TheResident Evilseries has seen a resurgence in popularity in recent years ever since the release ofResident Evil 7: Biohazardin 2017. The seventh entry breathed new life into the franchise which was in desperate need of saving followingthe poorly receivedResident Evil 6. While there are certainly merits to every game in the series, mostResident Evilfans are willing to admit that the level of quality greatly varies from game to game, but thatResident Evil 7andResident Evil Villagehave done a lot to get the series back on track.
As fans look to the future of the franchise withthe next mainlineResident Evilgame, a sinking feeling has started to take over: It seems as if every third game in the franchise isn’t received very well in comparison to the games preceding it, which would mean thatResident Evil 9is potentially in for some trouble. This cycle of errors seen withResident Evil 3and6is avoidable, however, as long as Capcom can learn from its previous missteps and deliver a game worthy of the goodwill currently surrounding theResident Evilfranchise.
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Where Resident Evil 6 Went Wrong
On paper, aResident Evilgame that brings back many of the series' most iconic characters for a crossover title seems like a great idea, but in practice,Resident Evil 6had a lot of issues with the way that it handled many of its elements. The biggest misstep for the franchise wasthe way thatRE6handled its scale: Instead of keeping things small and focusing on the survival horror elements that the series was created with, the game was big and bombastic turning the franchise away from both survival and horror in favor of becoming an action shooter.
Although that isn’t inherently a bad thing, as some of the best games in the franchise have their fair share of action moments. However, the frequency thatResident Evil 6leaned on actionmade the game feel like Capcom didn’t understand why people like the franchise. As each game goes on, things typically get bigger in scale with monsters and action set pieces. However, those elements only work if they’ve been earned by having smaller moments to really give them a sense of scale and meaning. It seems like Capcom took a look at whereRE5ended and thought that the only way for the next game to stand out is to continue scaling things up, resulting in poor reception.
How Resident Evil 9 Can Succeed
IfResident Evil 9wants to avoid the missteps ofResident Evil 6,and to a lesser extentResident Evil 3, it will need to avoid conflating a larger sense of scale with quality. For example,Resident Evil Villagehas a much larger scale thanResident Evil 7, however,RE8has a lot more going for it than simply being “RE7but bigger.” It made sense forVillageto have a larger sense of scale given the journey that Ethan Winters went on inRE7, andVillagejustifies its growth further by having a narrative that requires it while also feeling like a gradual escalation from the previous game.
It would be a mistake, then, forResident Evil 9to be even bigger thanVillagefor the simple sake of trying to ramp up the scale without providing any reasons for doing so.Resident Evil 6had far too many plates spinning to be seen as an accessible and cohesive story, paired with a sense of scale that didn’t feel earned. With howRE7and8have handled things, by keeping the story focused around the Winters family, it seems like Capcom might be learning.
The action scenes towards the end ofResident Evil Villagehas some fans worried that the franchise might ditch the horror and lean back into big, over-the-top action once more. Hopefully, Capcom takes its lessons learned to heart, and sticks to what makes the franchise great.
Resident Evil Villageis available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
