Capcom revealed more Resident Evil Village gameplay in its digital April 2021 showcase, detailing some new additions over its core survival horror format. The game continues to build off a rebooted formula of Resident Evil VII, which took players into first person territory. The sequel also continues the story of Ethan Winters as he sets off in another struggle to save his family from new paranormal creatures and a very different Chris Redfield.
Brittney Brombacher returned to host the stream, introducing executive producer Jun Takeuchi as he commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Resident Evil franchise with Shinji Mikami. This came with a brand new trailer that showed off the outskirts of the mysterious castle. Players will be spending their time solving puzzles outdoors, while the castle contains bigger dangers in every corner. Ethan is seen captured by the mysterious character in a long trench coat and sunglasses, before he is forced to escape from legions of monsters. He will also encounter surviving members of the titular village, as they work to survive against traditional werewolves (now confirmed to be in the game with both larger and fast variants). Chris Redfield also reappears in the trailer, commending players for making it further into the game. Earlier trailers and marketing framed the BSAA agent as a villain, but the new trailer suggests Ethan will be reluctantly working with them to save his daughter from a sacrificial ritual.
The next demo gives players two different levels in the Castle and Village. Players get an eight hour time window to play a portion of both maps, with 30 minutes to roam around. Much like the Resident Evil 2 One-Shot demo, it will be a limited and timed experience which encourages players to buy the full game. Players are able to download the demo immediately on the PS5 and PS4 after the livestream. This follows the free Resident Evil Village Maiden demo released exclusively on the PS5 earlier in January 2021. This time, players will be navigating their way through another escape-room scenario and must find key items to finish the demo. Combat is also added in to give players a taste of several enemy types scattered across Resident Evil Village‘s mysterious castle setting. To seal the PlayStation partnership, PS5 lead architect Mark Cerny made an appearance to congratulate Capcom as they began Resident Evil on the original PlayStation in 1996.
Resident Evil Village takes a few notes from its influential Resident Evil 4. Players will be able to see a merchant to buy and purchase upgrades. Mercenaries makes a comeback from the core series for the first time since Resident Evil 6. This will also become a fun part of the game’s bonus time attack mode, which returns with legions of werewolves attacking players. The map will also contain new power-ups to aid players while they can experiment with different weapons to suit their own strategies. Enemies will also have health bars and will drop experience points players can spend for progression.
Capcom also gave an update into its anticipated Resident Evil Infinite Darkness CG series for Netflix. Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield return to fight zombies in the White House as a new outbreak starts at DC. The limited series takes place shortly after Resident Evil 4. The live action Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City film also finished filming in Toronto, Canada with post production happening sooner ahead of a debut trailer. Dead by Daylight will also receive some DLC inspired by Resident Evil, following a long line of other horror franchises which made their way into the multiplayer survival horror game.
Oculus Studios made a surprise appearance to talk about a new Resident Evil game which will make its way into the Quest and Quest 2 headsets. Resident Evil 4 is coming to VR, bringing the iconic game in its entirety for headsets. Players will become Leon Kennedy in first person while being immersed into the world in true 1:1 scale. This includes fighting life sized Ganados and using replicas of Resident Evil weapons. More details into Resident Evil 4 for VR will be revealed at the Oculus game showcase next week.
Resident Evil Village releases on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Google Stadia on May 7, 2021. Players can pre-order the game immediately and pre-download the 8 Hours in Village demo today ahead of its release.
Additionally, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 owners can get early access in two special 30-minute demos as part of the 8 Hours in Village event starting on April 18, 2021.
