Showcased in full earlier today, Resident Evil 8: Village's recent live stream offered a lot of answers to the lingering questions surrounding the long-awaited sequel to Resident Evil 7. The game will officially release on May 7, 2021, for current and next-generation consoles, has a free demo out today, and will include a multiplayer spin-off titled Resident Evil Re:Verse for no additional cost.
Included in the lineup of announcements were details surrounding the sequel's special editions, including what players could expect to net themselves when picking up some of the pricier copies. The game's Deluxe Edition specifically had some notable items to show, including a Resident Evil 7 photo mode filter, the Albert01 gun, and an art collection titled "The Tragedy of Ethan Winters."
More intriguing, however, is the addition of a "Max Difficulty" mode, which appears to be a part of the Deluxe Edition's Trauma Pack bundle. This became a point of interest for fans online, many of whom questioned whether the game's hardest difficulty is going to be locked behind a paywall. Although it remains to be seen how it's utilized in Resident Evil Village, it seems likely that regular players will have to complete the campaign to unlock the extra hard optional difficulty, while those who purchase the Deluxe Edition will be able to access it from the moment they launch the game.
The same concept was used for Resident Evil 7, with the majority of players only being able to access "Madhouse" mode after they rolled credits on the game. However, those who pre-ordered Resident Evil 7 could jump into it early, with day one copies of the game coming complete with an option that allowed early-access to the brutal difficulty. Although asking players to pay extra for the mode is an odd move from Capcom, previous games could imply that the sequel's most punishing difficulty won't be entirely locked behind a paywall.
Nonetheless, the special editions appear to be pretty substantial bundles of items fit for any Resident Evil aficionado, with the physical Collector's Edition including a steelbook, an art book, and a Chris Redfield figurine. Resident Evil 8: Village will launch later this year, seeing Ethan Winters begin a deadly new adventure while searching for his missing daughter. It promises to have more intricate combat than its predecessor and a rich story, filled with both new and returning faces. The sequel just released a demo to help showcase the visual and audio style of the game, which is available for free on PlayStation 5 consoles now.
Resident Evil 8: Village launches May 7 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
Source: YouTube