In 1996, Resident Evil started as a survival horror game that eventually deviated into an action-shooter mixed with horror elements. This year marked the 20th anniversary for the series, which has expanded its story with new characters, organizations, and enemies. From viruses, parasites, and now a mysterious family straight out of a Rob Zombie film, Capcom is trying to keep the series fresh with new environments and gameplay.
Recently, Resident Evil 7: Beginning Hour was updated to the Twilight version which included subtle audiovisual changes, as well as new items to interact with, especially the mysterious mannequin finger. The official trailer for the game was also released with the demo update, which seems fairly reminiscent of the first Resident Evil remake trailer. Based on the gameplay and the trailer, it seems that Resident Evil 7 is returning to its roots—survival horror.
Twilight Version Demo
Looking back at the first Resident Evil games (RE, RE 2, and RE 3), a majority of suspense was built upon the obscure camera angles. With the sophistication of technology, most horror games are following the route of first person immersion rather than third person or over the shoulder gameplay. In Resident Evil 7, first person is implemented for higher immersion and to stress players into doubting what they see and hear as they explore the mansion. Fear based on non-diegetic sound is utilized beautifully in conjunction with the narrowing vision of first person. Players revisiting the Twilight version of the demo will be surprised that not much has changed, however, the subtle changes are still enough to instill doubt in a player’s actions.
Every Resident Evil game tends to have a connection to the main story, so how does RE 7 possibly fit in? Two tie-ins to the series are a photo of a Neo-Umbrella (or Umbrella) helicopter and a mysterious woman’s voice during a phone call. When players pick up the ringing phone in the attic, they are greeted with a feminine, sultry voice. The voice could possibly be the series’ femme fatale, Ada Wong since she accepted a new job at end of RE 6. Comparison of voice actors and intonation lead fans to believe that Ada will play a role in the new game. First introduced in RE 2, Ada Wong has aided the protagonist in the series, while remaining cryptic about her motives. Usually, her appearances are with Leon when he’s the protagonist, but so far no details on the protagonist have been revealed.
Keep in mind that the demo is only a stand-alone experience of Resident Evil 7 that will not be included in the full game. RE 7: Beginning Hour is a flavor of what is to be expected from the full game. Speculation for a third update to the demo seems likely as the release date draws near, so perhaps in the final update, there will be an actual use for the mannequin hand and finger combination, but we’ll just have to wait and speculate.
Tape-2 Trailer
With slightly more content added to the demo, the new trailer, called TAPE-2, has a lot more footage of the Baker’s and the mansion that players explore in the demo. Little gameplay footage is shown, but it’s enough to ascertain that there will be weapons or items for defense in the game and that chases may be a big proponent in gameplay. For the most part, hiding and running seems to play a role in environment, or level, progression. It’s possible that before a player can explore a new location of the house, the player will have to frantically navigate the new location while evading an enemy. Utilizing this tactic for environment progression would make sense in increasing player stress thereby maximizing fear from spatial unfamiliarity.
More background on the Baker’s is added in the new trailer, but not enough to fully understand their motives or how the protagonist will encounter the Baker’s. Resident Evil 7 follows the events after Resident Evil 6, so there may be a connection with the Baker’s and Neo-Umbrella or even the original Umbrella. If Capcom is trying to go back to its roots, then the first word that would come to mind is Umbrella.
In addition to all the new footage we got to see, the best part about the trailer is nostalgia’s warm embrace. There are a few similarities to the first Resident Evil by having the game located in a seemingly isolated mansion in the ‘Bayou’. Resident Evil was located in the Arklay Mountains at the Spencer Mansion, so whether or not the Baker’s Mansion will have an Umbrella laboratory within its grounds is unknown. A slow zoom into the interior of the Baker’s Mansion is reminiscent and somewhat symmetrical in appearance to the Spencer Mansion. Even outdoor scenes are mirrored from RE and RE 7, giving a sense of isolation from the world. With Capcom returning to its roots, plan to see more elements from RE in RE 7.
Conclusion
While Capcom is slowly releasing more content and trailers for RE 7, there is still an air of mystery and speculation leaving players wanting more. Stay tuned for a possible third update to the demo and third trailer in the next couple of months.
Resident Evil 7 is available on PlayStation 4, XbonOne, and PC on January 24th, 2017. Stay tuned to Noobist for more updates on Resident Evil 7: Beginning Hour!