Yeah, I get it. Resident Evil 7 is creepy. There is no other horror games that can beat it, right?
There is none, perhaps, according to many people. I have always been a fan of the Resident Evil franchise, but its place in my heart is currently changing – changing for the worse. Don’t get me wrong – I like RE 7, but it’s still a let down to me. I expected more, that’s it.
People had been criticising the franchise since RE 4 for it had become action-oriented. RE 6 is the worst. Only Leon’s campaign is atmospheric. Other campaigns make it feel like it is just another action shooter where the enemies shoot the player too. Ada’s campaign requires a lot of sneaking around and stealth like Metal Gear Solid. It is hardly a horror title no matter how hard it brands itself as one.
▼ Ada avoiding enemies’ spotlight in RE 6
Some fans started calling for the return of the old RE gimmick, where it has difficult puzzles and a huge map, but resources are scarce and the player may even get overrun by even a few zombies and monsters. There are characters whom are very well-written that the player didn’t know who to trust. The story only unveils itself piece by piece instead of being so revealing that most could have guessed what really happen halfway in the game. Jumpscares were there, but not frequent that could make people get used to it easily.
All these gimmicks contribute to the stressful situation where I once felt scared to explore the unknown and hopeless, all the while having my hope raised when I found some extra herb and bullet, but then again everything shattered to pieces just because someone betrayed me or a monster was so terrifying that I used up every item I had and it was not even a boss fight. This is in fact what makes RE a classic.
I am not looking for the same game every time. I only want the key elements to be retained. I have seen many critics define RE’s horror root as zombies and being locked in a creepy place. Imagine having seven RE games (RE 0 excluded) set in a big mansion filled with zombies exactly like the some early RE games do – this is boring.
▼ A typical mansion in early RE games
Not long after the release of RE 6, Silent Hill’s P.T. came out in 2014, and everything started to change.
P.T. has the best graphics we had ever seen by 2014. The monster/ghost (not sure which one) called Lisa appears from time to time and looks at the player, who plays in first person, from afar while twitching. No one knows how or when she attacks, which makes it so stressful for the player to press forward. Let’s not forget how Lisa doesn’t have an eyeball and the fetus in the sink.
▼ Hello daddy!
▼ P.T.’s graphics created using Fox Engine
P.T. started the fire. Ever since then, most horror games, especially the indie ones, are trying to use realistic graphics, the idea of getting trapped in a typical house in first person mode, super disturbing scenes of gore and a crazy human/monster to get by. The P.T. idea is getting repetitive. This is getting boring.
And this is one of the reasons why I don’t find RE 7 particularly amusing.
The first half of the game is set in a typical house where I find disturbing unknown animal/body parts and even have my hand chopped off, and I am even chased after by the insane Baker family. The graphic is so realistic that it pains me to watch my hand being stitched in first person.
▼ Too…much…pain
When it is again inside a house, gore and crazy guys, I knew what to expect before I played the game – there are something wandering in the corridor and there are usually something in the toilet. This formula produces the same product for most of the time, and I don’t even understand why. The only thing worth praising is how huge it is and the amount of puzzles scattered throughout the map. Despite RE 6 is more like an action shooter, its setting based on wet markets, train stations and packed buildings is definitely more refreshing than this whole “typical house but craziness” combination.
▼ Corridor
▼ Corridor and corridor
RE 7’s creepy aspect is further washed away by flat plot and characters. I knew what to expect before I finished the game – thanks to the obvious hints. It was very clear to me who the main villain was and how that granny would turn out once I reached the middle of the game. Nothing to expect from the plot from that point onwards, really.
▼ Isn’t she suspicious to begin with?
While some are predictable, the battle system has surprised me though. It is the old-school RE battle system – limited resources and no hand-hand combat. This did make me feel a bit defenceless and try so hard scavenging around, especially when the game sometimes took all weapons from the player for the sake of plot.
This is all in all a not-bad direction. Even though some of the gimmicks are repetitive, and some of the key horror elements that the franchise has before are not captured, this game is at least scary. I am not sure what the next big horror title is, and I don’t want RE to catch up with the P.T. trend like this time again. As a classic horror franchise, it should be the one to create a trend of its own, don’t you think?