Resident Evil 9 – What it Can Learn from Resident Evil 4 Remake and Resident Evil Village

There are a lot of surface level questions posed by the prospect of a 9^th Resident Evil game: will it be 1^st or 3^rd person? Will its setting mark a return to urban civilisation ala Racoon City, or will it be a continuation of isolated rural environments? Genre-wise, will it lean more into action-heavy territory, or plunge headfirst into psychological horror abysses? This last question is especially prescient as the developer have largely favoured one or the other for Resident Evil titles. They’re either stately, shuffling horrors stuffed with tension or games stuff with full throttle action and bombast. The developer never seems to be able to land on a formula which successfully marries both… that is, until Resident Evil Village.

Following on from the action heavy nadir of Resident Evil 6, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard re-established the developer’s marquee horror franchise as a deeply disturbing, psychologically unsettling affair. Combat was light, but also, so was enemy variety, and thus strategy and game plan. Resident Evil Village proved, if anything, that psychological survival horror and action heavy gameplay and set pieces can co-exist. This was achieved through Village’s distinct biomes, its crowning achievement not just in providing a melting pot of domains to get lost in but also in opportunities to explore different strategies. See, the opulent towers of Castle Dimitrescu might favour a stealthier approach, whereas Heisenberg’s subterranean factory may require caution, tiptoeing with a fully loaded arsenal.

Village’s expanded roster of bloodthirsty monstrosities, especially when compared to Resident Evil 7, was very welcome too. Not only did this prolong interest throughout the game’s 10-to-15-hour campaign but also added a depth of decision making not present in its predecessor. The only downside to Village’s broad cross-section of grunts was that they weren’t the sharpest tools in the box, for all too often they were lacking any sort of intelligence to outwit or outmanoeuvre our protagonist, Ethan Winters.

Resident Evil 4: Remake’s primary cannon fodder, the usual enemies, are somewhat different. They’re not the shambling, braindead zombies of Resident Evil’s prior nor the mythological mutants of Resident Evil Village. No, they’re infected humans, operating without a brain but still with intelligence, with ability to make quick decisions in combat, with demonstrable aptitude for ambush and tactical flair. In Leon Kennedy’s numerous bouts with the game’s hordes of pitchfork wielding enemies, some will attack head-on whilst others will lurk on the side lines, lobbing dynamite or axes, providing the opportune moment for another of their pack to strike.

This raised level of combat ability is thanks to a refined artificial intelligence which the developers at implemented into the Resident Evil 4 Remake. As stated, it’s likely the requirement for cleverer enemies in Resident Evil 4: Remake stems from the fact the enemies are still somewhat human, but the knock-on effect for the player is that encounters are much more visceral, more intense, more anguish filled. On normal difficulty, Resident Evil Village is an easy game; not so with Resident Evil 4: Remake. Enemy encounters are much more challenging, and it’d be surprising if the AI technology developed for RE4: Remake wasn’t carried over into future Resident Evil titles.

And what of this other question posed in this feature’s outset, one of speculating on Resident Evil 9’s setting. Well, there are unsubstantiated rumours floating round the web that details of RE 9’s whereabouts have already been leaked. According to these rumours, the game will be set in a rural ghost town, with haunted forests and caves populated by mythological beasts akin to wendigos ripe for exploration. If true, then it’d almost certainly represent a continuation of the countrified isolation of Resident Evil Village. If the setting is a continuation, then perhaps the narrative of Village is set to continue too. However, the Winters’ saga appears all but sewn up with the Shadows of Rose DLC, and if so, this would pose another question: who will take the mantle and lead the narrative? Will it be someone new, or the return of a legacy character?

Well, this feature’s purpose isn’t to drive speculation but to highlight what Resident Evil 9 can learn from Village and RE4: Remake, but just to indulge in speculate for a moment, it seems that owing to Village’s epilogue narrative long-time Resident Evil character Chris Redfield could take the reins for the series’ next instalment. Without spoiling much, the ending of Village does heavily imply that Chris and his team are probably heading to BSAA’s European headquarters.

Resident Evil 5 is unashamedly an action orientated affair and should Resident Evil 9 lean into 5’s combat heavy aesthetic then there’s a lot it can take from Chris’s section from Village and Resident Evil 4: Remake’s combat systems, in addition to its refined enemy AI. For instance, Resident Evil 4: Remake features a good melee and an exceptional parry mechanic. The game’s parry system relies on precise timing, see the Leon’s encounters with Jack Krauser in the remake – the iconic knife fight – the system worked well and it was incorporated across the entire game. When timed right the parry will deflect all manner of attacks, from punches to thrown axes and even chainsaw swings, subsequently stunning and staggering enemies to give Leon chance to unleash his attacks. This system provides an exceptional level of depth and nuance to combat encounters without feeling overly wrought or unrealistic (apart from maybe deflecting chainsaw attacks). Alongside the aggressive, intelligent AI systems developed for Resident Evil 4: Remake, it’d be wholly unsurprising if Capcom took the new parry system to Resident Evil 9 too, especially if it is indeed a game featuring lots of combat.

Elsewhere, encounters in Resident Evil 4: Remake feel streamlined owing to tight, functional level design. There’s a linearity to the Resident Evil 4: Remake’s slice of Spanish countryside, while Leon is stalking through the island. It’s remarkable that despite the way being routinely signposted, with an inescapable feeling that the Resident Evil 4 Remake is tightly authored there’s also a sense of openness, of a thrill that isn’t lost despite the player being largely penned in by level design. This, of course, sits in contrast with the ever-more popular design trend of bloated open worlds, of environments designed for us to spend hundreds of hours in. Resident Evil 4: Remake proves that tight linearity has its place, and in terms of creepy survival horror is the much better design choice. Here’s hoping Resident Evil 9 continues with this trend – claustrophobic environments win over broad expansive landscapes every time.

And, to bring things full circle, should Resident Evil 9 play as a 1^st person or 3^rd person title? Well, to be honest, each has their merits, and each feels suitably immersive. Both perspectives work extremely well, so perhaps Resident Evil 9 could adopt a dual perspective, with maybe outdoor scenes occupying a third-person point of view, with dark, scary interiors reverting to first-person.

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