| Rebecca Chambers | |
|---|---|
Rebecca Chambers in Resident Evil Zero |
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| Series | Resident Evil |
| First game | Resident Evil (1996) |
| Created by | Shinji Mikami |
| Voiced by (English) | Lynn Harris (Resident Evil 1996) Hope Levy (Resident Evil 2002) Riva Di Paola (Resident Evil 0) Stephanie Sheh (Umbrella Chronicles, Resident Evil 5) |
| Voiced by (Japanese) | Reiko Takagi (Resident Evil 1996) |
| Portrayed by | "Linda" (Resident Evil 1996) |
Rebecca Chambers (レベッカ・チェンバース Rebekka Chenbāsu) is a player character and one of the protagonists of the Resident Evil survival horror video games, first introduced in the first game in the series in 1996. She is also one of the main characters in the Resident Evil novels.
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Rebecca was portrayed by an actress credited as "Linda" in the live-action cutscenes of the original Resident Evil in 1996, Hope Levy in its 2002 GameCube remake, Riva Di Paola in Resident Evil Zero (2002),[1] and by Stephanie Sheh in Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles (2007) and Resident Evil 5 (2008). In Zero, she was modeled after the J-pop star Ayumi Hamasaki, who was the official spokeswoman for the game in Japan.[2] Rebecca's alternate costumes in the games "expose her midriff and voluptuous shape".[3]
Rebecca makes her first appearance in the original Resident Evil, as a supporting character who assists Chris Redfield as a fellow officer in the local police special force STARS. She arrives at the Arklay Research Facility before the STARS Alpha Team, after her unit is scattered across the Arklay Mountains. In the game, Rebecca is an 18-year-old[4] rookie member of STARS Bravo Team, being in charge of rear security and also serving as the team's field medic. Before joining the force, Rebecca was a child genus and was able to graduate from college at the age of 18.[5] Her introduction and other appearances throughout the game vary depending on the path the player chooses and she can be controlled by the player during certain portions of the story. Ultimately, Rebecca emerges as the Bravo Team's sole survivor of the incident.[6] It has been also confirmed that she has survived the events of Resident Evil 2 as well.[7]
In Resident Evil Zero, which serves as a direct prequel to Resident Evil, Rebecca Chambers is one of the two main characters. In this game, Rebecca comes across the Ecliptic Express train while investigating a series of murders within the Arklay Mountains. She encounters an escaped convict, Billy Coen, who helps her. The two discover that the attacks have been masterminded by James Marcus, formerly one of the Umbrella Corporation's top scientists, who has reanimated himself to kill his murderers. In the end, they manage to destroy Marcus and Rebecca allows Billy to escape, later falsely reporting his death to the authorities.
Rebecca appears in The Umbrella Chronicles, which summarizes the events of Resident Evil Zero and details her experiences between Resident Evil Zero and Resident Evil. The game pairs her with fellow STARS Bravo Team member Richard Aiken, as they work together to fend off hordes of undead creatures.[8]
Uncanonically, she is also a playable character in Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition (in the minigame Mercenaries Reunion)[9] and in Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D.[10]
In Resident Evil Zero, in which she is a starting character, Rebecca is weaker than Billy and as such can absorb much less damage and cannot push heavier objects, but she can still carry any weapons or items. Her unique skill is her ability to mix various chemicals.[11]
In The Mercenaries 3D, Rebecca is an unlockable character that has the highest recovery rate in the game but also takes 150% more damage from enemies. Her weapons in this game and in the Mercenaries mode in Resident Evil 5 are the MP5 submachine gun and a grenade launcher and her melee attacks include the use of a tear gas spray and a stun gun, along with a variety of pushes, punches and kicks.
Rebecca plays a central role in S. D. Perry's Resident Evil novels written in 1998-2004, namely in the original stories Resident Evil: Caliban Cove and Resident Evil: Underworld, as well as in the novelizations of the games in which she appeared (Resident Evil: The Umbrella Conspiracy and Resident Evil: Zero Hour).[12] In Caliban Cove, Rebecca, declared outlaw and aided by members of the Exeter, Maine branch of STARS, attempts to stop a rogue scientist from spreading a new strain of the T-virus. In Underworld, she, Leon S. Kennedy and an original character David Trapp (from Caliban Cove) embark to find the Umbrella Corporation's new facility hidden beneath the desert in Utah, which was taken over by another rogue Umbrella scientist.[13]
She also appears in the Resident Evil comic book S.T.A.R.S. Files[14] and in George A. Romero's rejected Resident Evil film screenplay, filling the same role as she did in the first game; in this script, she was one of the four survivors.[15] A CG-animated movie continuing the events of the series and focusing on the current exploits of Rebecca could possibly be made in the future.[16]
In 2001, toymaker Moby Dick produced an action figure of Rebecca in the Resident Evil 3 related series even as she does not actually appear in this game (the figure is actually based on the character's depiction in the canceled Nintendo 64 version of Resident Evil Zero).[17][18] A diorama-type figure of Rebecca and the monster Hunter was also released by Organic in 2009.[19]
The character has been positively received by critics. According to IGN, "Rebecca may seem like nothing more than a plucky sidekick, but she can more than hold her own in battle."[20] GameDaily featured her as its "Babe of the Week" in an 11-page feature, commenting, "Resident Evil's youngest member battles zombies and other horrors so you don't have to. That makes her a true American hero."[21] In 2009, IGN included her on the list of the characters they would like to return in Resident Evil 6.[22] Joystiq praised Rebecca's inclusion in Resident Evil 5's downloadable content, stating "we're all for bringing [her] back."[23] Rebecca's cameo appearance in an undeveloped film on Wesker's desk in Resident Evil 2 was also ranked as one of best Easter eggs in video game history by Cracked.com and GameSpot.[24][25] In 2010, The Game Heroes included her among the top five game girls they would like to date.[26] While evaluating which of the Resident Evill heroes is best dressed to survive a real-life zombie apocalypse, GamesRadar found Rebecca to be "more practically attired than Ada Wong or Jill Valentine" despite her look of "pre-pubescent tom boy".[27]
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