Summary
- Raymond Vester adds depth with his unexpected story arc & partnership with Parker.
- Jessica Sherawat serves as an intriguing, multifaceted, and unpredictable femme fatale.
- Ricardo Irving is a comical yet underrated character, offering comic relief in Resident Evil 5.
The Resident Evil franchise is chock-full of diverse and fascinating characters, some of which became immediate fan favorites among the community. Many Resident Evil fans adore the games' most prominent characters, like Jill Valentine, Leon Kennedy, and Chris Redfield, but the almost thirty-year-old series boasts a treasure trove of compelling characters, some of which fly under the radar as nothing more than one-shot wonders in a single Resident Evil game — never to be seen again.
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There are so many characters that haven't made the same lasting impression as Claire Redfield and Albert Wesker, but they had a much more substantial role than it seemed at the time, and they're horrendously underrated for it. Plus, some of these characters are just wildly entertaining and grossly underused.
10 Raymond Vester
A More Complex Character Than He Appears
Resident Evil: Revelations
Raymond isn't a playable character, and he's rarely seen in Revelations, but he's one-half of a dastardly duo that catches players completely off guard. He's shifty, cynical, and always brooding, but Raymond's partnership with Parker becomes unexpectedly wholesome late-game, and it only makes his eventual betrayal more poignant.
Raymond is a classic cartoonish villain whose complicated admiration for Parker adds several layers of complexity to a character that would otherwise be a washout. The Revelations storyline got dropped by Capcom in favor of Claire and Moira in Revelations 2, so it's disheartening that his and Jessica's motivations remain largely a mystery.
9 Jessica Sherawat
An Unexpectedly Multifaceted Femme Fatale
Jessica worked as a triple agent for Tricell, betraying both the FBC and the BSAA, and ultimately destroying the Queen Zenobia. She has no real motivation behind her actions, which makes her a definite wildcard. She's about as cunning and unpredictable as Ada Wong, but with a lot less exposure, and it's a shame that Jessica never really gets the chance to shine.
There's an unpredictability about Jessica that's strangely endearing, especially since she's never fully transparent and always keeps her cards close to her chest. Just like Raymond, she didn't get enough development from Capcom to be a worthwhile character, but there's a lot of potential there if she ever returned for a future sequel.
8 Ricardo Irving
The Perfect Comic Relief Character
Resident Evil 5
- Released
- March 5, 2009
- Developer(s)
- Capcom
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Switch, Android, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
- Genre(s)
- Survival Horror, Third-Person Shooter, Action-Adventure
Ricardo Irving and Excella Gionne — while both unique and thoroughly entertaining supporting antagonists — didn't stand a chance in Resident Evil 5 as accessories to the franchise's most iconic human villain. They were essentially transitional bosses to Wesker and therefore forgettable, unfortunately, but it didn't need to be that way. Irving is underrated due to sheer absurdity.
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A lot of the older Resident Evil games can be described as campy, so for a character as flamboyant as Irving, he fits right in with Chris' cheesy one-liners and Wesker's supervillain monologues. He definitely got demoted in favor of Wesker, which is to be expected, but Irving's silly voice and hilarious dialogue make him a surefire source of comic relief for the harrowing narrative of Resident Evil 5.
7 Piers Nivans
The Best Part Of Chris' Campaign
Resident Evil 6
Piers Nivans was a welcome addition to Chris Redfield's campaign in Resident Evil 6 and one of many likable side characters that complement the main cast well. He was the polar opposite of Chris, serving as the "straight man" to his jokester personality. Piers could have been part of the next generation of the Resident Evil cast, particularly once the Ethan Winters storyline had wrapped up in Resident Evil Village, but his time was tragically cut short.
He was one of the highlights of Resident Evil 6 for his bravery, his devotion to Chris Redfield, and his overall character development. He was also one of the best parts of Chris' campaign, but ultimately met the same fate as too many other Resident Evil sidekicks.
6 Excella Gionne
An Entertaining Counterpart To Wesker
As mentioned, Irving and Excella didn't get the opportunity to steal the spotlight from Wesker in Resident Evil 5, but both of them played their roles to perfection to hype up Resident Evil's Big Bad. Just like Irving, she's just the right amount of campy, arrogant, and snobby, and she's not afraid to show it. Resident Evil took the concept of an attractive and conceited villainess and perfected it with Alex Wesker in Resident Evil: Revelations 2 and Lady Dimitrescu in Resident Evil Village, but Excella Gionne did it first.
Her design is aesthetically pleasing from a western haute couture standpoint, plus she adds a certain panache to RE5's story that would otherwise be lacking. She didn't need to be anything more than Wesker's right-hand woman, which suits her whole shtick just fine.
5 Sheva Alomar
One of Resident Evil's Best Sidekicks
In the Resident Evil series, everyone remembers Jill Valentine, Chris Redfield, and Leon Kennedy, but all of those protagonists wouldn't be where they are today without the help of their faithful partners. Sheva is an integral part of Resident Evil 5, but she isn't talked about nearly as much as Chris, Wesker, and Jill. She's a very likable character by definition; kind, loyal, and dependable, but her backstory really rounds her out nicely, even though it isn't pushed too hard in the game's plot.
But more importantly, she's still alive, so there's every reason for Capcom to bring her back. Sheva's AI in Resident Evil 5 gets a bad wrap, but her AI has zero bearing on her actual character, which is otherwise refreshingly diverse and only really marred by some clunky programming.
4 Rose Winters
A Worthy Successor To Ethan's Legacy
Resident Evil Village
- Released
- May 7, 2021
- Developer(s)
- Capcom
- Platform(s)
- PS5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Microsoft Windows, Xbox
- Genre(s)
- Survival Horror
Although Rose Winters is only an infant throughout the entirety of Resident Evil Village, she becomes a playable character in the game's DLC Shadows of Rose, where she returns to the village sixteen years after Ethan's sacrifice to face off against Mother Miranda and search for answers as to the origins of her superhuman powers. Rose may be on the same deserted island (figuratively) as Sheva, Barry, and all the other side characters who are never seen or heard from again in Capcom's Resident Evil universe.
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Although the Winters saga likely was a two-part special with Resident Evil 7 and Resident Evil Village and Rose's chapter has closed, she's all that remains of Ethan's legacy and the superpower aspect is a complete deviation for Resident Evil that could be expanded upon in later titles. Rose's character has a lot more to offer with her connection to the Mold if Capcom chooses to take any sequels down that same route.
3 Barry Burton
Living Proof That Nothing Beats The Classics
Resident Evil: Revelations 2
Barry Burton was there when it all started, and he was one of the original cast members from the 1996 game that kicked off the beloved franchise. He returned to play a larger role in Resident Evil: Revelations 2, where he starred in his own campaign alongside a little girl named Natalia. Barry has always landed some of the best zingers in the whole series, especially in Revelations 2 when he becomes the epitome of dad jokes and poorly timed puns. His mentorship/friendship with Jill Valentine is also one of the more lovable pairings in Resident Evil.
But Barry hasn't been seen since Revelations 2 and his appeal significantly died over time as the remakes shifted focus to Jill Valentine, Claire Redfield, Leon Kennedy, and Ethan Winters. Something is lacking from a Resident Evil game without Barry or Chris' one-liners, but Barry is the perfect mix of a goofball and a serious, hardened veteran.
2 Josh Stone
A Shining Star In His Own Right
Josh didn't have a very large role to play in Resident Evil 5, but he still managed to steal every single scene he was in. He's the Good Samaritan of Resident Evil 5 who always seems to pop up right when he's needed. He sticks his neck out for Chris and Sheva constantly, helps bring Jill to safety in Desperate Escape, and he's just an overall nice guy.
The fact that he doesn't die is one of the most surprising twists in Resident Evil, and he doesn't have all that much characterization, but Josh has effortless charisma, he's a cool and tragically underdeveloped character (like a lot of the Resident Evil cast), and it would be a real delight to see him resurface later down the line. He was underused in Resident Evil 5, but the Desperate Escape DLC provided some hope that Josh — the resident "cool" guy — might return sooner rather than later.
1 Jake Muller
The Rose To Wesker's Ethan
In a similar fashion to the Rose Winters and Ethan Winters argument, Jake Muller is the living embodiment of Wesker's legacy, even if he didn't follow the same path as his mad scientist of a father. It's an often overlooked detail that Jake is related to Wesker, which sometimes feels like an example of plot filler, but there's ample opportunity for Jake to interact with Natalie (AKA Alex Wesker) if their paths ever cross.
He didn't have a big role in Resident Evil 6, but he developed a relationship with Sherry worth exploring that made him so much more than the sum of trope-y writing. He was the typical jerk who grew to care about someone (Sherry) but that budding romance with Sherry only solidified him as a mainstay (hopefully) in the near future. Otherwise, Jake was just a breath of fresh air with a unique personality, but he wasn't appreciated nearly enough.
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