character events out of whack, etc. That's when things got bad....
After people saw more trailers, looked at the viral marketing and saw some demos the feedback was rather harsh on the authenticity of this game as part of the main canon.
Leon was in utter shock because he realized what kind of a mess he was taking part in. He wishes now that he had opened up his schedule to instead be in Mercenaries 3D. So then people at least would write him off for being in an obvious cash in as opposed to this betrayal of the Biohazard name. He couldn't bear the thought of being in another game so bad that it would be declared non-canon. Nightmares of Gaiden flashed before his eyes.
Claire shakes her head in disbelief because her character is pretty much over from this point on. No one can figure out what to do with her anymore so they throw her in spin off games taking place over the course of events she was already a part of back when she was in her prime. The only sigh of relief she gave for doing something original was Mercenaries 3D, but then she realized how pointless her presence was compared to the characters who gamers were already familiar with in those games. Looking at how many times she must return to Raccoon City, Claire is on the verge of face palming.
Ada proceeds with caution knowing that if she's not careful the fans will ravage and force her to wear the ridiculous red dress she had on in Resident Evil 4. In the hopes that she would be taken seriously as a spy and not merely provide fan service Ada looks in horror at the over-the-top action schlock and braces herself for what's to come.
Jill doesn't want the developers to force her into the doctor's chair and have more work done on her face. Out of fear she runs away.
The real Carlos Oliveira refused to take part in Resident Evil again after he realized how butchered his scenario was in Umbrella Chronicles. Watching Resident Evil: Extinction didn't help matters much either. So instead the developers found the closest cosplayerrrrr "body double" to fill in as a replacement. But it's okay because you can't tell the difference between the two and our new Carlos intends to keep it that way so gamers will be happy.
Nicholai is not amused. He cuts himself shaving after hearing that the game is canon. He knows the fans are as mad as a jackal and so he takes it upon himself to make things harder for the Wolf Pack and for Slant Six. As he sets up his rifle he waits patiently for the chance to take down those responsible for this disaster. Before it was business. This time it's personal.
So you can see there's a lot riding on this game for not just the fans, but the returning characters as well. The Wolf Pack exist for the sake of mingling in this canon. Their presence alone changes the course of Raccoon City and all the chaos surrounding it. They were created to eliminate and destroy. Question is, will you be exploiting that or is your aim to preserve the canon as much as humanly possible?
Keep in mind that this is a very hard thing to do in some cases. It's impossible to achieve the "canon" ending to the first Resident Evil game for example.
When you play these games you look at the character and the situation they're in. With the first RE game the aim was to survive and locate other members of your team. Depending on you, some of those members do not make it out alive if your actions dictate a separate path. But knowing the protagonists you aim to do good and save as many people as you can besides yourself.
With ORC I wonder if gamers are aware that this game is all about being bad. If the USS is ordered to kill Leon then as characters why shouldn't they. Only the gamer has a conscious drive to protect the canon they hold dear. From a story and narrative standpoint I don't see any reason for the USS to refuse such an order if their purpose is to destroy evidence and look out for the best interests of their employer.
So gamers, with that in mind I want to know what you'll do. I'm sure most of you will play it all the way and see each alternate path. But for your first (primary) play through how are you going to go about it? Preserving the canon or doing Umbrella's bidding?
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