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Video Review on YouTube : https://youtu.be/kYQ7v6x1mP8
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Resident Evil Village had a lot of things to live up to. The RE fan base, one upping the well-received Resident Evil 7, and the expectations of all the meme lords on the internet who lost their minds with the reveal of Lady D. Thankfully I can say they did all that and more. But let’s grab our flash lights and get ready to explore the mysterious and obviously dangerous Resident Evil Village.
Village is an impressive game graphically. Like the last several it is powered by the awesome RE Engine, which does not mean Resident Evil funny enough. We’ve seen it since RE7 but once again Capcom has somehow managed to make it look even better. Character models are amazingly realized in how much detail there is behind them. From simple humans to the ghastly monsters that roam the lands, Capcom is still second to none in this regard. This also extends to the various locations you explore. The detail and lighting work that the game has really set the tone for each area as well as the passage of time within it. Seeing the village at dawn and then at dusk at the sun is going down really stuck with me.
Musically there are some great songs to be found here. That said this is a survival horror title so music is mostly relegated to specific moments or modes. I really enjoyed some of the boss themes though so keep an ear out for them. Where it really stands out though is the ambient sound. All around you there are moments of small objects moving around, footsteps, animal noises (or not) and more. It 100% sells the nerve wracking atmosphere the game is trying to convey. Also I’d like to give a special mention to the actors who portray characters throughout. Everyone did an awesome job bringing these characters to life. Even Ethan the blank slate main character became a real boy so to speak in this game.
There was one small thing that bothered me though. Every character in this game has an American accent despite being set somewhere in Europe. It kept popping up in my mind over the weekend it took me to clear the game. I guess it is better than choosing a distinct accent(s) and potentially tagging a location or region needlessly.
The story in Village is perhaps one of its strongest points and I say that as a longtime Resident Evil fan too. One of my favorite aspects of Resident Evil is when the story makes references and connections to previous games or universe lore. We get a good number of them here that connect events to multiple other games and story lines which made me a happy camper for sure. Some of them were ties to things that made me scream “no way!”
Even with the references being strong narrative moments, this games main story stands on its own. It’s rare that a RE title ends in a way that does not leave me wondering what else or the connection to the greater lore in the series. Don’t get me wrong there are plenty of teases and hints to greater nonsense in the future as always but this story was just so full and complete that it’s hard to not praise it. The RE story team really outdid themselves this time around.
The story goes to various locations and introduces some interesting characters to antagonize Ethan. Each are unique and have lots of personality which I enjoyed a lot. It has some high and low points for sure and some I wish were more fleshed out but it was one of the most satisfying stories in RE to me thus far. Also it has some truly weird and scary moments this time around to boot. While I don’t particularly like hard horror vibes some of the moments that are put into this game really weirded me out in the best way.
Perhaps the best aspect of the story is the acceleration as it progresses. It begins in a fairly standard RE way but once it gets out of its initial area it really just takes off in some really great directions. Without spoiling anything it just feels like it’s not a very RE story while clearly being well within the universe. Nothing but praise in this aspect once it gets going.
Though I must say, Capcom, chill out of mangling this guy so much haha.
Wrapping everything together is the gameplay. Like 7 we return to a first person perspective and overall most things are the same as that experience. The controls are the same with a few modifications such as being able to push enemies away after a block. Where things get a bit more interesting are some of the under the hood changes that have been made to the gameplay and combat. Everything here feels just a bit more fleshed out and responsive. I’m glad to say the combat feels much better than the previous entry.
There are also a lot more weapons this time around. We get the usual pallet of weapons like pistols and shotguns but we also get a few more goodies this time around like mines, a sniper rifle, and more. It’s not innovative in this regard but it completes the usual shooter layout of weapons well with a healthy amount to unlock later.
The weapons are all effective against the variety of enemies found throughout the adventure but of course some are a bit better than others at certain things. Because enemies tend to be fairly aggressive and beefy depending on the difficulty, having a solid set of options at all times is needed. Once I settled into the game and had baddies coming at me regularly it was satisfying to fight my way out of or into situations. The designs of these enemies are great once again. Capcom somehow stepped up their game even more from the remakes of 2 and 3 by featuring even more amazing creature design, even some that felt silly just have immaculate detail in their visual design.
I was really happy to see the return of puzzles as well. This game has a fair amount of puzzles though none are difficult and can be solved relatively quickly within their own enviorments.
Exploration is a huge part of the game this time around too. Of course going point to point getting to the next major event is a way to finish the game but right from the start they put a little nugget of “I need to find EVERYTHING” in your mind. I was surprised at the amount of “side quests” that can be done during the game. Things that involve a special combat encounter or small puzzle to get something unique are plentiful and worth taking the time to do. There is a large but manageable amount of items to find that are both obvious or hidden in the environment. It was really fun to look around each area or room looking for secrets. And in a nod to RE4, of which there are many in this game, Village has a ton of hidden treasures to find to sell for money. It had me wracking my brain sometimes trying to find every single gem and more in a room.
Also like 4 and some other subsequent entries there is a shop to buy a variety of supplies, upgrades, and accessories from. It makes a compelling case for itself to get as much as possible but if you want to afford everything you will definitely need to gather every item possible to sell. Aside from upgrading weapons players can upgrade Ethan himself with the usual larger health pool and more.
After enjoying Resident Evil 7 but having some complaints about various things, I went into 8 with a bit of apprehension. I’m glad to say after running through the story it relieved a lot of those reservations. It fixed a lot of the issues I had with the previous game and exceeded it in others. I do feel like the opening areas are a bit unbalanced compared to the escalation that happens after but it was a great experience in all aspects to me. In particular I enjoyed the story and its twists and turns. Resident Evil Village gets a complete recommendation from me. If you’re into horror or just Resident Evil’s take on the action horror theme, you should definitely jump into this one.
This was a bit shorter of a review but I honestly had mostly positive thoughts on this game. I really can’t think of anything else to ad.
Thanks for reading and be sure to check out the youtube video review and my twitch channel where I play and chat live multiple times a week!
Live on Twitch : https://www.twitch.tv/valkerionseven
Video Review on YouTube : https://youtu.be/kYQ7v6x1mP8
Twitter : https://twitter.com/Valkerion
The Hyperion 