Resident Evil Village Proves That Fans Can Have Their Cake and Eat It Too

The Resident Evil franchise has long been at the forefront of gaming’s horror scene, and for good reason. Although the series hasn’t always batted .100, fumbling with controversial releases like Resident Evil 6, it’s had far more hits than misses, succeeding in the 90s and 2000s with the original RE releases, and in the modern age with games like Resident Evil Village and Resident Evil 4 Remake.

Resident Evil‘s longstanding success can be attributed to a number of factors, not the least of which being its penchant for experimentation and versatility. Indeed, Resident Evil can wear many hats, oscillating between visceral, psychological horror like that of Resident Evil 7‘s opening hours, to the more campy and absurd, like so many setpieces in RE4. This helps the franchise strike a balance between scary and entertaining, but it has an even greater positive effect on its interactive elements: as a video game series, Resident Evil is able to provide tense, unsettling atmospheric storytelling and action-packed gameplay in equal measure. While few would consider it the best RE game full-stop, Resident Evil Village arguably encapsulates this iconic balance better than any single entry in the series.

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How Resident Evil Village Straddles Action and Horror Through Its Structure

Resident Evil Village Provides Versatile Scares

Resident Evil Village kicks off with a striking blend of excitement and horror: Ethan believes his wife dead by Chris Redfield’s hand, and after being taken captive, he is caught up in a car crash and escapes to the titular village, which is overrun by unfamiliar, Lycan-esque monsters. The opening hour of Village puts players in a particularly vulnerable position while forcing them to push forward, setting the stage for the game’s knife-edge action and terror.

Before too long, Resident Evil Village thrusts players into Castle Dimetrescu, home of the internet’s favorite vampiress. This section of the game is akin to the stalker-focused gameplay of classic Resident Evil titles, as players have to be constantly vigilant, prepared for Dimetrescu to chase them. Like a mouse in a maze, Ethan is powerless, which is what cultivates a sense of anxiety within the player.

The horror of the game takes a more psychological turn later on, when Ethan travels to House Beneviento, also known as the doll house. This stretch is slower, but perhaps the most uncomfortable: there’s no real combat, and players are tasked with solving various puzzles and eventually facing Resident Evil Village‘s most disturbing enemy, a creature known only as Baby.

Resident Evil Village Balances Its Horror with Action

Much like RE4 and RE5, Resident Evil Village lands more on the action end of the action-survival-horror continuum, regularly providing players with intense showdowns against major threats or hordes of fodder enemies. Sections like the Stronghold and Heisenberg’s Factory are more or less combat gauntlets, focused more on high-speed gunplay and strategy than horror. Then there’s the finale, where players say farewell to everyman Ethan Winters and assume the role of special operative Chris Redfield, a man far more capable, and far better-equipped for lethality. It’s at this point that the game turns into a horror-themed FPS rather than a survival horror title.

By expertly teetering between action and horror, Resident Evil Village is able to serve players the best parts of the Resident Evil formula. The hub world and level-based structure of Village offers versatility, partitioning these horror and action sections before fully embracing action in the final act, facilitating an explosive climax. Although the game isn’t perfect overall, these clever design principles help make it one of the most flexible and varied Resident Evil games, proving that the series doesn’t have to choose between intense gameplay and affecting, nail-biting terror.