Partner Character

Partner characters, which may simply be referred to as partners or non-player characters (NPCs) are characters from throughout the Resident Evil series which serve to assist or simply just follow the main playable character. Up until and beyond the implementation of co-op in Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles there are at least a few AI partners in each installment of the series. Although in many games these characters are later briefly playable or are playable through the player's choice. NPCs that the player never controls in any game of the series do appear here and there but are usually only able to speak to the player character and don't assist in any way.

Resident Evil 0
Both Rebecca Chambers and Billy Coen are playable characters for the majority of the game. However, the player can choose to switch between them at any time, and the one who is being AI controlled can be told to wait and follow. The AI character cannot switch weapons or use healing items but can reload if they run out of ammo. There are certain moments, such as the final battle, where Rebecca is strictly controlled by AI and the player has to use Billy to distract the Queen Leech.

Resident Evil/REmake
In the original Resident Evil characters such as Rebeccca and Barry Burton would not assist the player outside of cutscenes. This was changed for the remake. In REmake, there are a few different partners depending on whether you choose Chris Redfield or Jill Valentine.

As Jill, the player is initially assisted by Barry at the start of the game before he decides to explore the mansion on his own. If the player was able to give the Serum to Richard Aiken, he will help Jill fight Yawn in the attic. Richard mostly remains stationary throughout the battle but uses his Assault Shotgun to damage Yawn here and there. Regardless of the player's actions during the fight (whether they force the snake to flee or claim the Death Mask and run away) Richard will be killed. Barry later assists Jill during the fight with Lisa Trevor if the player allows him to keep his gun. He will actually run around and shoot but can be knocked of the edge and killed if Lisa manages to pull it off. Barry also follows Jill into the lab and is her partner during the final battle with the Tyrant.

In Chris' scenario, Richard does not aid in the battle with Yawn nor is Barry present to assist him in any situation. Instead, Chris recurring partner os Rebecca and his partner during the Lisa Trevor battle is Albert Wesker. Wesker is not quite as active as Barry in the battle, he simply remains in one spot firing his Samurai Edge. This is problematic, as Wesker can be knocked of the edge and "killed" by Lisa during the battle if she gets too close to him. Rebecca's role as Chris' partner is much different than Barry was to Jill. Instead of providiing ammo and items, Rebecca takes refuge in certain save rooms and can heal Chris. Rebecca is briefly playable if Chris is poisoned by Yawn. However, she cannot pick up any items in the mansion except the Serum nor can she use the item boxes or typewriters. A truly nonchalant player could explore a good portion of the mansion with these contsraints, but if Rebecca does not bring the serum to Chris in time and discovers his body, it is an instant game over. Rebecca takes Barry's place in the game's fnale; following Chris into the lab and assisting him the Tyrant battle.

In both scenarios, the character that the player didn't select becomes a brief partner following their release from imprisonment. But neither Chris nor Jill are able to aid in combat. Once they reach the roof, they are knocked unconcious by the Tyrant, leaving Rebecca or Barry to assist the player.

Resident Evil 2
RE2 had a select partner that later becomes briefly playable depending on whether the player is controlling Leon S. Kennedy or Claire Redfield. If the player is Leon, it is Ada Wong and if its Claire, Sherry Birkin.

Ada follows Leon in certain parts of the game and can shoot enemies that get too close. Ada is briefly playable so that player can retrieve the Club Key and is also a selectable character in Extreme Battle.

Sherry follows Claire in more or less the same parts of the game where Ada follows Leon. Sherry cannot use weapons however, and is mostly resigned to hiding behind Claire whenever enemies are nearby. When Sherry is retrieving the Club Key, she seems defenseless but she has quite a lot of health, taking many hits from Cerberus before even going into Caution status. Zombies cannot directly attack Sherry however, and are forced to vomit acid on her instead.

Leon and Claire appear in each other scenarios from time to time. But they never assist each other in combat.

Resident Evil 3: Nemesis
Early on in the game, Brad Vickers makes brief appearances fighting off zombies. When Jill meets him in a bar, he is busy engaging one. The player can choose to help him, but he will eventually kill it himself. Carlos Oliveira is also sighted in the streets fighting off enemies before Jill formally makes his aquaintence. Carlos himself becomes playable when Jill is infected by Nemesis. He goes to the Raccoon Hospital to retrieve an anti-virus and engages many enemies along the way. Carlos is also playable in The Mercenaries: Operation Mad Jackal.

Resident Evil Code: Veronica
None of the playable characters ever assist each other in gameplay per se. Steve Burnside is playable for a short period in the training facility and is also playable in Battle Game when he's not resigned to being a stationary NPC.

Resident Evil 4
Leon is followed in most of the later parts of the game by Ashley Graham, who cannot defend herself but is able to hide from danger and can be told to wait or follow (much like in RE0). She later becomes playable after Leaon frees her in the castle. Here is she still mostly helpless, but she can throw lanturns at Zealots that try to apprehend her.

Three different partners assist Leon in two different combat situations in the game. If Leon frees the dog caught in the bear trap at the beginning of the game, it will assist him in the first El Gigante battle. The dog cannot attack but mainly serves as a distraction. It is graceful enough to avoid most of El Gigante's attacks. The second partner is Luis Sera who assists Leon when they are trapped in a house surrounded by Ganados. Luis uses a Red 9 in battle and drops ammo and herbs for Leon if he feels it neccesary. The player can choose to damage Luis or let the enemies attack him. Either way, if Luis takes too much damage, he will turn on Leon and kill him.The third partner is Mike, who aids the layer via helicopter when the player reaches the island. Mike will warn the player to get out of his way when he's about to open fire and can be fired upon, but not killed with friendly fire.

Resident Evil 5
RE5 was the second game in the series to implement cooperative play. But the player can still go solo, allowing Sheva Alomar to be an AI partner. Or the player can us "Sheva Mode" to make Chris the AI partner. In both cases the partners have to build up a certain level of "trust" before they will start listening to each other completely. The player can command a partner to wait, follow, attack, cover, assist with puzzles, and hand over equipment.

In either mode, Josh Stone is an AI controlled character who helps Sheva and Chris in various chapters. He later becomes playable in Desperate Escape alongside Jill Valentine. However, either of them can still be made into AI partners. The same applies to Chris or Jill in Lost in Nightmares.