Resident Evil Archives [Paperback]

BradyGames (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 9, 2005

BradyGames’ Resident Evil Archives includes the following:

• Concept art from the complete series.
• In-depth explanation of the relationships between characters.
• Coverage of locations and more from both movies and all games.

Genre: Action/Adventure

This product is available for sale in North America only.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Brady Games (November 9, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0744006554
• ISBN-13: 978-0744006551
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #355,859 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing., November 19, 2005

By 

David Maccarnold "macca" (Mexico city.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Resident Evil Archives (Paperback)

If you like Resident Evil, this is a must. The book explains everything from the games, including each game story with selected scans, characters, creatures, weapons, items, Umbrella's timeline, very cool concept art, all files, the story of Racoon city, S.T.A.R.S police, Ashford family and tons of extras. Filled with scans and drawings from Resident Evil to Code Veronica. Don't expect to find about Resident Evil 4 because this book is about Biohazard archives only. This is the best Resident Evil book available, no doubt.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Books with Some Minor Flaws, September 2, 2006

By 

E.C. Hallex (Aiken, SC - USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Resident Evil Archives (Paperback)

Resident Evil Archives is a fantastic compendium of all things Resident Evil, but it's hardly perfect. For what it's intended for - to be a veritable encyclopedia for Capcom's hit series - it succeeds wonderfully, but there are a few things that might get on a few stickler's nerves. First the good: tons of pretty high-res pictures, screenshots, concept art, excellent page layouts, and all the info you could ever want to know about Resident Evil (sans RE4 and the spin-off games). Story synopsis, character analysis, detailed information on all the game's creatures and items, and a treasure trove of concept art and commentary to top it all off.
However, there are a few things wrong with the book that really degrade the overall presentation. For one, the writing is marginal at best, often using repetitive adjectives and phrases (the word "beloved" seems to be one of the writer's favorites). Additionally, the editing is abhorrible. There are numerous typos, misspellings, and careless mistakes; some of the biggest offenses are instances where sentences are cut short altogether and words are missing a good four or five letters. There's also a small error that by itself would not be a big deal, but speaks volumes about whoever wrote it.
At one point the book transcribes a line from the end of Resident Evil 2, which goes something like "A biohazard has been detected." The book actually changes the word "biohazard" to "Resident Evil," the writer obviously thinking that because the Japanese title of the game (which was Biohazard) was changed, it means all instances of the word must also be changed. How much sense does the phrase "A Resident Evil has been detected" make? It's a few goof-ups like this that give me the distinct impression the writer or writers were not intimately familiar with the game they were writing for, which I personally find unacceptable for a book of this nature.
Despite the effort I've gone through to detail the book's downfalls, most people will easily see past them, as did I. I just hope that in the future a similar book will be written and edited a little better.
So in summary, this book is a great collection of images and information with some shoddy editing, but the good greatly outweighs the bad. A must-buy for any Resident Evil fan, without a doubt.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very comprehensive look at the Resident Evil series, March 22, 2006

By 

Luke M. Waldron "lwaldron15" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Resident Evil Archives (Paperback)

If you've never played the Resident Evil videogames, then Resident Evil Archives won't mean much to you. It's basically an official, painstaking recap of the storylines found in Resident Evil, Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 3, and Resident Evil Code Veronica. The stories are dissected in miniscule detail and offer hints to where future stories may be headed. There's also a certain insider's insight offered from the authors that fans may have missed casually playing through these games. It's so detailed there are actually charts depicting how the characters relate to one another in all the games. There are also breakdowns covering every single item and weapon that can be obtained in each game. The individual levels are also gone through in ridiculous detail.

In addition to the story, character and item/weapon details, 'Archives' features character concept sketches, various costume variations, and individual, detailed character bios. This book only covers the first four games in the series, which excludes everything after 2005's Resident Evil 4 - so don't expect any coverage from the later games. If you're a Resident Evil fan, and want to get your facts about the series straight, then Archives is what you need. The book offers information overload. Most of the illustrations and images in the book are high resolution graphics taken directly from the games, and they never looked this good on your TV screen or computer. The book itself is printed on thick, high quality coated stock paper, and is bound in a "Manual-like" cover.