Last week, Capcom hosted aResident Evilshowcase event that gave players an in-depth look atResident Evil Villagealongside thenew multiplayer game calledRe: Verse. Throughout the presentation, Capcom gave players an overview of what to expect fromResident Evil Village, its setting, characters, gameplay, and more.
However, one location that got the most attention from Capcom is the castle that appears to be the residence of the now popular vampire woman named Lady Dimitrescu. In the latest gameplay preview, players will see the extravagantly-furnished castle, which is heavily inspired by the Victorian-era. Veteran players of the franchise would also know all too well that this is not the first high-end residence featured inResident Evil, and the inclusion of this castle inResident Evil Villagegoes to show Capcom’s obsession with haunted mansions.
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Capcom’s Obsession With Haunted Residences
Although the entirety of the castle that players will be able to explore inResident Evil Villageremains to be seen, it is obvious that it bears a striking similarity with the iconic Spencer Mansion fromthe firstResident Evilgame. Capcom shows the lavishly designed castle filled with creeping hallways inspired by a Victorian-era aesthetic. However, instead of zombies and Hunters, the castle inResident Evil Villageappears to be crawling with female vampires set into consuming Ethan Winters' blood. It is worth noting that the Spencer Mansion and the castle fromResident Evil Villageare not the only high-end residences featured in the franchise. InResident Evil: Code Veronica, players explored the Ashford family mansion.
The mansion’s great hall is heavily inspired by the Spencer Mansion from the firstResident Evilgame, designed by the architect George Trevor. InResident Evil 5, Chris and Jill ventured into the Spencer Estate, another mansion owned by Umbrella founder Ozwell E. Spencer. InResident Evil 7,players ventured into the mansion of the Baker family. It is worth noting that while the Baker family’s home is not as lavishly designed as the previous examples, it still featured a large area filled with all sorts of hallways that gave players a claustrophobic feel. But what should players expect from the castle inResident Evil:Village? Based on the game’s preview, it is apparent that Capcom is paying homage to the game that started the franchise by filling the castle with puzzles that players would have to solve to explore other areas. The castle is the perfect setting for the survival-horror formula that madeResident Evila household name, giving players an idea of what a next-genResident Evil Remakecould look like.
Resident Evil Village Shows Shinji Mikami’s Original Concept for Resident Evil
The castle fromResident Evil Villageshows the original concept ofResident Evilcreator Shinji Mikamihad for the first game. Although it is crazy to think what the classicResident Evilgames would look like without the iconic fixed camera angles, it is worth noting that this was not the original idea of Mikami. According to interviews Mikami gave during the release of the first game, Capcom originally intended forResident Evilto be played from a first-person perspective. However, due to the limitations of gaming technology then, Mikami decided to place the 3D character models in pre-rendered backgrounds, which madeResident Evilstand out from games of the same genre.
Of course, given thatResident Evil Villageis played in the first person and is set in a location that is similar to the Spencer Mansion, players will be able to see what a remake of the first game could look like from a perspective that the original title was supposed to be in. It is unclear whether all of this was just a coincidence or whether Capcom intended all of this to happen in preparation for another remake ofResident Evil.
It is worth noting that Capcom is planning to make another reimagining of a classicResident Evilgame. Although the next remake would likely beResident Evil 4, the possibility ofa new remake of the firstResident Evilgame is not out of the cards yet, especially since Capcom has previously shown interest in revisiting the game that started it all.
Resident Evil Villagelaunches May 7th, 2021, for the PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
