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Resident Evil 7: Biohazard

Updated: Feb 22, 2023



The 1990s was considered one of the most revolutionary years in gaming history thanks to the advancement of technology and programming. As the 16-bit era came closer to an end, a new era started as many iconic franchises jumped from 2D to 3D. With new tools at their disposal developers came up with new expansive ideas for games, and some of those ideas helped create new genres. In 1996 specifically, Capcom released one of their most groundbreaking titles at the time, Resident Evil, a survival horror game that plopped the player into a dark creepy atmosphere with monsters popping around each corner. The player would not only have to figure out how to survive the hellish nightmare around them, but also manage their supplies and figure out where to go at the right time. Thanks to Capcom, Resident Evil would go on to inspire many other famous survival horror games like Silent Hill 2 and Dead Space, and create another multi-million dollar franchise. Each new Resident Evil title introduced something new to the formula, whether it be new mechanics or changing up the flow of combat.


It was considered a golden age for the Resident Evil series, but then Capcom changed. Capcom was slowly falling down the rabbit hole. Each new title they released felt more like a cash grab than pure effort, their most famous series were dying, developers were leaving the company left and right, and every step they took led them in the wrong direction. All hope was lost for Capcom, including the many properties they had worked up to build. Luckily not all was lost for the company, as Capcom took their time and decided to put their hearts towards their next latest projects. One of the many projects they had was Resident Evil 7, the entry that would step back towards the survival horror roots of the original games unlike the fifth and sixth game in the series. They had a demo which showed off the setting and graphics of the game and sadly people were confused with what Capcom was doing. Not only was Capcom falling downhill, but survival horror was also falling down in recent years, with titles like Dead Space 4 and Silent Hills being canceled or downgraded overtime. With run away horror games like Amnesia or Outlast rising in the video game market, true survival horror wasn’t really desired anymore. However Capcom stuck to the bright side and finally in 2017 they released the final product, and with surprise Resident Evil 7 was a massive success.


As marketed, the seventh game jumped back towards the roots everyone loved from the older games and had some pretty good storytelling from what some players said. People who bought Resident Evil 7 were able to tell Capcom knew what they were doing and luckily Capcom would rise up in the next few years. They redeemed some of their most iconic franchises with Devil May Cry 5, Mega Man 11, and their biggest successes being Monster Hunter World. Capcom was making a comeback and it was all thanks to a little bit of dedication and hiring the right developers for the job. Now let’s flash towards me and how I ended up playing Resident Evil 7.


One genre I’m not very familiar with is the horror genre. I never laid my hands on a horror game once, because I was afraid of what it would have to offer. The only time I saw a horror game in action was when my cousin invited me over to watch her play Amnesia: The Dark Descent, and I was still scared because I was young and I was busy hiding in the corner in fear. So it’s been some time now, I’ve grown older, and decided I wanted to try something new. I wanted to introduce myself to the horror genre and what better game to start off with than the Resident Evil series. I bought the seventh game specifically because it intrigued me the most and I’ve been waiting quite some time to play it. I slid the disc right into my Playstation 4, played the first few hours of the game, and then finished it the next day after. Resident Evil 7 is really damn good and reminds us why true survival horror is much better than the scripted horror we have today. I know most people at the moment are busy playing Resident Evil 2, but Resident Evil 7 sticks to survival horror roots without having to rely on nostalgia. Carving its own identity. Today we’ll be talking about why I love Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and why it deserves your attention. So grab your shotgun, open up to the doors leading to the dark decaying halls, and prepare to meet one hell of a family.


Story


It’s been a few months now. Three years actually as Ethan Winters hasn’t seen his wife Mia ever since she took a special job offer. At this point it is presumed that Mia is dead, but Ethan still believes that somewhere out there she is still alive. It is not until early 2017 that Ethan gets a mysterious email sent by what appears to be Mia in a crypt dead room. She tells Ethan whatever is going down is her workplace is very dangerous, some pretty bad stuff is happening to her, and whatever he does do not come and try to find her. Ethan, wanting to see the one he loves once again drives over to a mysterious house in the middle of nowhere where their email was sent, finds a way to sneak in, and searches the place to find Mia. Mia is found resting in the corner of the basement and when he confronts her she seems panicked. Ethan and her try to find a way out until they are eventually split up and Ethan tries to look for her. He is then attacked by what is presumably his wife now possessed and with black veins traveling along her body. Ethan’s hand is cut off while trying to run from Mia, but he finally puts her down using a handgun stashed in a nearby drawer.


He gets knocked out by a mysterious man and wakes up to find himself strapped down to a chair surrounded by what is a random southern family. He is surrounded by the three members of the Baker family. The owners of the manor he is currently trapped in. There is Jack Baker who is the father of the family, Margaret Baker who is the mother, and Lucas the son of the family. From what he could see before him at the dinner table the Baker family is a deranged group of lunatics devouring whatever flesh and guts they could harvest from unknown corpses. They are probably also responsible for the disappearance of several citizens in the area and will kill Ethan if he tries to escape their grasp like the rest of the kidnapped victims. Well that is what exactly happens.


Ethan escapes and now each member of the family is hunting him down, possess abilities beyond his comprehension, and weird moldy figures begin to emerge around the house. Something seems very wrong with this place as Ethan receives a call from a girl named Zoe, who tells him that things weren’t like this from the beginning and plans to help him escape from the Bakers. Zoe also plans to help Ethan rescue his wife Mia, and Ethan with no choices left agrees to work with Zoe and find a way out of the nightmare he is trapped in. Ethan must navigate his way through the Baker estate, fight fearsome monsters, and figure out what the hell is really going on. There is a darker secret lying behind it all. Watching Ethan and the others from afar.


Gameplay


Unlike most of the Resident Evil games before which either took place from a third person perspective or fixed camera angle, Resident Evil 7 takes place from a first person point of view, but don’t worry it all works for some odd reason. The first person view helps provide a sense of immersion and flesh out the cryptic manor you are trapped in. As you explore the cramped halls of the old Baker estate you’ll encounter many locked doors, puzzles, and obstacles that stand in your way. It’s up to your keen sense, skill, and knowledge to find a way around each problem and progress forward.


However things won’t be as simple as you think as there are monsters roaming around the halls and sometimes one of the Bakers will show up to hunt you down. Luckily you should have a weapon or two on you, and luckily they each play differently and come in handy during different situations. The knife can be used for close ranged combat but does minimal damage and is basically a last resort, the pistol can be used from a long range and has a good ammo capacity, the shotgun packs a powerful punch up close, etc. While you have a pretty effective arsenal you can’t just gun down everything in sight. Since it’s a survival horror game, ammo is scarce and finding the resources to craft more is equally scarce, plus you can’t just shoot a guy in the chest and expect him to die instantly. You have to line up your shots at the right spot, mainly at the head, so you can hit their weak point and take them down instantly. However some enemies won’t die during certain occasions, so it’s best to stun them and just run past them.


There are a ton of items to find scattered around the estate including ammo, crafting resources, and the items needed to progress However you have a carrying capacity, meaning you have to manage your inventory and decide what you need and don’t need. Luckily you can store supplies in chests which are usually found next to save points which are then usually found in safe rooms. Just remember: safe rooms are the places without enemies, are lit up, and don’t look f*cked up from the inside out. There are several crafting resources in the game and they are used to craft the necessities to survive. There is ammo for your guns like I stated earlier, different types of medicine which give you special perks for a short period of time, and first aid bottles which is the only way to heal in this game. It’s best to make a lot of those as your health doesn’t regenerate and you are kicked back to your last save whenever you die.


There are certain moments in the game where you have to hide or sneak past stuff. Resident Evil 7 has an even blend of survival action and horror. It knows when to make the player stressed out with cryptic horror and make them fight back by giving them no better options than to confront their fears. Maybe that’s why games like Amnesia and Outlast haven't aged as well as we expected. Sure they provide a good scare, leave us completely defenseless, and give us no choice but to run. However, this is part of the problem. Run and hiding transforms into a game of trial and error after awhile, and certain scripted sequences won’t work during a second playthrough.


In Resident Evil 7 most decisions matter, because you don’t know if coming unprepared for a major boss fight will be the reason why you died to a razor sharp claw attack. Should you save up supplies just in case of a boss fight? Wait until enemies lurk past you? That’s what it means to be a survival horror game. Not hiding in a closet. If you read all this, great job. You're one step ahead to understanding the main premise of Resident Evil and how the series work. Hopefully with your wits and careful planning you should be able to save Mia and survive the longest night of your life.


Thoughts


Resident Evil 7: Biohazard was a joy to play through from beginning to end. This is the first horror game I ever laid my hands on and it has already impressed me. It has tight and precise controls allowing you to carefully navigate corridors and make your shots as accurate as possible. The first person perspective really immerses the world the player is in. The developers put a lot of time into the story and world of this game, but the plot doesn’t do anything outstanding. The plot treads an almost identical plotline to one of the greatest survival horror games of all time, Silent Hill 2. Wife is either dead or missing, the main character gets a letter, goes to a mysterious location, and weird stuff starts to happen. However, there is an exception for Resident Evil. Rather than get an over the top action packed story we get something more laid back. We get a main character who is actually relatable and does a good job depicting how we, a real human being, would react in such a dire situation. We aren’t punching boulders or kicking everything we see. We’re just a normal guy who can die at any moment.


The characters are well presented to the player, especially the main psychopaths of the game. The scene where you sit around a dinner table and watch them scream at each other is a great introduction for what madness is to come. The story does a good job revealing answers over time and making the player ask what is really going on. The game doesn’t overstay its welcome as it should last up too or less than ten solid hours. Graphics are pretty good, although they can look fuzzy at times. Yet again, Capcom is using their own homemade engine which was new at the time, so it’s understandable why the game isn’t so polished as other Triple A releases. The game is pretty scary, but personally for me I no longer felt scared once they started handing me piles upon piles of guns and ammo. Look if you're going to hand me a flamethrower and grenade launcher around the third major area then I don’t know what to say anymore. There is a decent amount of replay value to this game, especially with Madhouse difficulty. Madhouse changes item placement, how early stronger enemies appear, how much damage you take, and even makes it so that you need cassette tapes to save.


However the reveals and puzzles are what wear off on future playthroughs. Go through it once and it’s fine, but go through it twice and everything is predictable cause you know what happens. The last few sections of RE7 is what really dragged down the overall experience. The levels are too restrictive unlike the Baker estate which was more interconnected and open, and in some ways it was too easy. By then you should have a lot of ammo and if not the game just generously gives you a bunch. The game also hands over a lot of trigger bombs near the end and the final boss which I won’t spoil is literally a wall of flesh you shoot at for a few seconds before it turns into a floating wall of flesh you shoot like three times and then the game ends.


Besides those issues, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard is a good return to form to what made Resident Evil so entertaining back in the day and I can highly recommend it to anyone who wants to get into the Resident Evil series or the survival horror genre in general. It stands out thanks to its setting and grotesque horror, and just playing it once will make you feel amazed. I cannot wait to see where Capcom takes the series next and will definitely get to Resident Evil 2 Remake at some point to see what lies next for the series. In the end I give Resident Evil 7: Biohazard a 9/10 for excellence at best.


9/10, Excellence

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