#5. STRONGHOLD
Resident Evil Village’s RE4 influences are most apparent in this area. After dealing with Salvatore Moreau, Ethan heads to this stronghold, which, in simple terms, is the nest of the entire lycan population that is haunting the village and tearing it apart. The Stronghold is not particularly long – you can go through it in under an hour – but it’s characterized by some of the most tense and thrilling combat encounters in the entire game. Managing your positioning and placement, smartly using your ammo, and using environmental hazards such as explosive barrels and sacks of flour to give you a leg up over what can initially seem like overwhelming swarms of fast-moving lycans makes for some truly memorable combat encounters that feel like they were lifted straight from Resident Evil 4 and translated to first person gameplay. The Stronghold also ends with the incredible boss fight against Urias, which serves as the perfect culmination of one of the game’s most thrilling sections.
