The "Twilight Princess" of Resident Evil. Doesn't do anything exceptionally well, but shaves off most of the series's weak points to create a consistent, polished piece of survival horror. There's enough thought put into exploring that there's satisfying secrets to find everywhere and enough thought put into combat that popping enemy heads feels good, but you'll probably have standout examples of both in other games at the back of your mind while playing this. Combat especially with how terminally addicted this game is to referencing resident evil 4 at every turn.
This isn't to say Village doesn't have standout moments of it's own, but it's mostly on the atmosphere and characterization side. The plot is even more paper thin than usual but this cast of creatures is bursting with personality from point one. They put you in a lot of really entertaining and unique scenarios even if most of them are a little too stupid to be threatening. Rounding out the cast is Duke. First he seems like another shady salesman but slowly he turns into the player's only relief from violence, illusions and betrayal. The game's story is a complete mess that's nearly impossible to get emotionally invested in, but their last conversation is a highlight. The weak points largely come from the extended cast from previous games. There's not a single logical justification for Chris Redfield's behavior in this game. He causes every problem and gets several people killed.
There are also a couple of brilliant moments of horror here. It's intentionally more of a rollercoaster instead of the consistently high pitch 7 operated at, but the longer length and more complex levels makes this feel like the right call. 7 was stressful to play for extended periods but 8 squeezes moments of melancholy, existential horror and a good sense of humor in between tense scares and it flows a lot better as a result. Nothing stands out as a real low point. Not the best Resident Evil, but it's consistency is admirable and something the series should aim to hold onto.
This isn't to say Village doesn't have standout moments of it's own, but it's mostly on the atmosphere and characterization side. The plot is even more paper thin than usual but this cast of creatures is bursting with personality from point one. They put you in a lot of really entertaining and unique scenarios even if most of them are a little too stupid to be threatening. Rounding out the cast is Duke. First he seems like another shady salesman but slowly he turns into the player's only relief from violence, illusions and betrayal. The game's story is a complete mess that's nearly impossible to get emotionally invested in, but their last conversation is a highlight. The weak points largely come from the extended cast from previous games. There's not a single logical justification for Chris Redfield's behavior in this game. He causes every problem and gets several people killed.
There are also a couple of brilliant moments of horror here. It's intentionally more of a rollercoaster instead of the consistently high pitch 7 operated at, but the longer length and more complex levels makes this feel like the right call. 7 was stressful to play for extended periods but 8 squeezes moments of melancholy, existential horror and a good sense of humor in between tense scares and it flows a lot better as a result. Nothing stands out as a real low point. Not the best Resident Evil, but it's consistency is admirable and something the series should aim to hold onto.