Summer Reading: The Umbrella Conspiracy

As summer wears on into the August dog days, I find myself turning to my XBOX One console for relaxing (and admittedly mindless) gaming action. Though the missions have long been completed, I most frequently return to any of the many Resident Evil/Resident Evil Revelations titles for comfort. There is, after all, a personal Gamer Score to inflate by reaching achievements in games that are not necessarily earned by simply completing the narrative. For a number of reasons, the Resident Evil games to have a high level of re-playability for me that others don’t. Much of this is due to the deep and somewhat convoluted mythos presented throughout the game series.

Despite having read the numerous screenshots and load pages with background information—and having seen the cgi films released her in the U.S—the expansive story of Raccoon City, the Umbrella Company and Terragrigia, as well as their connections to one another from game-to-game is not always easy to discern. It is with interest in obtaining more background, as well as filling some free time with enjoyable reading, that I picked up Resident Evil: The Umbrella Conspiracy by S.D. Perry. A fairly straightforward novelization of the first Resident Evil game, The Umbrella Conspiracy combines Jill's and Chris gameplay scenarios into a singular narrative.

Bearing cover blurbs declaring the paperback as both “Volume 1” and “Based on the Bestselling Videogame by Capcom,” I anticipated getting some additional canon to help clarify some of the relationships between characters, at least at this early point in the series. While some of obvious character traits such as Albert Wesker’s villainous nature through obvious mannerisms such as his “perpetual sunglasses propped on his tanned brow” (127), new information is revealed such as Wesker’s early role in the story as a secondary henchman character. The he began as a captain in the U.S. police team STARS was not clear to gamers such as I who came late to the series (never a PlayStation player was always behind with RE early releases). This was just the kind of character development I came for. From the heroic Jill Valentine and white bread Chris Redfield to less well-known (though I dig him in his debut as a playable character in Resident Evil Revelations 2), Barry Burton, Perry uses the gameplay context to provide each an opportunity to develop.

Perry also makes the interesting choice to use the gameplay structure to drive the narrative in The Umbrella Conspiracy. Puzzles for opening doors become part of the story as Perry offers the reader into the though process characters go through in deciphering the proper way to address a variety of keys. Because this often entails characters spending pages searching for large coins which when combined allow access to parts to important the building, it is best that the reader recognize The Umbrella Conspiracy for what it is. Anyone who has played video games understands the necessity of nuanced puzzles to keep gameplay engaging. Perry is ware of his intended audience and writes it straight rather than having characters question “why would someone have use a series of cradle-to-grave paintings as a key to a secret doorway?” the STARS members demonstrate grit in simply recognizing the importance of doing what needs to be done. Even if what needs to be done is pulling levers to avoid attack crows. Requiring characters to think critically think about how to address each challenge as it occurs also offers deeper insight into what drives them. What seem like selfish moves on Barry’s part in assisting Wesker is much more forgivable given the weight of the threats made to his family should he not.

Another thought I had while reading The Umbrella Conspiracy is how Perry so effectively (and consistently) uses olfactory imagery throughout, a sensual competent obviously absent in the game beyond the visuals. Yes the zombies as computer generated characters are uniquely designed and, well, gross, I had not previously considered that they probably really stink too. Overall the level of descriptive gore present in this book is definitely on par with what one would expect from a Resident Evil product… and for this reader that is a good thing!

I breezed through the novel’s 280 pages, and look forward to picking up Volume 2: Caliban Cove which, unlike Volume 1, is an original work by Perry that bridges events between the first two games. I recommend The Umbrella Conspiracy to any readers of action/adventure/horror and would even suggest those who have not previously played Resident Evil will find something to enjoy; an ideal beach horror read.