When the first leaks of Resident evil village, fans of the franchise Capcom they immediately began to tremble with fear. Not for the fear of having a title with a strong degree of disquiet in your hands, but for that of seeing creatures such as werewolves, witches and vampires appear in your favorite series.
With the passage of time and the official presentation of the project, the perception of the public has slowly changed into something different; suddenly that dark and somewhat gothic atmosphere of Resident Evil Village no longer seemed so absurd, but the reference to the never enough praised fourth chapter of the brand was clear. The design of the characters, including that of the much vaunted Lady Dimitrescu, has slowly crept under the skin of the players who found themselves waiting spasmodically to be able to live the new adventures of Ethan Winters.
Starting last Friday, owners of PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC and Xbox platforms have finally been able to get their hands on Resident Evil Village. After going through two full runs to fully explore the Village, we are finally ready to tell you about this wonderful dark fairy tale.
THE SEQUEL AND PREQUEL THAT RESIDENT EVIL FANS DESERVE
The plot of Resident Evil Village is firmly intertwined with the events of the seventh chapter: after escaping the Baker home, Ethan and Mia were placed under a witness protection program and transferred to Europe. Here they were able to live a life of apparent tranquility, becoming the child's parents Rosemary. The events of this episode begin when Chris Redfield breaks into Ethan's home, killing his wife and kidnapping his daughter; a completely unexpected brutality from a character always considered positive within the series. Our protagonist then finds himself in pursuit of Chris and reaches a mysterious village in Romania, ruled by an elusive woman called Mother Miranda and four bizarre individuals who are not at all friendly. But let's avoid going into the details of the vicissitudes that Ethan will experience, to avoid ruining the experience for those who decide to embark on this new adventure.
The result is a dark tale that is as fascinating as it is disturbing
The narrative sector of the most recent Capcom work lends its side to some plot holes, but manages to win over the user thanks to a sensational pace and the extraordinary ability to constantly change. During the main campaign we will find ourselves facing completely different situations in environments that are never the same or repetitive. The only meeting point is the Village that gives its name to the production, a real gaming hub within which to choose which direction to take. The result is a dark tale that is as fascinating as it is disturbing, who manages to enhance a character like Ethan Winters, little exploited during Resident Evil VII. Every single individual we meet in the course of our adventure will be able to add something to the charisma of the title or to the lore of the series, giving life to a disturbing fresco that we can only highly recommend to everyone.
Overall longevity stands at 9-10 hours of play, but it varies according to the difficulty with which you face the adventure and the time we will devote to exploring each single area of the game. The duration is undoubtedly satisfying but Resident Evil Village is so compelling that it will seem to end too quickly. Each new zone, each new enemy to fight instills the player's insane desire to want more. For this reason, we point out that some characters may have a screen time lower than your expectations. Not because the game has miscalculated their role in the story, mind you, but because they are such fascinating figures that each one needs an entire title to be able to explore them carefully.
For those who love the lore of the series, we invite you to read all the documents in order to understand every single detail of the story. The title is however mainly connected to Resident Evil VII, which we invite you to recover before throwing yourself in pursuit of Chris to be able to understand the main twists of the new Capcom production. Village is not just a sequel to the adventures in Louisiana, but a real second episode of what we imagine to be a trilogy dedicated to Ethan and his family.
BIGGER, BETTER, STRONGER
Once you reach the Village, Ethan will get hold of the first gun, kicking off the gameplay that we started to know with the seventh chapter. A few hours of play will be enough to understand how the developers managed to take every single element of the last title and raise it to maximum power.
The gunplay, although it does not introduce particularly innovative elements, is immediately satisfying and extremely cinematic. The method with which the camera blurs the weapon when aiming manages to immerse the player even more in the role of the protagonist, giving the whole a truly unique mood. As the story progresses we will be faced with puzzles to solve, new weapons to use and monstrous enemies to defeat. The perception is undoubtedly that of being confronted with a more frenetic work, characterized by a splendid rhythm and an enviable variety.
The aforementioned puzzles are never really challenging, but they manage to entertain the player amiably, breaking up the most action sequences. Sequences that, as already mentioned, are never repeated twice in the same way and that make Ethan's journey a gigantic videogame rollercoaster of emotions. Resident Evil Village, while much less frightening than the seventh chapter, boasts some monstrously successful horror moments. We are not referring only to the jump scare, obviously present, but to some really terrifying sequences, which almost seem to veer towards a completely different genre of game from the one to which Capcom has accustomed us. Seeing is believing!
The puzzles presented are never really challenging
The limited inventory returns once again, close in some ways to the aforementioned Resident Evil 4. During our two runs we have never found ourselves in difficulty with the management of spaces, despite the absence of the famous boxes where you can deposit the objects. The ability to upgrade every single element of the game (weapons, Ethan's statistics and space for equipment) made the title modular according to our needs. Whenever we needed something, it was enough for us to reach the Duke (the merchant) to improve the required characteristic. A solution that simplifies the player's life, highlighting how the production has veered towards more arcade and less survival mechanics.
Finally, among the most important protagonists of Village there is the small village of Romania: the level design created by the Japanese team always pushes the user towards a single destination, thus favoring the narration. At the same time, however, it features secret areas, secondary bosses and optional situations that give great depth to exploration. All this, given the “reduced” spaces, without ever losing focus on what is happening to Ethan. This is a seemingly trivial result, but it demonstrates the maturity reached by the developers and, consequently, by this immortal franchise.
At the end of the main campaign, the much appreciated mode is also unlocked Mercenaries. This interesting addition presses the accelerator on the aforementioned arcade and action mechanics, prompting players to face hordes of enemies in the shortest possible time. A valid alternative to Ethan's story, perfect for fully experiencing the satisfying gunplay set up by the Japanese software house.
A STYLISTIC RESEARCH THAT IS VERY LITTLE SCARY
A few minutes after starting Resident Evil Village are enough to understand the majesty of the aesthetic sector created by Capcom. Despite a lack of interactivity with the environment, Ethan's adventures pass through majestic environments, characterized by a simply stratospheric attention to detail. The design of the enemies also presents a real leap forward compared to the seventh chapter, giving life to monstrous creatures inspired by local folklore and aberrations as fascinating as they are frightening. Once the story is complete, it will also be possible to unlock the concepts and 3D models of most of the game elements. Each object is accompanied by a few lines of explanation, able to enhance the work of the developers and provide interesting background on the title.
The sound sector is impeccable, which uses 3D Audio to create a three-dimensional and profound environment. If it seems to you that the result is not particularly valid, we invite you to check the settings, because the game starts up by default without this interesting feature. Excellent soundtrack and English dubbing; decidedly subdued, unfortunately, the Italian one, due to a Renato Novara not at all consistent with the character of Ethan Winters.
During our two runs we did not run into particular technical problems and, despite the ray tracing activated, the title has always proved extremely fluid. There are probably sporadic frame drops (60 to 50 fps), but these are completely imperceptible details. An applause, on the other hand, for the use of DualSense, which enhances the gunplay thanks to the adaptive triggers. Each weapon boasts its own weight and firepower, transmitted to perfection thanks to the PlayStation 5 controller.
USEFUL INFOWe played Resident Evil Village on PlayStation 5, taking full advantage of Sony's DualSense and 3D Pulse headphones.
Duration- The title can be completed in about 10 hours, but the longevity changes based on the difficulty and how much you decide to explore the game environment.
- Resident Evil Village is a first-person survival horror.
- Once the main campaign is complete, Mercenaries mode is unlocked. This interesting addition pushes players to face hordes of enemies in the shortest possible time.
- Goat-shaped totem poles and documents to recover are scattered throughout the game.
- Some side missions involve hunting special animals which, once killed, grant the player rare materials to boost Ethan's stats.
- Game Name: Resident evil village
- Release date: May 7, 2021
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X
- Dubbing language: Italian
- Texts language: Italian
By now you will have understood: Resident Evil Village is a great game. A perfect sequel to the seventh chapter and, at the same time, a prequel to what will be Resident Evil 9. No matter a few plot holes or the lack of interactivity with the environment, Ethan's new adventures are an exciting journey, visually sumptuous and above all, fun to play.
Capcom has raised the qualitative bar once again, taking one of its most important franchises to new horizons. Horizons that we can't wait to explore in depth and that we hope will soon find confirmation with a new episode or with some DLC of this splendid title.
Review by Luca MazzoccoGraphics
Resident Evil Village is a riot of perfectly curated polygon designs and patterns. Despite the cross-gen nature of the work, Capcom created a visually lavish title. The care for environments and creatures then gives the production that extra touch that exclusively characterizes great works.
88">88
SOUNDTRACK AND DOUBLE ROOM
Despite an unconvincing dubbing in Italian, the sound sector of Resident Evil Village is impressive. Not only is the soundtrack always consistent with what happens on the screen, but also the ambient sounds are extremely accurate. The implementation of the 3D Audio gives the whole a terrifying three-dimensionality.
90
GAMEPLAY
Resident Evil Village improves every single element of the seventh chapter. The shooting, the puzzles, the level design. Every single feature of Capcom's latest effort oozes charisma from all pores, giving life to a work in line with the series, but at the same time able to drag the player towards the future of the franchise.
