First of all, although I want to tell a lot about some events that I dislike and find absurd in the name of the story, I will not include any spoiler content in this review. In other words, let me state that I will talk about this subject, without giving information about the subject, except for the details we see in the trailers. Of course, if you haven't played Resident Evil 7 yet, let me also mention that you may encounter delightful content on this subject.
After we returned to the old games of the RE Village or Resident Evil 8 series, we came across it and tried to close another important gap by taking the story slowly. With the gameplay following the footsteps of Resident Evil 7 and containing very important characters from the main series, we can say that it was a game that attracted our attention. Well with the trailers "what the hell?" Did the production we call manage to keep this attention at the highest level when we finished or while playing the game?
Pros
+ Enormous atmosphere and details
+ Elements of horror that keep you on your toes
+ Fun conflict dynamics
+ The story that triggers the wonder element
+ Beneviento's house
+ Use of sound to complement the atmosphere
Cons
- Important characters with no depth
- Puzzle dynamics are insufficient
- Minor frame drops
- Tormenting boss fights
Resident Evil Village takes place three years after the 7th game. Ethan Winters saved his wife Mia and they had a child like a ball of light. When you say light ball, it is like a light ball. Even in the brief moment when we hold the baby in our arms, my cheeks came to me. As with all characters, Capcom has done a great job in designing the doll. Despite the small difficulties between the husband and wife who have this beautiful baby, everything goes rosy and smiling, while Chris Redfield gets in on the situation and squeezes it in Mia's head as we can see in the trailers as a result of a small raid. We find ourselves in the middle of the village, which gave the game its name, as we darken and Chris takes our baby and leaves. So what we need to do is find our baby Rose and understand Chris's troubles.
We knew that Resident Evil Village would feature tracks from both Resident Evil 7 and Game 4 as a theme. As you play the game, you see that these traces begin to become more pronounced. But it's not just these two games. Having made a radical change in the camera and gameplay dynamics in the 7th game, Capcom has succeeded in bringing the game to different atmospheres as it continues this order in the new game. Even if we enter the village atmosphere as in the 4th game, when we look at the integrity of the game, you see that each region actually carries different traces in itself.
The village part is directly reminiscent of Resident Evil 4. Dimitrescu Castle, on the other hand, has a functioning like the Police Station and Mansion, which we are often familiar with from the series. In these parts, you are trying to open the locked doors and you are actually trying to escape from this place where you are stuck with some small puzzles. Puzzles are not as detailed as in old games and can be solved very easily. When we leave all these dynamics aside and go to Donna Beneviento's small mansion, the face of the game changes incredibly.
I'm scared mom
Okay, we were encountering horror elements in the first minutes of the game, which I will talk about in a moment, but I can say that Beneviento's house is on the top. The game was suddenly P.T. You take on a similar atmosphere and you feel cold sweat running down your back. I would like to point out that this part, which is a big surprise for me, is my favorite and feared place in the game.
As I mentioned at the beginning, Resident Evil Village connects to many different points as the story. This situation can annoy many fans because I can say that it was a slightly different context for the series. We can say that it will probably have a great impact on the course of the series. The game manages to provide the necessary depth and complexity in characters such as Chris Redfield and Ethan Winters. Although you are surprised that Ethan is still surprised when he sees a monster, after a while you try not to see this inexperience. The relationship between these two characters, the general element of curiosity, is beautifully handled in the game. Just like in Resident Evil 7, you are wondering about the reason for the events and this situation manages to connect you to the game.
The depth of the character brings a great disappointment in other important characters. All the other characters you encounter in the game are very blindly written and have no depth. I can say that even the most crucial speeches and dialogues are shown in the trailers. What's more, believe it, and this situation made me incredibly sad. You see that even some interesting characters whose purpose we are trying to solve have very mundane ambitions towards the end.
As such, you start to think that a huge potential is wasted for very simple action elements. For example, if we compare it to Resident Evil 7, perhaps the most special aspect of that game was that it also contained a family drama. We saw that each character was written with care and we came across dialogues that added depth to them. As I think of the scene where Jack Baker explains the facts and explains how they got into an impasse, something still breaks with me. Although Resident Evil Village succeeds in this in the main character, it appears to be very blind in the other side characters, and I can say that this situation makes the story of the game in a very superficial structure.
Resident Evil Village has managed to balance the horror and action well. As you can learn the details of the story by researching around, this research situation is also the most important factor that triggers tension. You are constantly moving on the trigger both indoors and in the village part. Although the horror elements adhere to the method we call jump scare at some points, I also have to say that the general atmosphere of the game keeps the tension high.
What about the dynamics of research?
Another importance of researching around is revealed in the ammunition and valuable items you will find. It is difficult to say that Resident Evil Village is a game with lots of hands when it comes to ammunition. That's why you have to be careful with every bullet you shoot. If you cannot do enough research, you will have to walk around with a knife in your hand. You evaluate the items you find by giving them to Duke, who is in pursuit of his bread, who sets up the market counter at certain points of the map. Duke sells you ammunition as well as handles updates on your weapons. When it comes to ammunition, I think about it immediately, I can fill the money and don't get the magazines. Because the ammunition in Duke's hand is also numbered and they run out when you buy them. This makes it more important to search around and find bullets and valuable items.
Duke also makes good use of the animal meats you see around and kill. With the kitchen option opened after a certain point in the game, you learn that the character can cook with a Master Chef cry. These dishes affect some of your features. If you can open these features, your health bar is slowly filling when your health is low, or you take less damage when you protect yourself. A number of features like this are included. So be you, do not sell the meat of the animals you hunt at the beginning of the game. They are much more valuable afterwards.
Let's get to the action and general dynamics of the game. Resident Evil Village is a game in which we get into action from time to time but mostly get nervous while searching around. I found the action parts balanced and I think he kept the actor on alert. You are trying to use all the weapons and ammunition you find. Using the dynamites and mines you find can provide you with nice advantages at the necessary points. It has been made incredibly important to find the weak spots of some enemies and to work there.
In the game, apart from zombies, you have to fight with werewolves, mechanical monsters or a mixture of zombies and werewolves called Lycan. I can say that these species act a little more sane than classic zombies. When you shoot, they flee to the right and plunge into your neck in the most unexpected places. Conflict dynamics are generally enjoyable and stressful. This stress situation leaves its place to absurd boss struggle and pure action at the end of the game. So if you show these two parts to someone, they may even think that they belong to separate games. Although the majority of the game is balanced, you feel like you are playing Resident Evil 6 in the last part.
The most disliking point in conflict dynamics was enemy reactions. In some cases, when you shoot at the enemy's head or chest, they have to be thrown backwards, on the contrary, they come towards you. These shots you make to drive away the enemy, on the contrary, bring them closer to you faster than normal. I could not even tell if it was a bug or normal operation because I can say it was a very problematic situation. Other than that, there was not much that upset me in the dynamics of conflict. Of course, although the clashes are enjoyable, we have to admit that the main boss struggles are a bit pale. The boss struggles of the characters who are already aimless are also kept very common.
Resident Evil Village is a very successful game in terms of graphics and atmosphere. As soon as you take your first step into the village, you realize that the game has a unique texture and you start to breathe this beautiful atmosphere into your lungs. As we wander through the village houses where there is a great destruction, the Dimitrescu castle shouts that I am here in all its glory. They have absorbed that hazy, present-day but medieval eastern European atmosphere into the game very nicely. Moreover, you can clearly see how the atmosphere of the game changes in every region you visit. From gloomy areas to dungeons, from foggy bridges to dark lands, a process rich in atmosphere awaits you. The light games used in all these areas, combined with the detail around, create very beautiful scenes. Even when you enter a village house, you can see how the light entering through the ruined wall adds a beautiful detail to the atmosphere of the room.
The game, which does its part graphically, has managed to reinforce this atmosphere with light games. Matters such as coating have been brought into your eyes even more with the details in the game. So I passed the village part, especially in the Dimitrescu Castle, you encounter such beautiful embroidery and details that you kiss the production team on your forehead. Especially if you are a player like me who is drowning in details, you can be sure that you will be around. From the door embroidery to the sculptures, from the motifs on the wall to the paintings, a really fine workmanship has been made. I can say that I liked this aspect of the game very, very much.
The only problem on the technical side is frame drops that occur from time to time. I played the Playstation 5 version of the game. In general, the game, which watches 60 fps with Ray Tracing on, comes across with frame drops, albeit rarely, in a way I cannot understand. Although these frame drops are not too big, you can feel them very clearly because they are experienced instantaneously and make a hard transition. I think this problem will be resolved as soon as possible.
As for the sound, Resident Evil Village surprised me a lot. Both the music used and the sound elements that affect the atmosphere contribute greatly to the enjoyment of the game. The music is very good, especially I have to admit that I listened to the song played at the end of the game over and over again. In the repair part, the sound effects coming from around and the voices of zombies start to paranoid you. I can say that you are getting even more nervous with the sound of violins when the tension reaches the peak. On this subject, those who listen to the song "I got five on it" used in the movie Us will understand more clearly what I said. I can say that at certain moments of the play, for some reason, I remember the feeling of tension I experienced when I listen to that song. In short, it can be said that the sound effects and music were exactly at the level we expected from the game.
Resident Evil Village review - Conclusion
As a result, Resident Evil Village has been a delightful game that manages to play itself from beginning to end. If the story and characters were dwelled on a little more, a very different job could have come out. As someone who loves Resident Evil 7, I can say that he successfully carried the flag he received from him to the next step. Still, the Baker drama impressed me much more than the character depth in this game.
In short, if you like Resident Evil 7 and the atmosphere and horror elements it offers, I can say that you will enjoy a similar experience from the Resident Evil Village game. Resident Evil Village has already been one of the most successful games of the year, despite some shortcomings.
