What direction should Resident Evil VIII take?
RESIDENT EVIL VIII SHOULD LEAN INTO THE SOULSBORNE GENRE FOR IDEAS. THE LONELY ROAD IS WELL TRAVELLED BUT WHAT LIES JUST OFF THE UNDEADLY BEATEN PATH? IT’S TIME FOR RESIDENT EVIL TO TURN UP THE FEAR FACTOR AGAIN. WHATEVER IT IS,
I’D LOVE THE NEXT RESIDENT EVIL TO BE PLAYABLE IN PS VR.
The rumours keep swirling: werewolves, an evil witch on the hunt, and a darkly gothic European village location. If these unconfirmed mythical influences and singular village setting are true, they hint at a style of play that could be a little Bloodborne-like in design. Is it time Resident Evil embraced the gaming fad that defined PS4, and took it up a notch on PS5? I’d love to see the classic survival horror gameplay mixed in with a little soulsborne grind. The witch tease and inclusion of magic could be an easy explanation for a returning Chris Redfield to come back once again to retread terrifying old ground.
The saying is ‘it takes a village’, but I don’t think that refers to the most recent Resi leak. That said, picture it: survival horror goes Midsommar by way of Revelations’ multiple perspectives. As emotions run high, dramatic irony could hone the tension; let’s say Claire finds out who’s behind it all, only for us to cut back to Chris who’s unknowingly fallen into an alliance with the baddies. Combine that with the resource scarcity of the original Resi 2 – picking up an item in the A route removes it from the B route – and it could all make for a compelling multi-perspective push and pull.
Resident Evil VII itself shook things up, moving the series to first-person and having multiple early sequences where you felt relentlessly pursued (until you got decked out with guns for extended action sequences a few hours in). Sure, Resi 2 and 3’s remakes have redefined how third-person Resi feels, but we should take those lessons and reapply them to first-person, so the line between action moments and hiding ones is blurred. Imagine being able to choose how to approach larger areas, such as a Midsommarstyle village. Do you blast through or sneak slowly as something from the woods pursues you? Dial up the dread, please.
As good as Resident Evil VII was, it was a whole different thing inside PS VR. I still have nightmares about what’s lurking in the water and I haven’t enjoyed a family meal since. For a time Resi VII was the poster game for virtual reality and there’s reason to think Capcom will do the same again. There are rumours the game will play in first-person like Resi VII so I’d wager we’ll get a PS VR mode, but virtual reality has come a long way since. I’d love more interaction with the world, being able to pull and womanhandle the environment in search of supplies and odd statues that just happen to fit random door locks.