Resident Evil is his best when he does something new. When the series debuted in 1996, its slow, exploration-rich take on zombies was so influential that it spurred a whole new genre dubbed "survival horror." A decade later, Resident Evil 4 changed direction with a perfect action experience that is arguably the culmination of the long series, and helped shape the look of action games in the years that followed.
The seventh entry in the series, which releases tomorrow, similarly changes the formula in dramatic ways. Its measured pace and focus on exploration are reminiscent of the original Resident Evil, but a new first-person perspective and incredibly detailed visuals make it one of the most vicious and powerful horror experiences ever. It keeps the best parts of the series - a methodical, brutal form of horror combined with a tense, empowering take on survival - and grafts them onto something that feels modern and new.
And while the most recent entries in the series, especially the disappointing Resident Evil 6, focused on action and shooter at the expense of scares, RE7 does the opposite. Rest assured: Resident Evil is terrifying again.
Resident Evil 7
At first, RE7 hardly even looks like a Resident Evil game. The shift to a first-person perspective, combined with a relatively slow pace, gives a feeling reminiscent of storytelling indie games like Firewatch and Gone Home. At first you walk around and look at things. It's very different from the series' fast-paced recent entries - but that feeling doesn't last long.
You play as a young man named Ethan who is investigating the disappearance of his wife, Mia. (Yes, the character who is MIA is called Mia.) After three years without contact, he receives a mysterious message from her telling him to come to a house in Louisiana. He arrives to find a massive, disgusting, and seemingly long-deserted house. The rooms are filled with piles of rotten garbage, and putrid meal scraps are scattered throughout the kitchen and living room. If you have played the RE7 "cooking" demo, you will find the surroundings familiar. It's a terrible place that only gets worse the more you explore. Eventually, Ethan meets the residents of the house, the Baker family, and that's when things take a much more Resident Evil-like turn.
ENEMIES ARE MUCH MORE AFRAID THAN JUST SHAMBLING ZOMBIES
Venturing through the sprawling Baker House and its surroundings is very reminiscent of the sprawling mansion in the original Resident Evil. It's both huge and disturbing, filled with locked doors and lots of cryptic puzzles, as well as a dark and violent story. But its inhabitants are much more frightening than mere zombies. While there are monsters in RE7 that play a role similar to the living dead - that is, they're basically fodder for your small arsenal of weapons - the real scares come from the father. Baker, Jack, and the like.
These characters play a role similar to the horrific monster in Nemesis in RE3, or the cunning xenomorph in Alien: Isolation. These are ever-present and incredibly powerful threats that can appear anytime, anywhere. At no point did I feel safe in the halls of the Baker house, knowing that Jack might decide to break down a wall, chase after me, and behead me with a shovel. The tension is so constant that even the smallest details are frightening; the main hall of the house features a simple rotating desk fan that casts a huge impending shadow that I've never gotten used to. The stress was so high that I often used the game's save rooms - the only safe haven - to literally catch my breath and plot my next course of action.
Resident Evil 7
What is perhaps most impressive is how the game manages to continually increase the stakes and immerse you in even more ominous and grotesque scenarios. During the first few hours of the game, I lived in constant fear that Jack was near, and when he appeared I fired a few bullets to slow him down as I ran for my life. By the time I got deeper into the depths of the house and began to understand the mysteries at the heart of RE7, I almost wished for Patriarch Baker to be relatively tame. With the exception of a heavy flashback lull towards the end of the game, this constant increase remains intact for the dozen hours that the game lasts. It just gets worse and worse.
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Photo by James Bareham / The Verge
PLAYSTATION VR
The PlayStation 4 version of Resident Evil 7 offers something other platforms don't: a chance to experience the horrors of the Baker's House in virtual reality. And it's not just a separate mode, because you can experience the entire game in VR. If you can muster up the courage to strap on a helmet, that's fine. Stay tuned for more thoughts on The Verge's RE7 on PSVR later this week.
RE7's emphasis on survival only adds to this tension. As in the original game and its successors, weapons and healing times are scarce in RE7. This is not a shooting game where you can go with flaming guns, which leaves you vulnerable. When you only have a handful of balls, you need to make each of them count. The same goes for healing supplies. This tension is very present in the first half of the game, and although it eases somewhat in the latter part as you acquire new gear, there were still plenty of times I found myself wishing more supplies. This relative scarcity also makes for very satisfying moments. Unlike most games, in RE7 simple acts like finding a new weapon or crafting medical supplies seem important. It's hard to put into words the excitement I felt upon stumbling upon a backpack that allowed me to hold a few extra items.