Resident Evil Village is now only a couple of days away, hyping up fans' excitement for the latest entry in the long-running survival horror franchise. The upcoming game will continue the story of Resident Evil 7's Ethan Winters, who finds himself trapped in a village that is reminiscent of Resident Evil 4.
Several days ago, Capcom released gameplay demos for Resident Evil Village giving players a preview on what to expect from the actual game. Today, the review embargo for Resident Evil Village has been lifted, offering even more insights into how the latest game fares against its competitors. Similar to previous Resident Evil games, hardcore fans are usually concerned about the level of horror and based on feedback so far, it appears that most fans would be satisfied.
How Scary is Resident Evil Village?
Although the intensity of horror in Resident Evil Village would ultimately depend on each player's tolerance, most early reviews of Resident Evil Village indicate that it sits high on the scary scale compared to previous entries in the franchise. However, days before its release, Resident Evil Village's horror factor has now been put into question, especially after a game producer said that Capcom had to scale down the game's intensity to appeal to more players.
It is worth noting that the scaling back of Resident Evil Village's horror is in relation to Resident Evil 7, which is widely considered one of the scariest entries in the series, if not the scariest. Producer Tsuyoshi Kanda revealed that after Capcom received feedback about Resident Evil 7 being "too scary to play," the studio decided to scale back the "tension curve" in Resident Evil Village to make it accessible to more players. However, this shouldn't dissuade hardcore fans, given that early reviews of Resident Evil Village did indicate that while action elements are amplified in the latest entry, it still has a lot of terrifying moments, but maybe not as intense as its predecessor.
Additionally, anyone who has played any of Resident Evil Village's demos would know that the level of horror in the upcoming game is pretty high up on the scale, especially when compared to previous entries such as Resident Evil 4-6 and even the remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 3. Although the demo only allowed players to experience a fraction of Resident Evil Village, it was able to show plenty of intense and scary moments, especially when encountering Lycans or any of Lady Dimitrescu's daughters. Apart from enemies, Resident Evil Village reviews also point out that the environment itself gives off a sense of dread and unease, which are important factors to keep the scare level consistent throughout the entire game.
Is Resident Evil Village For You?
Having considered early feedback and the slight scaling down of Resident Evil Village's horror level, is it worth picking up? The answer to that ultimately depends on what players deem the most important in a Resident Evil game. For players who want to know how Village will move forward the overall narrative of the series, the upcoming game is a must-buy, not only because it is a continuation of Resident Evil 7's story but also since Chris Redfield's deeper involvement ties the upcoming game to the grander plotline of Resident Evil.
However, for players who are looking for a pure gut-wrenching, terrifying experience, Resident Evil Village may not be able to satisfy, especially those who do not even find Resident Evil 7 scary. While Resident Evil has pioneered the survival horror genre, the series was never about pure terror. Early Resident Evil games did have terrifying moments, but most of them focused on puzzle-solving and exploration rather than relentless horror. In the end, while Resident Evil Village will be scary for most gamers, hardcore horror fans should consider that the upcoming game is shaping up to be a balance between the intensity of Resident Evil 7 and the more forgiving nature of previous entries.
Resident Evil Village launches May 7 for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.