Resident Evil Village

My relationship with the Resident Evil series is a long and weird one. 

It started many years ago when Resident Evil 4 came out - still the high point of the series - and became a genre defining game, not to mention one of the best games of that generation. Even now, closing in on 20 years later, it's an experience that has stood the test of time and is still looked back on fondly by most. Because of 4's success, I quickly got on board with RE5, which was a fun game, just more action oriented. Resident Evil 6 came out and was a jumbled mess, though could be fun at times, and forced the series to reset itself. 

Notice how I haven't played any of the series' earliest entries? 1, 2, or 3 or any of their offshoots? That's largely because I was never that interested in the series to go back and make that quest and I find the overall narrative to be a bit bonkers so it's not like I'm missing much story-wise. 

Fast forward to 2017 (6 was released in 2012) and Resident Evil Biohazard (aka #7) came out. By this point I'd all but forgotten about this series and had my hands full with other IP. So then it's strange how I got sucked back in...

So yeah...this game has next-gen graphics

Resident Evil 2's remake came out early 2019 and got such glowing reviews that I had to try it. I didn't review it at the time because I didn't pick it up until later, but it would have received high marks from me. It's an intense experience that seemed like an awesome graphical/functional upgrade over the original version. 

Once I got my PS5, I saw that Biohazard was free to play, so I dove in. Biohazard was unlike anything Resident Evil had done before with a shift to the first-person and a hyper focus on horror and tension. It's a thrilling game that left me terrified, entertained, and wanting more. Enter Resident Evil Village (aka #8) and a brilliant series of trailers/tech demos, along with some hype, and I was sold and shocked that all these years later I was "back" in the RE series. 

Between Biohazard and Village, I've decided A) that I love this new direction for the series and B) these are the epitome of "one-time plays" for me. 

If you're heavily invested in the story, Village picks up some years after Biohazard. Ethan Winters, our semi-uninteresting protagonist and Mia, his wife, have survived the events of 7 and now have a daughter, Rose. Within moments of starting the game, Rose is taken and the family captured, leading to a series of events that finds Ethan stranded in a Transylvania-esque Village. He finds that Rose is here with him, potentially being experimented on, so he must save his daughter, plain and simple. There are some gamers who really love the lore and story of this series so I won't s**t on it too much, but suffice it to say that I don't keep coming back to these games for the narratives. Village is actually a simple entry in that regard because aside from breezing over the setup to get to this specific town, it's very straightforward: Ethan must save his daughter. There's other RE weirdness within that, but by and large it takes a series that often suffers from convoluted plots and boils it down to a singular objective the gamer can connect to (and let's be real, it's not nearly as obnoxious as this series).

THE INTERNET IS A WEIRD PLACE!

The Duke loves to eat!

Along the way, we're introduced to 5 core villains, all of whom are "weird" in the typical Resident Evil way meaning they're over-the-top, gross, can shape shift, and can be pretty damn scary. They're not all created equal, which is a shame because I believe the game blows its load too early with Lady Dimitrescu (there's some SEO for you, not to mention a Tobias Bluth phrasing). She's easily the most captivating and unique of the five - and the internet has taken on a..."fascination" with her - but out of all the sections, the moments featuring her were some of the most memorable. I also enjoyed Heisenberg (no, not Bryan Cranston) as his portion is also unique and he gets a close "2nd Place". The other 2 co-villains have their own unique feel, but either because their sections are shorter or just less captivating, I connected with them less. The Overall Boss is kept so behind-the-curtain that by the time she emerges, the game is running out of steam and the story does a bad job of building to her, so she feels tacked on and not nearly as frightening as she should. 

Luckily, the Village itself is a character all its own. And a gorgeous one at that. On a next gen system, almost completely free of load times, Resident Evil Village is a stunner, particularly when it wants to be. Lady Dimitrescu's castle is intricate with details and almost mind-numbing with its lighting and ray tracing capabilities. Similarly, the village outdoors can be creepy and memorable, whether it's walking through tall wheat or through a forest with hanging dead crows. The overall layout is well-organized and Village nails the component of atmosphere, much like its immediate predecessor did. One of the best things (still) about RE4 was the tension it created, almost out of thin air. I'm not sure many gamers will forget entering that original town and having to run/kill the chainsaw mini-boss. It's immediately terrifying and Village lives very much in the shadow of that game's tendencies (in a good way) for setting the proper tone. And because it looks so damn good, it's that much more believable. 

No, this is not creepy at all. Not a single m****r f*****g bit!

Is this what dentists see all day?

Certain moments in Village will stick with me for a long time. They may be simple as walking through the aforementioned wheat with almost no ammo and having to kill a stumbling enemy, or it could be the "mega-bearded" wolfman that screams/drools in your face. Or running from Lady D only to end up head-first into one of her daughters. Or even an experiment gone wrong with a man/zombie with a plane engine strapped to his chest, chasing me with nothing standing in his path. Like the best games in this series, there are standout moments that ratchet up the intensity and captivate you while raising your pulse. Unfortunately though, Village struggles with some of that pacing near the end and leans heavy into almost Call of Duty-esque action sequences. These sections are fine, but forgettable and foreign-feeling to what the rest of the game is able to achieve. They also come near the end, when you're looking for a game to "wow" you, but instead it decides to become a rather-generic FPS.  

That's also a problem because Resident Evil Village's gameplay isn't oriented for that AND these sections only make its flaws, once small, now that much more apparent. Resident Evil is a slow-paced first-person orientation. This also means that your character controls a bit like a tank and certain things like sprinting, cornering, crouching, and more are all slow and can feel frustratingly limiting. When you're in the game's more intense moments, this feels like a distinct portion of why it's so intense, but in the final segments of the game that focuses primarily on shooting (and the extra Mercenaries mode), I was disappointed because the game isn't really designed for that. So not only does it mess with the pacing, the controls tend to start to make you feel hindered, even just slightly, where before they feel like part of the intensity. 

This pacing and gameplay is a significant reason why I think this is a one-and-done playthrough. It was a magnificent playthrough, for the most part, but I feel like a 2nd push through the campaign would be a slog in comparison to other story-driven games that I want to play through their campaigns multiple times. Additionally, unless you're a trophy/achievement whore, there's not much else here. Mercenaries mode is a fun diversion I sunk about 30 minutes into, but otherwise it feels like another glaring hindrance of the sluggish controls since it's so action-oriented versus horror. 

Excuse me mam, you're in the way of my GUN!

Despite the last few paragraphs being about my grievances with the game, Resident Evil Village truly is an awesome entry in this storied franchise. It continues on with the "reboot" or re-imagining from Biohazard (which now reminds me of another famous series' overhaul that was worth while!) and pushes it further, both in terms of visuals and scope, but in terms of gameplay too. Not every game has to be one that you revisit time and time again or dump a bunch of multiplayer hours into...some are there to take you on a wild ride, and in that regard, this new Resident Evil series accomplishes that easily. 

CONS

• Some pacing issues. Specifically the game wants to dive into "action mode" near the end and it wears quickly
• Part of the reason it wears quickly is because the controls are oriented for horror rather than shootouts. Near the end it can feel like you're fighting the controls
• Not much to do after the game is over other than play again
• Mercenaries mode was "meh" for me and limited by the aforementioned controls since it's heavy on the action
• Inconsistent villains. Some are forgettable and the final boss falls flat since there's not much proper build up
• Not a huge mark against it, but it's a one-time play for me

PROS

• Engrossing from start to finish and creates phenomenal, memorable atmosphere, which is critical to these types of games' success
• There will be many moments that I take with me - either because they were awesome, scary, intense, or all three!
• Normally a convoluted series - I appreciated the straight-forward story to just save Ethan's daughter
• Handful of memorable characters and villains. Lady D is daunting and unique, as is Heisenberg and I'd be remiss if I didn't mention The Duke
• Holy hell are these graphics incredible and the sound design is spot on. This is an awesome showcase for next-gen systems
• Some quality-of-life improvements from Biohazard are welcome
• Map/locations are a character of their own and really add to the previously cited atmosphere
• Resident Evil is back, baby!

Rath's Review Score | 8.5/10

Enjoy some additional screenshots from my playthrough!