This review contains spoilers
“Don’t think I’m supporting the view that your long-running series might come back around to being good if you keep plodding along; rather, I’m supporting burning your series to the ground on a regular basis to make snowmen with the ashes. Resident Evil 7 is a successful change of tune that manages the balance between disturbing and knowingly camp that marks Resident Evil at its best. Well done, Capcom! Looking forward to seeing how you fuck it up this time!” - Yahtzee Crowshaw, Zero Punctuation
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Quoting another critic’s review for the same piece of media you’re reviewing may make you seem like a hack. Still, this quote from my favorite video game critic Yahtzee Crowshaw encapsulates the same cynical feelings I had for the Resident Evil title that would follow Resident Evil 7. The franchise had reinvented itself once again after disgracing itself with the abysmal Resident Evil 6, a bloated and ridiculous entry to the Resident Evil franchise that took all of the campy elements the series is known for and amplified them to the point where it seemed like a form of self-parody. Because this was clearly not Capcom’s intention with Resident Evil 6, and the intended impact was lost, the Resident Evil franchise took another sabbatical to yet again rework the franchise to redeem its former glory with a fresh, new coat of paint. The seventh entry in the series that Capcom produced after a long period of self-reflection was not only a reinvigorating breath of crisp, spring air but also propelled the series to unprecedented, terrifying heights. For the first time in several years, Resident Evil felt fresh and inspired, but this could only last for so long before the familiar pangs of underwhelming banality crept their way back. From a business standpoint, Capcom couldn’t abandon Resident Evil on a high note, although doing this would’ve been an admirable artistic decision for the long-running series. It's one of Capcom's flagship series that the public would still miss even if it dug itself into a hole of mediocrity so deep that even the franchise that saves itself from plunging so deep into despair every so often couldn’t leap out of it. The anticipated follow-up to Resident Evil 7 was Resident Evil Village, the eighth entry in the mainline Resident Evil series whose title confused those who did not look closely at the clever use of roman numerals in the title. The objective of RE Village was to strike the newfound Resident Evil iron while it was still hot, but with caution so as not to strike in the same place to avoid repeating itself. Capcom’s objective with Resident Evil Village was to strike lightning next to where RE7 hit and attempt to form the same crater in the earth with the same amount of depth. Resident Evil Village is a direct successor to RE7 that both heavily borrows from its predecessor while deviating from it enough to retain a sense of freshness, making for an ideal sequel…in theory.
Arguably, the most distinctive feature of a direct sequel is to continue the story of the previous game with most of the same characters. RE Village opens with a dark, foreboding fairy tale being read by a woman that might serve as some foreshadowing for future events. The retelling of this tale is interrupted by a man as the woman’s identity is revealed to be Mia from the previous game, spoiling the canon ending of RE7. Mia is seen reading this story through the first-person perspective of Ethan Winters, the biggest indicator that will give any player of RE7 the exact scope of the extent of how RE Village is a direct sequel to RE7. Since the events of RE7, the Winters have relocated thanks to the strong, caring arm of the Umbrella Corporation, and they’ve had a child, an infant daughter named Rose, who sleeps in Mia’s arms while she’s reading to her. Everything finally seems hunky dory for this couple as Ethan puts his daughter to bed. However, the events in Louisiana still linger and mentioning it causes minor conflict between Mia and Ethan. This scene of relative contentment feels gratifying for those who have played RE7, but we soon remember that Ethan never gets a break. The peaceful evening is violently interrupted when Mia is sprayed by an entire magazine of bullets from outside. Ethan is called to action again. Still, the shocking revelation is that the man who just gunned down Ethan’s wife and central character to the modern Resident Evil titles is none other than zombie slaying franchise mainstay Chris Redfield, who puts another round into Mia to shock the player even more. The now malevolent Chris Redfield and his team secure Ethan’s baby and knock an upset Ethan out with the butt of a gun. Ethan wakes up in a dim, snowy landscape on a new perilous mission to save his daughter from the evil clutches of…Chris Redfield.
To prevent the new Resident Evil formula from stagnating so quickly, Capcom deviated from the setting of RE Village to the polar opposite landscape of sunny, humid Louisiana. The franchise has retraced the steps of RE4 by revisiting the arcane grounds of intercontinental Europe, now with the additional chilling factor of the dead of winter to endure. The dingy look of the third-world villages is juxtaposed with the bourgeois grandiosity of the towering gothic estates. Even though the comparison to RE4 in terms of the setting is apt, the approach to this gothic world borrows from the design philosophy of RE7. The titular village serves as an icy, dilapidated hub in the center of each notable structure in the area in every cardinal direction. The village is much more vast than the Baker property, and the game greatly uses the wider hub. Weathered houses with rotting wood house secrets such as ammunition, health items, and various treasures that range from valuable knick-knacks to high-powered weapons. Ethan can hunt farm animals for their meat and crudely fish with his gun on a bevy of locations on the map and play topsy-turvy carnival games on the labyrinth machines. The hub in RE Village is a level in itself, and I adored its spacious yet enclosed design. Uncovering more secrets in the hub world between the levels felt just as enticing as in the neighboring levels. As for the atmosphere, the abandoned village blanketed in wintery whiteness constantly feels sterile but in a more mood-latent context. Ethan’s footsteps in the snow, mixed with the sight of leafless trees and cemeteries, always exude the sense of still fallout.
This eerie tranquility is also frequently interrupted by werewolf attacks or at least creatures with some sort of lupine mutation similar to a werewolf. These mangy, hairy beasts are referred to as the Lycans. They run in packs, and an ambush is usually signaled by the gnarled growls that signify their blood lust for Ethan’s flesh. The Lycans are far more feral than the Molded from RE7, quickly leaping at Ethan to gnaw at his tender neck. While the Lycans are not as creepy and disgusting as the Molded, hoards of Lycans can get quite overwhelming in most instances. Also, unlike the Molded, these Lycans do not serve as the sole enemy in the game. Offering only the Molded as a recurring enemy in RE7 irked me. The initial scare factor ran thin upon so many encounters, becoming black, moist bullet fodder by the last third of the game. The Lycans are a quicker change of pace, but Capcom doesn’t make the same mistake in RE Village. The Lycans are joined by other enemies to rip Ethan to shreds, such as the emaciated Moroaicas, the airborne, bat-winged Samcas, the mechanical Soldats, etc. A more heavily equipped form of Lycan appears when the attack adds a bigger roadblock for when Ethan is having too easy of a time plowing through the regular Lycans. None of the common enemies Ethan's faces are especially formidable; in fact, most of them are even less so than the Molded, as the headshot precision is no longer a requisite. However, the enemy variety here reconciles one of the major issues I had with RE7, so switching up what Ethan would be up against prevented the eventual jaded feeling of familiarity.
To withstand this new slew of feral monsters, Ethan will need a wider and more substantial arsenal. RE Village borrows much more from RE4 than its alien European setting, for RE Village is yet another action-oriented Resident Evil title. Do not fret: Capcom has not shit the bed by tainting RE7’s impact with profound regression, and there are zero quicktime events. Somehow, Capcom has managed to tastefully combine the survival horror and the action horror elements from previous series games. Ethan is equipped with many of the same weapons as his previous escapades such as the pistol, shotgun, grenade launcher, and a knife for breaking open boxes and crates. Unfortunately, the flamethrower does not return, which could’ve been even more useful here because most of the enemies are frostbitten. Other familiar weapons like the revolver and the handgun/shotgun upgrades are no longer sealed behind an absurd amount of lockpicks because Ethan will need them this time. Additional firepower includes a sniper rifle, mines, and pipe bombs, making Ethan someone not to be trifled with now. Ethan is now a badass motherfucker who takes no prisoners, fitting the Resident Evil protagonist role as we’ve come to expect. This action-latent shift from RE7, especially considering that Ethan returns as the protagonist, draws much ire from many RE fans. I praised Ethan in his protagonistic role in RE7 because he wasn’t an overpowered war machine like Chris Redfield or Leon S. Kennedy, and putting a civilian in the line of horror offered more of a harrowing experience. One would think that I’d curse this game for ruining Ethan’s joe-schmoe stature, but Ethan is not a normal man anymore. If he can make it through the treacherous Baker properties in one piece, Ethan officially can honorably wear a veteran badge in dealing with Umbrella’s fuckery. On this stance alone, I can forgive the developers for ascending Ethan’s capabilities. Besides, Ethan has to rely on his firepower to save his daughter because the man is still an absolute boob.
Affording this vast weaponry comes with another familiar mechanic to further please RE4 fans. Enemies will drop a local currency called “lei,” which allows Ethan to purchase items at a merchant seen in various locations in the game. Yes, RE Village marks the return of a mysterious merchant character whose borderline omnipresence makes it seem like this man has cloned himself. The merchant character from RE4 was a beloved staple of that game, so whoever the merchant would be in RE Village would have some big shoes to fill. Fortunately, the Duke is big enough to fill ten of the previous merchant of intercontinental Europe shoes. The Duke is an affable sphere of a man who conducts his business out of an old-fashioned, horse-drawn caravan. He appears in most areas, but his main spot is the hill peak of the hub near the altar. The Duke’s wares include health items, crafting resources, and additions to weapons, and he even sells a small amount of ammunition instead of hoarding it like the merchant from RE4. To fund these finances, enemies drop the local currency upon death, and treasures found throughout the game can be sold at a high price at Duke’s store. On top of being a shrewd businessman, the Duke is quite the connoisseur regarding food if you couldn’t already tell from his size. The Duke will whip up a meal with various types of meat from farm animals that Ethan gives him, and eating the artisan dish will permanently increase one of Ethan's stats. The Duke’s services always prove to be quite convenient, but what do I make of Duke as a successor to the merchant? Capcom knew there would be comparisons between the two, and the Duke even knowingly references one of the previous merchant’s lines of dialogue to draw a tighter parallel. The Duke exemplifies the Resident Evil merchant splendidly. He is the only friendly face that Ethan can trust in this frigid hellhole, but that lustful tone of voice and sleazy look in his eye exudes a sense of weariness despite his charisma, much like the merchant from RE4.
The lengths that RE Village ventures to discern itself from RE7, even with staying loyal to the previous game’s general foundation, shows that Capcom succeeded in maintaining that spark of energy and struck it close enough to the same deep hole they created before. However, there is still a lingering concern that most people ponder regarding RE Village carrying RE7’s torch: is RE Village scary? Sadly, no. For the first time in the franchise's history, RE7 achieved a sensation of fright by expertly portraying a dank, damp, claustrophobic nightmare by subverting everything we knew as Resident Evil. Action-horror games inherently aren’t as scary as their survival horror counterparts because a stark element of fear from the latter comes with a sense of helplessness. As much as Ethan’s seasoned nature with combat is a logical evolution of his character, being able to engage a crowd of enemies at once doesn’t put me in a frenzied panic. I also enjoy not being confined by a cramped inventory system based on convenience, but the generous space for all of Ethan’s tools and weapons (a fusion of RE4’s Tetris inventory system with RE7’s inventory design) allowed me to never consider the precedence of any item for a particular scenario for fear of being unprepared. Ammunition is not as plentiful as in previous action-oriented Resident Evil titles. Still, there were never any instances where I was forced to rush past enemies due to not having the resources to deal with them. The gameplay does not lend itself to the same distressing charade that RE7 was, a point that could be used to RE Village’s detriment. However, there are still the story, characters, and environments to consider, and do they aid in delivering the same scare factor as RE7? The answer to that question is hard to determine because RE Village’s horrific moments are spotty.
Sex sells, and even something like Resident Evil can be a testament to this sentiment. While not on the same emphatic scale as the hype RE4 received during its initial release, RE Village was making a splash of anticipation due to one particular character: Lady Dimitrescu. Once we all got a glimpse at this voluptuous colossus of a woman in the release trailer, everyone started anticipating the newest Resident Evil game, primarily with their dicks. The internet collectively started salivating over this monstrous MILF, and expressed their red-faced affection towards her in many outlets without shame. If Capcom intentionally showcased Lady Dimitrescu to elicit this exact reaction, then it was a brilliant marketing scheme on their part. Because of Lady Dimitrescu’s meme status, I had gotten the impression that she was the focal point of the game. This impression continued on as her castle is the first main area of the game, and I began to think that Capcom failed the series once again. Lady Dimitrescu’s gothic estate is a tried and true Resident Evil establishment, complete with that Metroidvania design philosophy the series has always emulated. Normally, I’m enthralled by any level that executes a Metroidvania-esque level competently, but Dimitrescu’s castle was underwhelming. One of the most invigorating aspects of the newest Resident Evil games is how they translate the elements of older Resident Evil games into completely new territory, namely the Baker residence. I was thoroughly impressed that the developers could translate the circuitous outline of a sprawling mansion to a humdrum, dilapidated plantation home located in the swamps of Louisiana and manage to have the same impact as a glorious mansion. Providing yet another gothic mansion in a series overloaded with them now feels like beating a tired trope further into the ground.
The puzzles presented here are also far too simple and guesswork oriented compared to the rich riddles in a building like the Spencer Mansion. Besides the first-person perspective and Ethan’s pension for reacting to things with expletives, the other indication that the exhausted gothic castle environment is in a modern Resident Evil game is the roaming threat of Lady Dimitrescu and her three daughters. In various instances in RE7, one member of the Baker family would grab Ethan unexpectedly and present their deranged, mangled faces in a jarring camera view that would shock and startle the player. Upon this encounter, Ethan would have to sprint away from the Bakers due to all of them being seemingly indestructible. Ethan will experience the same occurrences with Lady Dimitrescu and her three daughters while traipsing through the Dimitrescu manor. Any bullets Ethan unloads on them will whiz through them, so Ethan will fully recognize what to do in this scenario. However, it isn’t scary in the slightest. Lady Dimitrescu and her daughters are too…attractive to be scary? This was certainly NEVER a problem that arose in the Baker household. Whenever one of the daughters grabs a hold of me and bites down on Ethan’s neck like a vampire, I don’t know whether to panic or accept her toothy embrace. Lady Dimitrescu’s Freddy Kreuger fingers, coupled with her mammoth-like size, should be intimidating. Still, I can’t help but blush whenever she gives Ethan that little sinister chuckle before she plunges them into Ethan’s torso. Goddammit, now I’m doing it! Anyways, having to avoid all four of them and the instances where they pop up never made me feel uneasy.
Fortunately for RE Village’s sake, most other people and I were misled by Lady Dimitrescu’s significance in the game. After defeating her true ghastly form on the top of her castle (which the horny morons were disappointed that she turned into because it killed their boners like salt on a snail), RE Village truly begins. Ethan acquires a peculiar flask whose label is too dirty to read, but upon seeing Duke again in the hub, he implores Ethan to rub the dirt off and unveil its contents. Ethan is devastated that the head of his infant daughter resides in that flask. The Duke encourages Ethan and tells him that hope to save her is not lost. Ethan must face the other three followers of Mother Miranda, the real main antagonist of RE Village, and retrieve the other three flasks containing Rose’s body parts and assemble them before a ritual takes place and Ethan loses Rose to Mother Miranda. On top of the unsatisfying previous level, I assumed that RE Village would offer a simple rescue mission as its primary story arc and Ethan would save an unharmed Rose at the end. Still, the disturbing revelation of the flask’s contents surprised me and reawakened my curiosity. Eviscerating an infant child and preserving their body parts like cucumbers marinated in pickle juice usually doesn’t get my motor running, but it worked for RE Village. The hub also becomes free to explore at this point, which also signals the game’s true beginning as well.
The newfound interest spurred by this moment does not lose momentum. The next Mother Miranda follower is the grandest highlight in RE Village because no other instance in the game can top what is probably the most effective horror moment in the franchise. Donna Beneviento is a cloaked, recalcitrant woman whose creepy, emaciated doll Angie usually does the speaking. Their dollhouse is where RE 8 starts to truly ape the atmosphere and pacing of RE7. In a flash, Angie removes all of Ethan’s weapons, putting him at the mercy of the elements of the porcelain-latent home. Dolls are not one of my phobias, but the number of plastic arms and legs hanging from threads on the ceiling of this place did strike me as a bit off-putting. I also never let my guard down when dealing with the wooden Mia model on the table. The bizarre way in which the house is orchestrated led to some genuinely engaging puzzles, but those are not why this section left an impression on me. After Ethan acquires a breaker key to operate the elevator, the entire house becomes calamitously dark, and a trail of blood is splattered across the halls upon reentry. Suddenly, what appears to be a fetus comes roaming down the hall in Ethan’s direction, and the player sprints away to find any source of cover to hide from this thing. The gargantuan size of its body and gaping mouth, the way it crawls through the halls with a sloppy squelching sound, the loud inhuman baby wails, to the psychological impact involving Ethan’s missing child, this rivals Eraserhead in artistically deterring me from having children. Give the man who worked on the sound design for this part a raise, Capcom. The boss fight against Angie is rather a deadly game of hide and go seek than a real bout, but the moments leading up to it will forever be on my conscience.
Lamentably, when the game reaches its peak here, there is obviously nowhere to go but down. The next follower who holds Rose’s legs is Moreau, a slimy sea mutant who is so revolting and repugnant looking that it’s pathetic. His whiny demeanor and timid stature make him even less imposing. However, fueled by some vague resentment for Ethan, he unleashes his true form as a Charybdis-sized sea-beast similar to the one in the lake in RE4. Ethan must navigate through his home on the reservoir while constantly avoiding Moreau crashing into the small amount of land Ethan can support himself on. This segment is exhilarating but on entirely different merits than in the dollhouse. Running around Moreau and climbing the rickety steps of the structures made for a great action sequence. The look and atmosphere reminded me of the Fishing Hamlet from Bloodborne, one of my favorite areas of that game on a conceptual level. At least Moreau made for a formidable fight before Ethan put him out of his misery.
In the moments of RE Village that I thought was lackluster, at least they didn’t drag on and overstay their welcome. This statement contradicts the last follower Ethan must face before reassembling his missing daughter. Karl Heisenberg is a mechanical savant who looks like Bill Paxton’s character from Near Dark and sounds like he’s attempting his best Billy Bob Thornton impression. He broadcasts threats to Ethan via broad communication devices like Lucas from RE7 but is much less crafty. The Stronghold is where the player believes they will deal with him, but it is a brief hoard of Lycans with a fight against an ax-wielding giant as a mini-boss. Ethan then collects all of the Rose flasks, and then the Heisenberg-centered section is extended by visiting his industrial factory on the outskirts of town. I was relieved that the game didn’t end the Heisenberg section so abruptly with the stronghold but became irritated by how much of a slog his factory became. A laboratory basement as the final section of a Resident Evil game is almost as cliche as a gothic castle. The robotic enemies did not frighten me in the slightest. Near the end, upon refusing Heisenberg’s request to join him against Mother Miranda, he fuses his body with the detritus in his junkyard, ascending his form into a mechanical monster. To take him down, Ethan drives a fully powerful mech courtesy of the Umbrella Corporation, and I felt like I was playing Titanfall. It’s a fun fight, but it’s incredibly dumb and abandons any pretense of a horror game RE Village may have once had.
Lastly, there is a matter of dealing with Mother Miranda, the grand witch of this mountainous region of eastern Europe and the proprietor of Ethan’s pride and joy. I grieved in my RE7 review that the ending section and anticlimactic boss fight almost ruined what was a spectacular experience. Still, Capcom has learned from their mistakes and provided us with what is possibly the most topsy-turvy, twist-ridden ending to a Resident Evil game thus far. As one could’ve guessed, Chris Redfield did not transform into a cold-blooded wife murderer. Somehow, Miranda had been posing as Mia for quite some time, and thick-headed Ethan hadn’t noticed. Unfortunately, pumping a whole round of bullets into her only slightly deterred her, and the ritual she plans on conducting with Rose is almost to completion. Unlike Harry, who confronts the source of evil and saves his daughter, Mother Miranda kills Ethan by removing his heart like the ritual master from Temple of Doom, a devastating end to the protagonist we’ve become accustomed to.
Ethan’s demise does not signal defeat; however as the new playable role in taking down the immortal bitch is none other than everyone’s favorite conqueror of large rock formations: Chris Redfield. If you are not aware, I greatly chastised RE7’s “Not a Hero” DLC for drastically shifting to the action-heavy gameplay of playing as Chris. Still, the more action-oriented direction of Village makes this transition less jarring. Chris plants a superbomb inside Miranda’s core and even finds the real Mia in the cellar of Miranda’s lab as Jill found Chris in the first game. He regrets informing Mia that Ethan is dead, but Mia still holds faith that Ethan is still alive. By some miracle, she’s right, but Ethan’s continued lifespan after having his heart removed explains one of the most curious character conundrums involving Resident Evil’s newest protagonist. Has anyone ever wondered how Ethan can withstand so much physical abuse and somehow pull himself like he’s a cartoon character? It turns out that Ethan is not the average schlub that everyone considered him. Apparently, Jack Baker killed Ethan as early as the opening sequence of RE7 when we thought he merely knocked him unconscious. Ethan was then reanimated by the mold and gained Sandman-like properties. This revelation is meant to answer an unsolved mystery, but it opens up so many questions that I cannot dive into for the sake of brevity. Ethan is escorted to the ceremony site by the trusty Duke and heads right to Miranda’s chamber. To his surprise, Rose has already been resurrected as both Miranda’s daughter and Eveline’s successor. Still, Ethan fights Miranda in a final boss fight that wholly makes up for the Eveline fight at the end of RE7. Ethan denies that he’s a moldy freak of nature like the rest, but upon defeating Miranda, her power fades, and he becomes weak. Chris attempts to save him and Rose, but Ethan realizes the truth and fulfills his destiny. Ethan explodes Miranda’s core along with himself and the entire village as Chris, Mia, and Rose fly off into the sunset via helicopter. Several years later, an adolescent Rose visits Ethan’s gravesite before she is taken along on a mission by Umbrella, using her supernatural birth powers for good instead of evil.
Whenever I compare Resident Evil to Silent Hill, I sense respect between the two franchises as they share and borrow elements from one another, but this is too much. It’s convenient enough that Konami no longer gives a shit about their franchises, or else their team of cracked lawyers would reign death upon them in the courtrooms under accusations of plagiarism. Of course, Silent Hill does not own the premise of a father rescuing his daughter from insidious forces, or a movie like Taken would be subject to legal action. From the ritual birthing and the resurrection, RE Village’s finale has the first Silent Hill written all over it in capital letters. When the epilogue shows Rose as a teenager, they hint at the possibility that she will pick up where Ethan left off in the next entry. So, Rose is essentially Heather? Borrowing is one thing, but paving over Silent Hill’s legacy with its main rival is downright disrespectful.
Resident Evil Village is a difficult game to dissect and critique because it’s a bit of a clusterfuck. RE7 was a greatly inspired work that retreaded the entire franchise for the better, which resulted in a concise and consistent experience, on top of being genuinely terrifying. It’s a hard act to follow, and Capcom did their best to not recreate RE7 by deviating from it. However, all of RE Village’s inspirations are from previous Resident Evil games, for better and for worse. It patches up many of RE 7’s blemishes but adds too many more from other Resident Evil games to count. The game is inconsistent and uninspired at times, and the only genuine horror section is few and far between the middling action-oriented escapades. The ending is riveting but comes across as trying too hard to be this elevated arch to redeem RE 7’s ending. Considering all this, it might seem like Capcom failed again, but I thoroughly enjoyed RE Village despite its glaring flaws. The question is: why is RE Village not in the lower ranks among RE 5 and 6? It’s due to the apparent ambition Capcom had to make a quality product that was not present in the other sequels. Greatly deviating from RE 7’s atmosphere-latent horror adventure may have sullied the scare factor. However, Resident Evil Village is still big, dumb fun, a quality that the exemplary Resident Evil titles hold.
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Attribution: https://erockreviews.blogspot.com
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Quoting another critic’s review for the same piece of media you’re reviewing may make you seem like a hack. Still, this quote from my favorite video game critic Yahtzee Crowshaw encapsulates the same cynical feelings I had for the Resident Evil title that would follow Resident Evil 7. The franchise had reinvented itself once again after disgracing itself with the abysmal Resident Evil 6, a bloated and ridiculous entry to the Resident Evil franchise that took all of the campy elements the series is known for and amplified them to the point where it seemed like a form of self-parody. Because this was clearly not Capcom’s intention with Resident Evil 6, and the intended impact was lost, the Resident Evil franchise took another sabbatical to yet again rework the franchise to redeem its former glory with a fresh, new coat of paint. The seventh entry in the series that Capcom produced after a long period of self-reflection was not only a reinvigorating breath of crisp, spring air but also propelled the series to unprecedented, terrifying heights. For the first time in several years, Resident Evil felt fresh and inspired, but this could only last for so long before the familiar pangs of underwhelming banality crept their way back. From a business standpoint, Capcom couldn’t abandon Resident Evil on a high note, although doing this would’ve been an admirable artistic decision for the long-running series. It's one of Capcom's flagship series that the public would still miss even if it dug itself into a hole of mediocrity so deep that even the franchise that saves itself from plunging so deep into despair every so often couldn’t leap out of it. The anticipated follow-up to Resident Evil 7 was Resident Evil Village, the eighth entry in the mainline Resident Evil series whose title confused those who did not look closely at the clever use of roman numerals in the title. The objective of RE Village was to strike the newfound Resident Evil iron while it was still hot, but with caution so as not to strike in the same place to avoid repeating itself. Capcom’s objective with Resident Evil Village was to strike lightning next to where RE7 hit and attempt to form the same crater in the earth with the same amount of depth. Resident Evil Village is a direct successor to RE7 that both heavily borrows from its predecessor while deviating from it enough to retain a sense of freshness, making for an ideal sequel…in theory.
Arguably, the most distinctive feature of a direct sequel is to continue the story of the previous game with most of the same characters. RE Village opens with a dark, foreboding fairy tale being read by a woman that might serve as some foreshadowing for future events. The retelling of this tale is interrupted by a man as the woman’s identity is revealed to be Mia from the previous game, spoiling the canon ending of RE7. Mia is seen reading this story through the first-person perspective of Ethan Winters, the biggest indicator that will give any player of RE7 the exact scope of the extent of how RE Village is a direct sequel to RE7. Since the events of RE7, the Winters have relocated thanks to the strong, caring arm of the Umbrella Corporation, and they’ve had a child, an infant daughter named Rose, who sleeps in Mia’s arms while she’s reading to her. Everything finally seems hunky dory for this couple as Ethan puts his daughter to bed. However, the events in Louisiana still linger and mentioning it causes minor conflict between Mia and Ethan. This scene of relative contentment feels gratifying for those who have played RE7, but we soon remember that Ethan never gets a break. The peaceful evening is violently interrupted when Mia is sprayed by an entire magazine of bullets from outside. Ethan is called to action again. Still, the shocking revelation is that the man who just gunned down Ethan’s wife and central character to the modern Resident Evil titles is none other than zombie slaying franchise mainstay Chris Redfield, who puts another round into Mia to shock the player even more. The now malevolent Chris Redfield and his team secure Ethan’s baby and knock an upset Ethan out with the butt of a gun. Ethan wakes up in a dim, snowy landscape on a new perilous mission to save his daughter from the evil clutches of…Chris Redfield.
To prevent the new Resident Evil formula from stagnating so quickly, Capcom deviated from the setting of RE Village to the polar opposite landscape of sunny, humid Louisiana. The franchise has retraced the steps of RE4 by revisiting the arcane grounds of intercontinental Europe, now with the additional chilling factor of the dead of winter to endure. The dingy look of the third-world villages is juxtaposed with the bourgeois grandiosity of the towering gothic estates. Even though the comparison to RE4 in terms of the setting is apt, the approach to this gothic world borrows from the design philosophy of RE7. The titular village serves as an icy, dilapidated hub in the center of each notable structure in the area in every cardinal direction. The village is much more vast than the Baker property, and the game greatly uses the wider hub. Weathered houses with rotting wood house secrets such as ammunition, health items, and various treasures that range from valuable knick-knacks to high-powered weapons. Ethan can hunt farm animals for their meat and crudely fish with his gun on a bevy of locations on the map and play topsy-turvy carnival games on the labyrinth machines. The hub in RE Village is a level in itself, and I adored its spacious yet enclosed design. Uncovering more secrets in the hub world between the levels felt just as enticing as in the neighboring levels. As for the atmosphere, the abandoned village blanketed in wintery whiteness constantly feels sterile but in a more mood-latent context. Ethan’s footsteps in the snow, mixed with the sight of leafless trees and cemeteries, always exude the sense of still fallout.
This eerie tranquility is also frequently interrupted by werewolf attacks or at least creatures with some sort of lupine mutation similar to a werewolf. These mangy, hairy beasts are referred to as the Lycans. They run in packs, and an ambush is usually signaled by the gnarled growls that signify their blood lust for Ethan’s flesh. The Lycans are far more feral than the Molded from RE7, quickly leaping at Ethan to gnaw at his tender neck. While the Lycans are not as creepy and disgusting as the Molded, hoards of Lycans can get quite overwhelming in most instances. Also, unlike the Molded, these Lycans do not serve as the sole enemy in the game. Offering only the Molded as a recurring enemy in RE7 irked me. The initial scare factor ran thin upon so many encounters, becoming black, moist bullet fodder by the last third of the game. The Lycans are a quicker change of pace, but Capcom doesn’t make the same mistake in RE Village. The Lycans are joined by other enemies to rip Ethan to shreds, such as the emaciated Moroaicas, the airborne, bat-winged Samcas, the mechanical Soldats, etc. A more heavily equipped form of Lycan appears when the attack adds a bigger roadblock for when Ethan is having too easy of a time plowing through the regular Lycans. None of the common enemies Ethan's faces are especially formidable; in fact, most of them are even less so than the Molded, as the headshot precision is no longer a requisite. However, the enemy variety here reconciles one of the major issues I had with RE7, so switching up what Ethan would be up against prevented the eventual jaded feeling of familiarity.
To withstand this new slew of feral monsters, Ethan will need a wider and more substantial arsenal. RE Village borrows much more from RE4 than its alien European setting, for RE Village is yet another action-oriented Resident Evil title. Do not fret: Capcom has not shit the bed by tainting RE7’s impact with profound regression, and there are zero quicktime events. Somehow, Capcom has managed to tastefully combine the survival horror and the action horror elements from previous series games. Ethan is equipped with many of the same weapons as his previous escapades such as the pistol, shotgun, grenade launcher, and a knife for breaking open boxes and crates. Unfortunately, the flamethrower does not return, which could’ve been even more useful here because most of the enemies are frostbitten. Other familiar weapons like the revolver and the handgun/shotgun upgrades are no longer sealed behind an absurd amount of lockpicks because Ethan will need them this time. Additional firepower includes a sniper rifle, mines, and pipe bombs, making Ethan someone not to be trifled with now. Ethan is now a badass motherfucker who takes no prisoners, fitting the Resident Evil protagonist role as we’ve come to expect. This action-latent shift from RE7, especially considering that Ethan returns as the protagonist, draws much ire from many RE fans. I praised Ethan in his protagonistic role in RE7 because he wasn’t an overpowered war machine like Chris Redfield or Leon S. Kennedy, and putting a civilian in the line of horror offered more of a harrowing experience. One would think that I’d curse this game for ruining Ethan’s joe-schmoe stature, but Ethan is not a normal man anymore. If he can make it through the treacherous Baker properties in one piece, Ethan officially can honorably wear a veteran badge in dealing with Umbrella’s fuckery. On this stance alone, I can forgive the developers for ascending Ethan’s capabilities. Besides, Ethan has to rely on his firepower to save his daughter because the man is still an absolute boob.
Affording this vast weaponry comes with another familiar mechanic to further please RE4 fans. Enemies will drop a local currency called “lei,” which allows Ethan to purchase items at a merchant seen in various locations in the game. Yes, RE Village marks the return of a mysterious merchant character whose borderline omnipresence makes it seem like this man has cloned himself. The merchant character from RE4 was a beloved staple of that game, so whoever the merchant would be in RE Village would have some big shoes to fill. Fortunately, the Duke is big enough to fill ten of the previous merchant of intercontinental Europe shoes. The Duke is an affable sphere of a man who conducts his business out of an old-fashioned, horse-drawn caravan. He appears in most areas, but his main spot is the hill peak of the hub near the altar. The Duke’s wares include health items, crafting resources, and additions to weapons, and he even sells a small amount of ammunition instead of hoarding it like the merchant from RE4. To fund these finances, enemies drop the local currency upon death, and treasures found throughout the game can be sold at a high price at Duke’s store. On top of being a shrewd businessman, the Duke is quite the connoisseur regarding food if you couldn’t already tell from his size. The Duke will whip up a meal with various types of meat from farm animals that Ethan gives him, and eating the artisan dish will permanently increase one of Ethan's stats. The Duke’s services always prove to be quite convenient, but what do I make of Duke as a successor to the merchant? Capcom knew there would be comparisons between the two, and the Duke even knowingly references one of the previous merchant’s lines of dialogue to draw a tighter parallel. The Duke exemplifies the Resident Evil merchant splendidly. He is the only friendly face that Ethan can trust in this frigid hellhole, but that lustful tone of voice and sleazy look in his eye exudes a sense of weariness despite his charisma, much like the merchant from RE4.
The lengths that RE Village ventures to discern itself from RE7, even with staying loyal to the previous game’s general foundation, shows that Capcom succeeded in maintaining that spark of energy and struck it close enough to the same deep hole they created before. However, there is still a lingering concern that most people ponder regarding RE Village carrying RE7’s torch: is RE Village scary? Sadly, no. For the first time in the franchise's history, RE7 achieved a sensation of fright by expertly portraying a dank, damp, claustrophobic nightmare by subverting everything we knew as Resident Evil. Action-horror games inherently aren’t as scary as their survival horror counterparts because a stark element of fear from the latter comes with a sense of helplessness. As much as Ethan’s seasoned nature with combat is a logical evolution of his character, being able to engage a crowd of enemies at once doesn’t put me in a frenzied panic. I also enjoy not being confined by a cramped inventory system based on convenience, but the generous space for all of Ethan’s tools and weapons (a fusion of RE4’s Tetris inventory system with RE7’s inventory design) allowed me to never consider the precedence of any item for a particular scenario for fear of being unprepared. Ammunition is not as plentiful as in previous action-oriented Resident Evil titles. Still, there were never any instances where I was forced to rush past enemies due to not having the resources to deal with them. The gameplay does not lend itself to the same distressing charade that RE7 was, a point that could be used to RE Village’s detriment. However, there are still the story, characters, and environments to consider, and do they aid in delivering the same scare factor as RE7? The answer to that question is hard to determine because RE Village’s horrific moments are spotty.
Sex sells, and even something like Resident Evil can be a testament to this sentiment. While not on the same emphatic scale as the hype RE4 received during its initial release, RE Village was making a splash of anticipation due to one particular character: Lady Dimitrescu. Once we all got a glimpse at this voluptuous colossus of a woman in the release trailer, everyone started anticipating the newest Resident Evil game, primarily with their dicks. The internet collectively started salivating over this monstrous MILF, and expressed their red-faced affection towards her in many outlets without shame. If Capcom intentionally showcased Lady Dimitrescu to elicit this exact reaction, then it was a brilliant marketing scheme on their part. Because of Lady Dimitrescu’s meme status, I had gotten the impression that she was the focal point of the game. This impression continued on as her castle is the first main area of the game, and I began to think that Capcom failed the series once again. Lady Dimitrescu’s gothic estate is a tried and true Resident Evil establishment, complete with that Metroidvania design philosophy the series has always emulated. Normally, I’m enthralled by any level that executes a Metroidvania-esque level competently, but Dimitrescu’s castle was underwhelming. One of the most invigorating aspects of the newest Resident Evil games is how they translate the elements of older Resident Evil games into completely new territory, namely the Baker residence. I was thoroughly impressed that the developers could translate the circuitous outline of a sprawling mansion to a humdrum, dilapidated plantation home located in the swamps of Louisiana and manage to have the same impact as a glorious mansion. Providing yet another gothic mansion in a series overloaded with them now feels like beating a tired trope further into the ground.
The puzzles presented here are also far too simple and guesswork oriented compared to the rich riddles in a building like the Spencer Mansion. Besides the first-person perspective and Ethan’s pension for reacting to things with expletives, the other indication that the exhausted gothic castle environment is in a modern Resident Evil game is the roaming threat of Lady Dimitrescu and her three daughters. In various instances in RE7, one member of the Baker family would grab Ethan unexpectedly and present their deranged, mangled faces in a jarring camera view that would shock and startle the player. Upon this encounter, Ethan would have to sprint away from the Bakers due to all of them being seemingly indestructible. Ethan will experience the same occurrences with Lady Dimitrescu and her three daughters while traipsing through the Dimitrescu manor. Any bullets Ethan unloads on them will whiz through them, so Ethan will fully recognize what to do in this scenario. However, it isn’t scary in the slightest. Lady Dimitrescu and her daughters are too…attractive to be scary? This was certainly NEVER a problem that arose in the Baker household. Whenever one of the daughters grabs a hold of me and bites down on Ethan’s neck like a vampire, I don’t know whether to panic or accept her toothy embrace. Lady Dimitrescu’s Freddy Kreuger fingers, coupled with her mammoth-like size, should be intimidating. Still, I can’t help but blush whenever she gives Ethan that little sinister chuckle before she plunges them into Ethan’s torso. Goddammit, now I’m doing it! Anyways, having to avoid all four of them and the instances where they pop up never made me feel uneasy.
Fortunately for RE Village’s sake, most other people and I were misled by Lady Dimitrescu’s significance in the game. After defeating her true ghastly form on the top of her castle (which the horny morons were disappointed that she turned into because it killed their boners like salt on a snail), RE Village truly begins. Ethan acquires a peculiar flask whose label is too dirty to read, but upon seeing Duke again in the hub, he implores Ethan to rub the dirt off and unveil its contents. Ethan is devastated that the head of his infant daughter resides in that flask. The Duke encourages Ethan and tells him that hope to save her is not lost. Ethan must face the other three followers of Mother Miranda, the real main antagonist of RE Village, and retrieve the other three flasks containing Rose’s body parts and assemble them before a ritual takes place and Ethan loses Rose to Mother Miranda. On top of the unsatisfying previous level, I assumed that RE Village would offer a simple rescue mission as its primary story arc and Ethan would save an unharmed Rose at the end. Still, the disturbing revelation of the flask’s contents surprised me and reawakened my curiosity. Eviscerating an infant child and preserving their body parts like cucumbers marinated in pickle juice usually doesn’t get my motor running, but it worked for RE Village. The hub also becomes free to explore at this point, which also signals the game’s true beginning as well.
The newfound interest spurred by this moment does not lose momentum. The next Mother Miranda follower is the grandest highlight in RE Village because no other instance in the game can top what is probably the most effective horror moment in the franchise. Donna Beneviento is a cloaked, recalcitrant woman whose creepy, emaciated doll Angie usually does the speaking. Their dollhouse is where RE 8 starts to truly ape the atmosphere and pacing of RE7. In a flash, Angie removes all of Ethan’s weapons, putting him at the mercy of the elements of the porcelain-latent home. Dolls are not one of my phobias, but the number of plastic arms and legs hanging from threads on the ceiling of this place did strike me as a bit off-putting. I also never let my guard down when dealing with the wooden Mia model on the table. The bizarre way in which the house is orchestrated led to some genuinely engaging puzzles, but those are not why this section left an impression on me. After Ethan acquires a breaker key to operate the elevator, the entire house becomes calamitously dark, and a trail of blood is splattered across the halls upon reentry. Suddenly, what appears to be a fetus comes roaming down the hall in Ethan’s direction, and the player sprints away to find any source of cover to hide from this thing. The gargantuan size of its body and gaping mouth, the way it crawls through the halls with a sloppy squelching sound, the loud inhuman baby wails, to the psychological impact involving Ethan’s missing child, this rivals Eraserhead in artistically deterring me from having children. Give the man who worked on the sound design for this part a raise, Capcom. The boss fight against Angie is rather a deadly game of hide and go seek than a real bout, but the moments leading up to it will forever be on my conscience.
Lamentably, when the game reaches its peak here, there is obviously nowhere to go but down. The next follower who holds Rose’s legs is Moreau, a slimy sea mutant who is so revolting and repugnant looking that it’s pathetic. His whiny demeanor and timid stature make him even less imposing. However, fueled by some vague resentment for Ethan, he unleashes his true form as a Charybdis-sized sea-beast similar to the one in the lake in RE4. Ethan must navigate through his home on the reservoir while constantly avoiding Moreau crashing into the small amount of land Ethan can support himself on. This segment is exhilarating but on entirely different merits than in the dollhouse. Running around Moreau and climbing the rickety steps of the structures made for a great action sequence. The look and atmosphere reminded me of the Fishing Hamlet from Bloodborne, one of my favorite areas of that game on a conceptual level. At least Moreau made for a formidable fight before Ethan put him out of his misery.
In the moments of RE Village that I thought was lackluster, at least they didn’t drag on and overstay their welcome. This statement contradicts the last follower Ethan must face before reassembling his missing daughter. Karl Heisenberg is a mechanical savant who looks like Bill Paxton’s character from Near Dark and sounds like he’s attempting his best Billy Bob Thornton impression. He broadcasts threats to Ethan via broad communication devices like Lucas from RE7 but is much less crafty. The Stronghold is where the player believes they will deal with him, but it is a brief hoard of Lycans with a fight against an ax-wielding giant as a mini-boss. Ethan then collects all of the Rose flasks, and then the Heisenberg-centered section is extended by visiting his industrial factory on the outskirts of town. I was relieved that the game didn’t end the Heisenberg section so abruptly with the stronghold but became irritated by how much of a slog his factory became. A laboratory basement as the final section of a Resident Evil game is almost as cliche as a gothic castle. The robotic enemies did not frighten me in the slightest. Near the end, upon refusing Heisenberg’s request to join him against Mother Miranda, he fuses his body with the detritus in his junkyard, ascending his form into a mechanical monster. To take him down, Ethan drives a fully powerful mech courtesy of the Umbrella Corporation, and I felt like I was playing Titanfall. It’s a fun fight, but it’s incredibly dumb and abandons any pretense of a horror game RE Village may have once had.
Lastly, there is a matter of dealing with Mother Miranda, the grand witch of this mountainous region of eastern Europe and the proprietor of Ethan’s pride and joy. I grieved in my RE7 review that the ending section and anticlimactic boss fight almost ruined what was a spectacular experience. Still, Capcom has learned from their mistakes and provided us with what is possibly the most topsy-turvy, twist-ridden ending to a Resident Evil game thus far. As one could’ve guessed, Chris Redfield did not transform into a cold-blooded wife murderer. Somehow, Miranda had been posing as Mia for quite some time, and thick-headed Ethan hadn’t noticed. Unfortunately, pumping a whole round of bullets into her only slightly deterred her, and the ritual she plans on conducting with Rose is almost to completion. Unlike Harry, who confronts the source of evil and saves his daughter, Mother Miranda kills Ethan by removing his heart like the ritual master from Temple of Doom, a devastating end to the protagonist we’ve become accustomed to.
Ethan’s demise does not signal defeat; however as the new playable role in taking down the immortal bitch is none other than everyone’s favorite conqueror of large rock formations: Chris Redfield. If you are not aware, I greatly chastised RE7’s “Not a Hero” DLC for drastically shifting to the action-heavy gameplay of playing as Chris. Still, the more action-oriented direction of Village makes this transition less jarring. Chris plants a superbomb inside Miranda’s core and even finds the real Mia in the cellar of Miranda’s lab as Jill found Chris in the first game. He regrets informing Mia that Ethan is dead, but Mia still holds faith that Ethan is still alive. By some miracle, she’s right, but Ethan’s continued lifespan after having his heart removed explains one of the most curious character conundrums involving Resident Evil’s newest protagonist. Has anyone ever wondered how Ethan can withstand so much physical abuse and somehow pull himself like he’s a cartoon character? It turns out that Ethan is not the average schlub that everyone considered him. Apparently, Jack Baker killed Ethan as early as the opening sequence of RE7 when we thought he merely knocked him unconscious. Ethan was then reanimated by the mold and gained Sandman-like properties. This revelation is meant to answer an unsolved mystery, but it opens up so many questions that I cannot dive into for the sake of brevity. Ethan is escorted to the ceremony site by the trusty Duke and heads right to Miranda’s chamber. To his surprise, Rose has already been resurrected as both Miranda’s daughter and Eveline’s successor. Still, Ethan fights Miranda in a final boss fight that wholly makes up for the Eveline fight at the end of RE7. Ethan denies that he’s a moldy freak of nature like the rest, but upon defeating Miranda, her power fades, and he becomes weak. Chris attempts to save him and Rose, but Ethan realizes the truth and fulfills his destiny. Ethan explodes Miranda’s core along with himself and the entire village as Chris, Mia, and Rose fly off into the sunset via helicopter. Several years later, an adolescent Rose visits Ethan’s gravesite before she is taken along on a mission by Umbrella, using her supernatural birth powers for good instead of evil.
Whenever I compare Resident Evil to Silent Hill, I sense respect between the two franchises as they share and borrow elements from one another, but this is too much. It’s convenient enough that Konami no longer gives a shit about their franchises, or else their team of cracked lawyers would reign death upon them in the courtrooms under accusations of plagiarism. Of course, Silent Hill does not own the premise of a father rescuing his daughter from insidious forces, or a movie like Taken would be subject to legal action. From the ritual birthing and the resurrection, RE Village’s finale has the first Silent Hill written all over it in capital letters. When the epilogue shows Rose as a teenager, they hint at the possibility that she will pick up where Ethan left off in the next entry. So, Rose is essentially Heather? Borrowing is one thing, but paving over Silent Hill’s legacy with its main rival is downright disrespectful.
Resident Evil Village is a difficult game to dissect and critique because it’s a bit of a clusterfuck. RE7 was a greatly inspired work that retreaded the entire franchise for the better, which resulted in a concise and consistent experience, on top of being genuinely terrifying. It’s a hard act to follow, and Capcom did their best to not recreate RE7 by deviating from it. However, all of RE Village’s inspirations are from previous Resident Evil games, for better and for worse. It patches up many of RE 7’s blemishes but adds too many more from other Resident Evil games to count. The game is inconsistent and uninspired at times, and the only genuine horror section is few and far between the middling action-oriented escapades. The ending is riveting but comes across as trying too hard to be this elevated arch to redeem RE 7’s ending. Considering all this, it might seem like Capcom failed again, but I thoroughly enjoyed RE Village despite its glaring flaws. The question is: why is RE Village not in the lower ranks among RE 5 and 6? It’s due to the apparent ambition Capcom had to make a quality product that was not present in the other sequels. Greatly deviating from RE 7’s atmosphere-latent horror adventure may have sullied the scare factor. However, Resident Evil Village is still big, dumb fun, a quality that the exemplary Resident Evil titles hold.
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