It is no secret thatResident Evil Village, Capcom’s eighth mainline entry in the long-running survival horror franchise, has been a huge success. In June, just a month after its release,Resident Evil Villagebroke an impressive sales milestonefor Capcom, proving that its return to its survival horror roots is something fans have longed for.
While the popularity ofResident Evil Villagehas been mostly generated by new characters such as Lady Dimitrescu and her daughters, its story and gameplay are also contributing factors to its success. Additionally,Resident Evil Villagewas also able to embody one important formula that made it scary and memorable, and this formula was taken from another survival horror franchise:Silent Hill.
RELATED:Resident Evil Village Fan Shows Off Impressive Lady Dimitrescu Cosplay
How Resident Evil Took a Page From The Silent Hill Franchise
It is worth remembering thatbothResident EvilandSilent Hillbegan during the late ’90s, which is the golden age for survival horror games. While both titles belong in the same genre, their idea of evil is very different.Silent Hillleaned more into psychological horror, with most enemies being manifestations of the character’s guilt, regrets, or trauma. This approach made the story of each game unique and interesting, given that the horror aspect depends on the character the player is controlling.
Players facemore tangible and realistic enemies inResident Evil, given that monsters in the franchise are either byproducts of a dangerous virus or bioweapons created by evil corporations. No matter who the character is or what they are going through, they all experience the universe in the same way. However, beginning withResident Evil Village, it is evident that Capcom has embraced the approachSilent Hillhas been using for many years now, and this is seen with the game’s main character, Ethan Winters.
Those who have played the most recent installment can attest thatResident Evil Villageis one of the scariest entries in the franchise, specifically the part where players stumble upon House Beneviento. Within its lower floors, players will encounter The Baby, which is an overgrown fetus that pursues the player. Once captured, The Baby will devour Ethan whole, but the creepiest part is its giggles and cries that still sound very human.
What Does The Baby Represent?
Although most monsters inResident Evil Villageare bioweapons, The Baby is a unique and terrifying foe, given that it is a psychological creature anda product of Ethan Winters' mental state. It is worth remembering that Ethan’s journey in the basement of House Beneviento was actually a hallucination created by Donna Beneviento via her powers from possessing a parasite known as Cadou. Instead of an actual bioweapon, The Baby was a representation of Ethan’s guilt, especially since, at this point, he already knows that his daughter Row has already been divided into different parts.
Additionally, The Baby appears to be a huge monster because of Ethan’s fears that Rose could also become a monster due to the mold experiments. Fans should remember that Ethan already witnessed how the mold has twisted Mia inResident Evil 7,and it is likely that he fears that the same thing would happen to Rose. LikeSilent Hill,the Baby Monster sequence inResident Evil Villageutilizes a character’s guilt and trauma to deliver great horror. Additionally, it demonstrated how Capcom adaptedSilent Hill’stried and tested psychological horror formula and seamlessly combined it withResident Evil’ssci-fi setting. In the end, it resulted in one ofthe most brilliant and creepiest moments inResident Evilhistory.
Resident Evil Villageis out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
