Resident Evil fans are a tough crowd to please; I should know, because I’m one of the biggest fans there is. But just because we can be a tough bunch, it doesn’t mean Capcom can’t do the right thing and give the fans that one thing they have been begging for over the last several years – to return the series to its roots as the home of horror.
Resident Evil after all was never always the intense, action packed, explosive blockbuster that we’ve come to know in the last few series entries. Once upon a time, the name Resident Evil was enough to invoke nightmares – from the voice on the main menu, to the creepy disfigured zombie on the case. Recent entries though have flushed that out to create a game that was open to an even wider audience. In doing so however, Capcom lost the backing of many of their most hardened fans, with many voicing their concerns regarding the direction the franchise was being taken with some even petitioning for Capcom to return the horror, like it used to be all those years ago, of Racoon City.
Now though, it seems the voices have been heard, and if the teaser demo for Resident Evil 7 is anything to go by, fans will certainly not be disappointed this time round.
We finally got the chance to sit down with the upcoming horror/thriller to see just how much has changed since our last outing with Leon’s golden locks. And oh boy, where do we start?
Well a good place may be the characters, especially as Resident Evil 7 doesn’t seem to welcome the return of any known favourites from the series past. No, this time out we are instead treated to the strikingly horrific family of the Bakers, and a generously quiet cameraman whom which you play through the demo.
I say demo, in the unsure sense, as there’s no guarantees if this is the exact character you’ll find yourself playing as when Resident Evil 7 biohazard finally graces our consoles at the end of January. This is due to the fact the demo won’t actually be a part of the full game, and is instead “a bespoke experience that isn’t just a slice of gameplay from the main game”, at least according to director Koushi Nakanishi.
Nevertheless, the experience available in the teaser is certainly one that looks set to bring the horror back to Resident Evil this time, and after an hour of working through the various endings available – oh yes there’s more than one – I dare say this could well be the best Resident Evil game yet.
Now many of you will be rolling your eyes while you read this, but let me point out the reasons why.
Back in 1996, Capcom first shook the world with the awkward camera angles that made you guess where the enemies were until they were right on top of you, and the now frequently criticised tank controls. These would cause the hairs on your arms to stand on end due to the struggle to ensure you had enough room to manoeuver your way through the rooms to the creaking door opening cut scenes. Players didn’t have the same lack of patience back then that they do now.
Now before you go hurling your controller in my direction, hear me out.
Whilst the tank controls may have been used to help induce fear into the awkward movement, now we have free movement, but a much more intense A.I. to be concerned about. See, the Baker family are not like your classic zombies from back in the day. In fact, I don’t know what they are really. My time in the demo saw them coming out of places I knew I had checked at least ten times over whilst hiding. It also saw them living in a house that looked like that of Jason Vorhees’ slaughterhouse if a family of zombies had been living there for twenty years. And with the camera now shifted once more into a first-person perspective this time out, there is certainly no place for tank movement. The near 7 foot, cannibal and his horrifically sadistic family who are hot on your trail confirm that. Instead we will be finding ourselves turning up the sensitivity to ensure we can sprint to the closest closet we can find to hide in.
So what does the demo show? – Quite a lot actually.
Mainly it shows what we can be expecting when the full experience arrives next year. It shows horror, fear, and exploration are all going to be a big part of the game. But something else it shows, is that Capcom are once more truly devoted to their best selling I.P.
Resident Evil 7 biohazard is made from the newly developed RE engine, and with it comes some of the best visuals seen in a game to date. Whilst many will be reaching for a sick bag at the sight of some truly gruesome decaying bodies, there’s no hiding away from the fact that all the stops have been pulled out this time around.
Another important aspect of the original Resident Evil titles was in the puzzles, and it seems they also make a swift return. The demo sees things such as a coin, a dummy finger, a videotape, keys, and various other items strewn throughout the decaying country farmhouse. With no knowledge of what they do or where they do them, instead players are required to use common sense and probably a piece of paper and a pen to figure things out. And my god how it brings that nostalgic feeling back.
Finally then we have the atmosphere, and that’s always an important one in a horror game isn’t it? After all, the only games that truly felt right for me in these terms were the original Resident Evil titles 1-3 and the long forgotten gems that were the Outbreak games. But Resident Evil 7 looks set to change that too with just the right amount of blood, guts, creaking floorboards and slowly opening doors, as well as having one of the most terrifyingly real enemies seen in a game to date.
So if Capcom can keep up this atmosphere for the entire game, weaving in a fine story to match, we may well quickly find ourselves looking at a potential 2017 Game of the Year candidate.
Horror is back, and its residents have never felt so evil.
